City profile · Florida · Census ACS 2023

Fort Myers, FL

Population, income, housing, safety, climate and schools for Fort Myers — drawn straight from Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA, NCES, HUD and FEMA, refreshed on the 2024–2025 release cycle.

91,730
Residents
$62,160
Median income
$351,600
Median home
$1,526
Median rent

Data Snapshot: Fort Myers, FL

Fort Myers is a city in Florida with a population of 91,730 residents based on U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Median household income here reaches $62,160 per year, while the poverty rate sits at 12.3%. Typical homes in Fort Myers are valued around $351,600, and the median resident age is 40.3 years. About 32.1% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 53.3% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 1,721 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Slowing), down 13% from five years earlier.

On a cost-of-living index where 100 equals the national average, Florida registers 103.4 (Near Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,526 per month. Average monthly utility bills run around $225 based on EIA 2023 residential energy data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 75.7 out of 100 (High).

According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, PlainCities renders standardized city-level demographic, income, education, employment, and housing indicators across more than 19,000 incorporated places nationwide. Population counts and median household income figures are sourced directly from Census Table B01003 and B19013 respectively, with poverty rates from B17001 and cost-of-living adjustments from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Regional Price Parities (RPP) 2024 release. Every value displayed in this snapshot links back to the official upstream tables and is refreshed on the ACS annual release cadence (typically December of the survey year + 1).

Methodology: city boundaries follow the Census Bureau's place-level geography (incorporated places, census-designated places, and consolidated city-county governments), with FIPS codes ensuring consistent identifiers across decennial and annual surveys. Cost-of-living comparisons use BEA's Regional Price Parities (RPP) indexed to the national average (100), enabling cross-city purchasing-power comparisons. See our methodology page for full source attribution, refresh cadence, and known data quality limitations including margin-of-error disclosure and sample-size thresholds.

Population

91,730 residents

Census ACS 2023 — Florida

Median Household Income

$62,160 /yr

Poverty 12.3%

Cost of Living Index

103.4 (US=100)

Near Average — BEA RPP 2024

How does Fort Myers compare to other US cities?

Where Fort Myers sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure — computed live from Census and FBI data.

Household income 39% higher than other cities
Home value 72% pricier than other cities
Median rent 73% pricier than other cities

Percentiles compare Fort Myers against every US city with at least 1,000 residents. "Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.

Income distribution context

Household income distribution — Fort Myers, FL Quintile shares of aggregate household income for Fort Myers, FL. The Lorenz curve traces cumulative income share against cumulative population share — perfect equality is the diagonal; observed inequality bows below. $ Household Income Distribution Fort Myers, FL — median $62,160/yr — Census ACS quintile shares QUINTILE SHARE OF AGGREGATE INCOME Lowest 20% 3.4% Second 20% 9.2% Middle 20% 15.1% Fourth 20% 23.2% Top 20% 49.1% LORENZ CURVE cumulative income vs. population 100% 0% 100% pop. 0%
Household income distribution for Fort Myers, FL — Census ACS 5-year estimates. Diagonal = perfect equality.

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 32.1%

Census ACS S1501 — educational attainment

Poverty rate (households below FPL) 12.3%

Census ACS S1701 — poverty status

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 53.3%

Census ACS S2301 — share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
91,730
Median Income
$62,160
Median Home Value
$351,600
Median Age
40.3
Poverty Rate
12.3%
Labor force participation
53.3%
Bachelor's Degree+
32.1%

Schools

Total Schools
45
Public schools in this city

Housing Supply

Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) — annual residential permits authorized

🏗️ Slowing
Total Permits (2024)
1,721
housing units authorized
Single-Family
229
detached homes
Multifamily
1,492
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
18.8
permits per 1,000 residents

5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)

Year Total
2019 1,978
2020 3,105
2021 1,137
2022 1,461
2023 1,447
2024 1,721

Permit volume decreased 13% from 2019 to 2024.

Commute Patterns

How workers travel to work — Census ACS 2023

Drive Alone
69.5%
Carpool
12.3%
Public Transit
1.3%
Walk
1.5%
Work from Home
12.9%
Other
2.5%

Based on 39,145 workers 16 and over.

Monthly Utility Costs

State-average estimates for Florida — EIA 2023 residential energy data

Electricity
$145
avg/month
Natural Gas
$25
avg/month
Water & Sewer
$55
avg/month
Total Utilities
$225
estimated/month

Estimates reflect Florida state averages. Actual costs vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.

Living Costs & Risk

Florida state-level data from PlainCost, PlainRent, and PlainHazard

Cost of Living Index
103.4
Near Average
US average = 100 · BEA RPP 2024
Typical 2-BR Rent
$1,526/mo
HUD Fair Market Rent
State-level FMR estimate
Natural Hazard Risk
75.7 / 100
High
FEMA NRI composite score

Race & Ethnicity Composition

Race and ethnicity — Fort Myers, FL Race categories sum to one hundred percent per Census methodology. Hispanic or Latino is shown separately as an ethnicity overlay; it cuts across all race categories per OMB Directive 15. Race & Ethnicity Composition Fort Myers, FL — Census ACS, OMB race + ethnicity categories RACE — sums to 100% 59.5% 12.1% 6.1% 10.6% 10.3% ETHNICITY — Hispanic or Latino (any race) 18.7% White 59.5% Black or African American 12.1% Asian 6.1% American Indian 1.2% Native Hawaiian 0.2% Some other race 10.6% Two or more races 10.3% Per OMB Directive 15: Hispanic/Latino ethnicity is reported separately from the race categories.
Race categories sum to 100%. Hispanic or Latino ethnicity is reported separately and cuts across race per Census/OMB methodology.

National-average reference values shown when city-level race/ethnicity table is not loaded. Source: Census ACS 5-year, OMB Directive 15 race-and-ethnicity categories.

How Fort Myers compares to nearby Florida cities

Census ACS 2023 — population and median income benchmarks

Side-by-side population + income comparison anchored on the current city (Fort Myers) plus the nearest peer cities in Florida, sourced from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 (population) and B19013 (median household income).
Selected

FL

Fort Myers

62.16% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$62,160
Brackets
92
Selected

FL

Alafaya

65.00% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$9,090
Brackets
91
Selected

FL

Plantation

65.00% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$9,400
Brackets
94
Selected

FL

Palm Coast

65.00% top marginal rate
Structure
Progressive
Burden @ $100K
$9,440
Brackets
94
Census ACS 5-year FIPS FL NCES CCD Census BPS 2024 OMB Bulletin 23-01

What do people ask about Fort Myers, FL?

What is the population of Fort Myers, FL? +

Fort Myers, FL has a population of 91,730 according to U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.

What is the median household income in Fort Myers, FL? +

The median household income in Fort Myers is $62,160 per year, based on Census ACS 2023 data.

What is the cost of living in Fort Myers? +

Fort Myers has a cost of living index of 103.4 (U.S. average = 100), rated "Near Average" based on BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 data.

What is the median home value in Fort Myers, FL? +

The median home value in Fort Myers is $351,600, according to Census ACS 2023 estimates.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.

Related

Data sourced from official U.S. government datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities Editorial

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