County · Maine

Hancock County, Maine

Hancock County, Maine. Hancock County had 57,171 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, up 3.0% since 2020, slower than Maine (+3.8%). It holds 44 places (1 city, village or borough, 36 towns and townships and 7 census-designated) and 18 census tracts. GEOID 23009.

Residents, July 2025 estimate

57,171

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 55,478 · ACS 2020-2024: 56,460

Median household income

$72,744

±$3,276 (90% margin)
Maine: $74,733

Median home value

$310,400

±$13,318 (90% margin)
Maine: $296,600

Median gross rent

$1,061

±$71 (90% margin)
Maine: $1,139

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

The 2020 Census counted 55,478 residents in Hancock County. The Census Bureau estimates 57,171 for July 1, 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, slower than Maine (+3.8%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 56,460 over 1,587 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 +837 (56,349)
2021→2022 +287 (56,636)
2022→2023 +229 (56,865)
2023→2024 +265 (57,130)
2024→2025 +41 (57,171)

Hancock County in Maine. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Hancock County	Maine	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	56,460	1,387,817	+1,859
Households	25,572±629	597,159	+1,911
Average household size	2.14±0.05	2.26	−0.10
Housing units	40,765±57	751,876	−495

Hancock County's population since 2000

From 51,791 in 2000 to 57,171 in 2025: up 10.4%. 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 51,791
2005 (estimate) 53,745
2010 Census 54,418
2015 (estimate) 54,280
2020 Census 55,478
2025 (estimate) 57,171

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 Hancock County?

Hancock County holds 44 places: 1 city, village or borough (an incorporated place), 36 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government) and 7 census-designated places. The largest is Ellsworth with 8,862 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 Hancock County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Ellsworth	city	8,399	8,657±20	$77,375	$242,300	9.3%	100%
Bar Harbor	town	5,089	5,244±15	$77,180	$538,400	10.1%	100%
Bucksport	town	4,944	5,016±14	$64,720	$252,300	6.7%	100%
Bucksport CDP	CDP	2,832	3,105±535	$62,011	$214,300	6.7%	100%
Blue Hill	town	2,792	2,813±15	$80,377	$399,500	4.7%	100%
Hancock	town	2,466	2,518±25	$72,285	$276,800	8.2%	100%
Bar Harbor CDP	CDP	2,260	2,296±394	$67,701	$626,900	14.4%	100%
Orland	town	2,221	1,915±397	$69,348	$277,100	7.1%	100%
Deer Isle	town	2,194	2,470±285	$62,284	$308,300	19.1%	100%
Mount Desert	town	2,146	1,671±217	$92,813	$522,100	7.4%	100%
Southwest Harbor	town	1,756	1,553±330	$59,205	$428,500	9.3%	100%
Lamoine	town	1,720	1,782±242	$88,542	$324,800	8.9%	100%
Gouldsboro	town	1,703	1,615±244	$60,873	$276,800	7.2%	100%
Dedham	town	1,648	1,656±178	$111,442	$356,400	9.0%	100%
Surry	town	1,632	1,836±328	$74,508	$296,300	7.0%	100%
Trenton	town	1,584	1,599±236	$60,455	$357,400	18.2%	100%
Franklin	town	1,567	1,628±279	$65,455	$245,800	15.7%	100%
Tremont	town	1,544	1,508±229	$88,803	$407,000	6.6%	100%
Castine	town	1,320	1,362±167	$113,750	$603,500	14.1%	100%
Sullivan	town	1,219	1,246±250	$59,643	$222,000	13.6%	100%
Sedgwick	town	1,202	1,274±296	$70,446	$336,200	16.9%	100%
Penobscot	town	1,136	1,154±154	$63,194	$296,400	16.0%	100%
Stonington	town	1,056	840±162	$60,223	$306,700	10.8%	100%
Castine CDPGEOID 2311230	CDP	1,014	996±139	$168,516	$798,800	0.7%	100%
Blue Hill CDPGEOID 2305665	CDP	963	799±323	not published	$384,800	12.2%	100%
Brooksville	town	935	853±154	$56,316	$390,900	8.1%	100%
Brooklin	town	827	869±116	$68,750	$339,400	7.7%	100%
Southwest Harbor CDP	CDP	740	566±223	$33,958	$277,100	15.1%	100%
Otis	town	673	705±221	$101,250	$282,500	7.8%	100%
Verona Island	town	507	481±137	$61,607	$243,600	11.4%	100%
Mariaville	town	472	724±124	$66,027	$215,400	9.9%	100%
Winter Harbor	town	461	493±139	$86,250	$210,500	3.9%	100%
Eastbrook	town	424	742±193	$69,018	$300,700	21.2%	100%
Winter Harbor CDPGEOID 2386620	CDP	385	371±130	$86,667	$240,300	2.2%	100%
Northeast HarborGEOID 2351095	CDP	370	419±221	$92,415	$729,700	12.6%	100%
Swans Island	town	355	438±123	$86,250	$316,700	1.1%	100%
Waltham	town	332	346±84	$71,071	$181,300	19.7%	100%
Sorrento	town	279	345±123	$83,438	$298,800	5.8%	100%
Amherst	town	248	424±95	$72,656	$210,200	6.1%	100%
Cranberry Isles	town	160	196±59	$65,000	$439,100	4.6%	100%
AuroraGEOID 2300902165	town	93	132±55	not published	$189,400	15.2%	100%
OsbornGEOID 2300955855	town	65	88±39	$127,083	$218,100	9.1%	100%
Great PondGEOID 2300928975	town	61	42±16	$22,292	$197,900	14.3%	100%
FrenchboroGEOID 2300926595	town	29	30±20	$42,250	not published	6.7%	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 Hancock County?

