County · Illinois

Fayette County, Illinois

Fayette County, Illinois. Fayette County had 20,790 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 3.3% since 2020, a steeper fall than Illinois's (−0.8%). It holds 28 places (7 cities, villages and boroughs, 20 towns and townships and 1 census-designated) and 7 census tracts. GEOID 17051.

Residents, July 2025 estimate

20,790

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 21,488 · ACS 2020-2024: 21,315

Median household income

$60,944

±$3,842 (90% margin)
Illinois: $83,390

Median home value

$130,700

±$9,309 (90% margin)
Illinois: $263,300

Median gross rent

$798

±$56 (90% margin)
Illinois: $1,274

How many people live in Fayette County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 21,488 residents in Fayette County. The Census Bureau estimates 20,790 for July 1, 2025, down 3.3% since 2020, a steeper fall than Illinois's (−0.8%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 21,315 over 716 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −413 (21,070)
2021→2022 +49 (21,119)
2022→2023 −86 (21,033)
2023→2024 −79 (20,954)
2024→2025 −164 (20,790)

Fayette County in Illinois. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Fayette County	Illinois	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	21,315	12,694,798	−250
Households	7,814±188	5,036,449	no clear change
Average household size	2.60±0.06	2.46	no clear change
Housing units	8,808±77	5,457,452	−507

Fayette County's population since 2000

From 21,802 in 2000 to 20,790 in 2025: down 4.6%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 21,802
2005 (estimate) 21,848
2010 Census 22,140
2015 (estimate) 22,048
2020 Census 21,488
2025 (estimate) 20,790

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Fayette County?

Fayette County holds 28 places: 7 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places), 20 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government) and 1 census-designated place. The largest is Vandalia with 7,108 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Fayette County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Vandalia	city	7,458	5,796±278	$45,469	$98,500	22.2%	100%
Vandalia Township	township	6,364	6,275±16	$50,709	$109,400	19.8%	100%
Sharon TownshipGEOID 1705169017	township	2,968	3,006±16	$106,727	$222,400	15.1%	100%
Avena Township	township	1,897	1,888±288	$51,023	$96,000	20.0%	100%
Ramsey Township	township	1,665	2,072±348	$55,357	$71,300	18.0%	100%
Otego Township	township	1,445	1,306±259	$54,286	$130,900	18.2%	100%
St. Elmo	city	1,254	1,257±250	$45,294	$82,600	27.8%	100%
Ramsey	village	911	1,094±259	$53,375	$65,800	17.5%	100%
Loudon Township	township	881	947±231	$56,927	$186,200	11.3%	100%
La Clede Township	township	844	788±230	$48,125	$75,000	7.7%	100%
Brownstown	village	690	722±219	$53,000	$72,900	19.8%	100%
Lone Grove Township	township	632	600±127	$66,635	$136,100	7.7%	100%
Sefton TownshipGEOID 1705168549	township	559	420±107	$62,500	$135,200	1.2%	100%
Bear Grove TownshipGEOID 1705104377	township	553	602±296	not published	$133,200	2.5%	100%
FarinaGEOID 1725375	village	540	570±197	$46,146	$83,800	10.7%	100%
Wilberton TownshipGEOID 1705181568	township	522	457±170	$65,400	$166,100	28.4%	100%
Kaskaskia TownshipGEOID 1705139116	township	517	315±120	$62,656	$102,500	17.8%	100%
Wheatland Township, Fayette CountyGEOID 1705181022	township	496	405±179	$63,750	$275,000	1.5%	100%
Seminary TownshipGEOID 1705168601	township	482	636±198	$39,617	$193,800	7.2%	100%
Shafter TownshipGEOID 1705168926	township	466	753±287	$93,125	$291,300	6.9%	100%
Bowling Green TownshipGEOID 1705107562	township	412	168±75	$63,553	$131,300	8.9%	100%
St. Peter	village	322	338±96	$63,500	$99,600	10.4%	100%
Pope TownshipGEOID 1705161106	township	235	149±87	not published	not published	2.7%	100%
Hurricane TownshipGEOID 1705136802	township	222	162±80	$96,429	not published	11.7%	100%
South Hurricane TownshipGEOID 1705170876	township	220	261±129	$60,500	$133,000	23.0%	100%
La CledeGEOID 1740520	CDP	113	135±112	$43,641	$63,000	0.0%	100%
Carson TownshipGEOID 1705111501	township	108	105±114	$122,857	$226,200	5.7%	100%
BinghamGEOID 1706028	village	60	63±52	not published	not published	57.1%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Fayette County?

