county

Barnwell County, SC

Demographic and economic profile of Barnwell County, SC, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Barnwell County is a small rural county of 20,565 residents with a labor force participation rate of just 56.0% and an unemployment rate of 7.2%, reflecting a constrained workforce where only 12.8% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Median household income stands at $46,626, with a poverty rate of 28.5% and a median home value of $97,200, pointing to a low-cost operating environment. The county's population has contracted 4.7% over five years, and GDP per capita of $24,762 trails median worker earnings of $35,214, underscoring structural economic limitations in the area.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

20,565

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$46,626

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

40.4 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-4.7% since 2018

Barnwell County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone10,716 (52.2%)
  • Black or African American Alone8,783 (42.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races527 (2.6%)
  • Some Other Race Alone302 (1.5%)
  • Asian Alone120 (0.6%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race42 (0.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish308
  2. 2.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic105
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic57
  4. 4.Other Asian and Pacific Island51
  5. 5.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)21

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

23.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

57.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

18.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

2.4%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,118

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$24,762

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$26,141

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

7.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

28.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,688
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)1,245
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services964
  4. 4.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services839
  5. 5.Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities779

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,103
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations1,992
  3. 3.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,826
  4. 4.Service Occupations1,798
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations985

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Manufacturing (LQ 1.88×)1,589
  2. 2.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 1.77×)240
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.35×)1,004
  4. 4.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.25×)621
  5. 5.Public Administration (LQ 1.18×)472

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$97,200

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$695/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

70.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,999619 (10.8%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999567 (9.8%)
  • $80,000 to $89,999433 (7.5%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999430 (7.5%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999422 (7.3%)
  • Less Than $10,000324 (5.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

12.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

80.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

56.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,214

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

27.2 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

11.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone6,980 (82.0%)
  • Carpooled857 (10.1%)
  • Worked At Home357 (4.2%)
  • Public Transit187 (2.2%)
  • Walked47 (0.6%)
  • Other46 (0.5%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.