The median resident of Hancock County is 49.0 years old; 16.2% are under 18 and 26.6% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 92.6%, then non-Hispanic residents of two or more races at 2.8%. 3.3% 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	Hancock County	Maine	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	49.0±0.2	44.8	no clear change
Under 18 years	16.2%	18.1%	–
65 years and over	26.6%±0.1 pts	22.4%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	1.9%	2.2%	+0.4 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	92.6%±0.3 pts	89.9%	−2.1 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	1.0%±0.2 pts	1.8%	no clear change
Asian alone, not Hispanic	1.0%±0.2 pts	1.1%	no clear change
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.4%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	2.8%±0.4 pts	4.2%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.4%±0.2 pts	0.4%	–
Born outside the United States	3.3%±0.5 pts	4.1%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	3.3%±0.5 pts	6.0%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	8.0%±0.7 pts	8.4%	–
With a disability	15.1%±0.9 pts	15.8%	–
No health insurance coverage	9.6%±1.2 pts	6.2%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	95.6%±0.7 pts	94.8%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	40.1%±1.7 pts	36.2%	+6.0 pts
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	15.2%±1.2 pts	13.7%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	2.7%±0.8 pts	2.7%	–

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 Hancock County earn?

Half of Hancock County's 25,572 households earn less than $72,744 a year (±$3,276), against $74,733 in Maine. In 2015-2019 it was $70,369 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 9.9% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Hancock County	Maine	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$72,744±$3,276	$74,733	no clear change
Mean household income	$97,122±$4,593	$100,102	–
Per capita income	$44,241±$2,005	$43,742	no clear change
People below the poverty line	9.9%±1.1 pts	10.7%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	11.4%±2.5 pts	13.1%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	8.4%±1.2 pts	12.0%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	91.2%±1.2 pts	90.3%	–

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 Hancock County?