The median resident of Fayette County is 41.9 years old; 20.4% are under 18 and 19.5% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 88.3%, then non-Hispanic residents of two or more races at 5.0%. 0.9% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Fayette County	Illinois	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	41.9±0.8	39.0	no clear change
Under 18 years	20.4%±0.2 pts	21.8%	–
65 years and over	19.5%±0.6 pts	17.0%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	3.0%	18.8%	+1.1 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	88.3%±0.2 pts	58.1%	−3.8 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	3.2%±0.9 pts	13.3%	−1.5 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.2 pts	5.9%	–
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.3%±0.4 pts	0.1%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	5.0%±0.9 pts	3.4%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.2 pts	0.4%	–
Born outside the United States	0.9%±0.4 pts	14.7%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	4.5%±1.3 pts	24.0%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	6.7%±0.9 pts	4.8%	–
With a disability	18.1%±1.7 pts	12.1%	–
No health insurance coverage	7.3%±1.7 pts	6.9%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	87.3%±2.1 pts	90.5%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	17.2%±2.3 pts	37.8%	+5.9 pts
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	5.1%±1.2 pts	15.3%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.9%±1.6 pts	1.6%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Fayette County earn?

Half of Fayette County's 7,814 households earn less than $60,944 a year (±$3,842), against $83,390 in Illinois. In 2015-2019 it was $57,412 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 15.5% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Fayette County	Illinois	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$60,944±$3,842	$83,390	no clear change
Mean household income	$80,392±$4,972	$115,638	–
Per capita income	$32,197±$1,813	$46,406	+$3,652
People below the poverty line	15.5%±2.6 pts	11.8%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	22.5%±8.4 pts	15.1%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	11.6%±2.0 pts	13.8%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	83.9%±2.5 pts	90.8%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Fayette County?

Owners occupy 80.6% of Fayette County's occupied homes and renters 19.4%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $130,700 by its owner (±$9,309). The median renter pays $798 a month including utilities, and 42.4% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Fayette County	Illinois	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$130,700±$9,309	$263,300	+$22,030
Median gross rent	$798±$56	$1,274	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	42.4%±10.5 pts	39.0%	+13.3 pts
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,192±$78	$1,987	–
Owner-occupied homes	80.6%±2.6 pts	67.1%	no clear change
Housing units	8,808±77	5,457,452	−507
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.7%±0.6 pts	1.0%	–
Rental vacancy rate	12.4%±4.4 pts	5.0%	–
Single-family detached homes	80.1%±2.5 pts	58.2%	–
Mobile homes	11.9%±1.8 pts	2.3%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.3%±0.3 pts	0.7%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	21.7%±2.1 pts	20.2%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Fayette County building?

Builders took permits for 3 new housing units across Fayette County in 2025 (3 single-family), 0.1 per 1,000 residents.

2019 3 units
2020 3 units
2021 3 units
2022 5 units
2023 3 units
2024 2 units
2025 3 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Fayette County get to work?

79.3% of Fayette County's workers drive alone and 7.1% work from home. The average trip to work takes 25.5 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 3.8%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Fayette County	Illinois	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	54.8%±2.3 pts	65.0%	–
Unemployment rate	3.8%±1.3 pts	5.8%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	79.3%±3.0 pts	65.9%	–
Carpooled	10.4%±2.7 pts	7.8%	–
Public transportation	0.3%±0.3 pts	5.8%	–
Walked	1.6%±0.7 pts	2.8%	–
Worked from home	7.1%±1.9 pts	15.9%	+5.0 pts
Mean travel time to work	25.5 min±1.3	27.8 min	+3.3 min

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Fayette County's census tracts?

Fayette County is divided into 7 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $41,795 (Tract 9509) to $83,214 (Tract 9507).

Census tracts of Fayette County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 950517051950500	St. Elmo (43%)	2,670	2,685±290	$52,273	$124,100	$753	17.7%
Tract 950617051950600	Brownstown (19%)	2,328	2,443±454	$63,750	$133,200	$879	17.7%
Tract 950717051950700	Ramsey (17%)	3,913	5,828±584	$83,214	$151,200	$1,072	12.1%
Tract 950817051950800	Vandalia (96%)	5,600	3,998±285	$50,245	$115,900	$793	23.3%
Tract 950917051950900	Vandalia (92%)	2,031	1,854±252	$41,795	$82,400	$737	19.5%
Tract 951017051951000	Vandalia (4%)	2,045	1,811±244	$63,542	$141,100	not published	7.5%
Tract 951117051951100	Farina (16%)	2,901	2,696±317	$65,023	$152,000	$765	12.0%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Fayette County compare with Illinois's other counties?

Fayette County's rank among Illinois's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	54th of 102
Growth 2020-2025	70th of 102
Residents per square mile	75th of 102
Median household income	79th of 102
Median home value	57th of 102
Median gross rent	59th of 102
Poverty rate	22nd of 102
Bachelor's degree or higher	85th of 102
Median age	57th of 102

Every county in Illinois

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Fayette County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.