County facts · Population · October 25, 2026
Oregon Population by County, 2025 Census Estimates
Oregon population by county: July 2025 Census estimates for all 36 counties, change since 2020, density, and a link to each official parcel map.
Looking for Oregon population by county? The Census Bureau estimates that Oregon had 4,273,586 residents on July 1, 2025, spread across 36 counties. Multnomah County is the most populous, with 795,391 people (19% of the state), and Wheeler County is the least populous, with 1,472.
The table below lists every county with its 2025 estimate, its April 2020 starting point, the change, people per square mile, and a link to its official parcel viewer.
Oregon population at a glance
- Counties: 36
- Statewide, July 1, 2025: 4,273,586 (April 1, 2020 estimates base: 4,237,282; change +36,304, +0.9%)
- Most populous: Multnomah County (795,391); least populous: Wheeler County (1,472)
- Median county: about 45,781 residents (half of the counties are smaller)
- The 5 largest counties hold 60% of all Oregon residents
- Counties with 1,000,000+ residents: 0 · 100,000+: 10 · under 10,000: 7
- Statewide density: about 45 people per square mile of land
Oregon population by county, July 2025 (all 36)
Percent change runs from the April 1, 2020 estimates base to July 1, 2025. People per square mile is the July 2025 estimate divided by the county's land area in the Census Bureau's 2020 Gazetteer file, so lakes and bays are left out.
How Oregon's population is spread out
Grouping the counties by size shows how concentrated the state is:
| Residents (July 2025) | Counties | Total residents | Share of state |
|---|---|---|---|
| 250,000 to 999,999 | 5 | 2,570,740 | 60% |
| 100,000 to 249,999 | 5 | 789,685 | 18% |
| 25,000 to 99,999 | 15 | 801,829 | 19% |
| 10,000 to 24,999 | 4 | 75,601 | 2% |
| Under 10,000 | 7 | 35,731 | 1% |
5 counties with at least 250,000 residents hold 60% of the state's population.
Most and least densely populated
The most crowded counties by people per square mile of land:
- Multnomah County: 1,845 per sq mi (795,391 people on 431 sq mi)
- Washington County: 845 per sq mi (611,708 people on 724 sq mi)
- Marion County: 301 per sq mi (355,777 people on 1,181 sq mi)
- Clackamas County: 228 per sq mi (426,280 people on 1,871 sq mi)
- Yamhill County: 154 per sq mi (110,024 people on 716 sq mi)
The most thinly settled:
- Harney County: 0.7 per sq mi (7,380 people on 10,134 sq mi)
- Wheeler County: 0.9 per sq mi (1,472 people on 1,716 sq mi)
- Lake County: 1.0 per sq mi (8,187 people on 8,139 sq mi)
- Grant County: 1.6 per sq mi (7,075 people on 4,528 sq mi)
- Gilliam County: 1.6 per sq mi (1,971 people on 1,205 sq mi)
About these numbers
- They are estimates. Between censuses the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program updates county totals each year from births, deaths and migration records. The next full count is the 2030 census.
- The base is April 1, 2020. The estimates start from an April 1, 2020 "estimates base" built from the 2020 census, which is why it is slightly different from the published census count.
- Each new release revises the past. A newer vintage can change earlier years as well, so compare numbers from the same release, as this page does.
- Statewide total. The counties add up exactly to the statewide figure of 4,273,586 in the same file.
Using population numbers in a land search
- Big counties, busy offices. In the most populous counties, parcel maps and deed records are usually online and searchable, but recording and permit offices are busier. Allow for that if you are on a deadline.
- Small counties, fewer sales. In counties with only a few thousand people, land changes hands less often, so there are fewer recent sales to compare a price with. Recorded deeds and the local assessor's sales records are the best source.
- Density hints at lot size. A low people-per-square-mile figure usually means farms, ranches and timber tracts; a high one means subdivided lots. The parcel viewer shows the actual parcel lines.
- Check the official map. Use the parcel viewer link in the table for boundaries, parcel numbers and owner names, then confirm anything important with the local assessor and the office that records deeds.
Related guides
- Fastest growing counties in Oregon
- Largest counties in Oregon
- Oregon county GIS websites by viewer
- Oregon plat maps
- Oregon landowner maps for hunting
- Most populous counties in the US
- Where people are moving in the US
More: All Oregon counties on Platbookmapper
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, county totals, Vintage 2025 (April 1, 2020 estimates base and July 1, 2020–2025 estimates, with components of change). Statewide totals are the sum of the counties and match the file's state row.
- U.S. Census Bureau Gazetteer files, 2020 county land and water area (for people per square mile).
- Platbookmapper county GIS directory (live data file behind our county pages, pulled October 25, 2026) for each official parcel viewer.