Owners occupy 78.5% of Hancock County's occupied homes and renters 21.5%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $310,400 by its owner (±$13,318). The median renter pays $1,061 a month including utilities, and 39.3% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Hancock County	Maine	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$310,400±$13,318	$296,600	+$48,631
Median gross rent	$1,061±$71	$1,139	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	39.3%±6.8 pts	37.9%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,673±$51	$1,729	–
Owner-occupied homes	78.5%±1.7 pts	74.3%	no clear change
Housing units	40,765±57	751,876	−495
Homeowner vacancy rate	1.3%±0.7 pts	0.7%	–
Rental vacancy rate	6.7%±2.6 pts	4.2%	–
Single-family detached homes	80.9%±1.4 pts	70.0%	–
Mobile homes	7.4%±0.9 pts	8.2%	–
Built 2020 or later	1.2%±0.4 pts	1.4%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	22.1%±1.4 pts	22.9%	–

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 Hancock County building?

Builders took permits for 318 new housing units across Hancock County in 2025 (278 single-family), 5.6 per 1,000 residents.

2019 211 units
2020 254 units
2021 338 units
2022 265 units
2023 405 units
2024 259 units
2025 318 units

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

How do people in Hancock County get to work?

68.2% of Hancock County's workers drive alone and 13.7% work from home. The average trip to work takes 25.4 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 4.6%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Hancock County	Maine	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	60.0%±1.3 pts	61.7%	–
Unemployment rate	4.6%±1.0 pts	3.8%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	68.2%±2.3 pts	70.8%	–
Carpooled	11.9%±1.5 pts	7.9%	–
Public transportation	0.5%±0.2 pts	0.5%	–
Walked	4.3%±0.9 pts	3.4%	–
Worked from home	13.7%±1.7 pts	15.9%	+6.5 pts
Mean travel time to work	25.4 min±1.2	24.6 min	+1.7 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 Hancock County's census tracts?

Hancock County is divided into 18 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $61,613 (Tract 9666) to $106,094 (Tract 9652).

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

Tract 965123009965100	–	1,885	2,627±223	$66,733	$221,900	$943	14.8%
Tract 965223009965200	–	2,321	2,361±272	$106,094	$330,600	$1,463	8.6%
Tract 965323009965300	Bucksport (47%)	4,944	5,016±14	$64,720	$252,300	$882	6.7%
Tract 965423009965400	–	2,728	2,396±379	$67,862	$271,800	$1,132	8.0%
Tract 9655.0323009965503	Ellsworth	3,768	3,931±375	$67,196	$236,800	$935	13.2%
Tract 9655.0423009965504	Ellsworth (93%)	4,660	4,792±387	$83,952	$243,500	$1,812	6.0%
Tract 965723009965700	–	3,065	3,219±300	$65,625	$240,000	$900	13.9%
Tract 965823009965800	Winter Harbor (11%)	2,164	2,108±270	$62,044	$255,200	$1,104	6.4%
Tract 965923009965900	Bar Harbor (42%)	5,089	5,244±15	$77,180	$538,400	$1,106	10.1%
Tract 966023009966000	Northeast Harbor (15%)	2,146	1,671±217	$92,813	$522,100	$1,341	7.4%
Tract 966123009966100	Southwest Harbor (10%)	1,916	1,749±324	$63,028	$430,200	$960	8.7%
Tract 966223009966200	–	1,928	1,976±249	$88,405	$383,500	$1,238	5.4%
Tract 966323009966300	Blue Hill (13%)	4,424	4,649±329	$77,319	$356,900	$1,000	5.6%
Tract 966423009966400	Castine (28%)	2,456	2,516±179	$74,050	$403,200	$1,125	15.3%
Tract 966523009966500	–	2,964	2,996±315	$67,461	$352,300	$1,200	11.8%
Tract 966623009966600	–	3,250	3,310±269	$61,613	$308,100	$1,104	17.0%
Tract 966723009966700	–	5,770	5,899±291	$75,024	$312,500	$1,159	11.1%
Tract 990023009990000	–	0	0±11	not published	not published	not published	–

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

How does Hancock County compare with Maine's other counties?

Hancock County's rank among Maine's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	8th of 16
Growth 2020-2025	11th of 16
Residents per square mile	10th of 16
Median household income	7th of 16
Median home value	6th of 16
Median gross rent	5th of 16
Poverty rate	12th of 16
Bachelor's degree or higher	4th of 16
Median age	4th of 16

Every county in Maine

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 Hancock 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.