County · New York

Cortland County, New York

Cortland County, New York. Cortland County had 45,850 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 2.0% since 2020, a steeper fall than New York's (−1.0%). It holds 23 places (4 cities, villages and boroughs, 15 towns and townships and 4 census-designated) and 13 census tracts. GEOID 36023.

Cortland County is the county of the Cortland, NY micropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

45,850

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 46,809 · ACS 2020-2024: 46,246

Median household income

$70,418

±$2,912 (90% margin)
New York: $85,974

Median home value

$162,100

±$3,172 (90% margin)
New York: $423,800

Median gross rent

$984

±$50 (90% margin)
New York: $1,621

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

The 2020 Census counted 46,809 residents in Cortland County. The Census Bureau estimates 45,850 for July 1, 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, a steeper fall than New York's (−1.0%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 46,246 over 499 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −257 (46,488)
2021→2022 −360 (46,128)
2022→2023 −124 (46,004)
2023→2024 +58 (46,062)
2024→2025 −212 (45,850)

Cortland County in New York. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Cortland County	New York	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	46,246	19,852,366	−1,619
Households	18,999±384	7,722,646	+1,254
Average household size	2.24±0.05	2.49	−0.26
Housing units	20,841±64	8,585,241	no clear change

Cortland County's population since 2000

From 48,599 in 2000 to 45,850 in 2025: down 5.7%. 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 48,599
2005 (estimate) 49,330
2010 Census 49,336
2015 (estimate) 48,299
2020 Census 46,809
2025 (estimate) 45,850

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 Cortland County?

Cortland County holds 23 places: 4 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places), 15 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government) and 4 census-designated places. The largest is Cortland with 17,394 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 Cortland County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Cortland	city	17,556	17,450±22	$59,482	$152,600	20.8%	100%
Cortlandville (town)	town	8,409	8,279±24	$73,617	$177,200	7.8%	100%
Homer (town)	town	6,293	6,178±20	$74,012	$172,900	6.3%	100%
Homer	village	3,210	3,114±54	$72,472	$165,200	6.2%	100%
Munsons Corners	CDP	2,814	2,662±506	$56,069	$135,700	14.9%	100%
Virgil (town)	town	2,425	2,525±275	$91,094	$244,600	7.1%	100%
Marathon (town)	town	2,038	2,042±333	$64,438	$136,100	10.4%	100%
Preble (town)	town	1,357	1,150±168	$82,083	$176,700	5.4%	100%
Cortland WestGEOID 3618443	CDP	1,286	1,020±352	$127,019	$275,500	5.0%	100%
Scott (town)	town	1,077	1,082±147	$93,889	$159,900	12.8%	100%
Solon (town)	town	1,063	899±161	$80,000	$148,700	7.3%	100%
Truxton (town)	town	997	1,077±192	$95,000	$178,500	4.3%	100%
McGraw	village	972	974±280	$64,185	$109,600	6.9%	100%
Cuyler (town)	town	908	738±190	$82,813	$159,400	7.2%	100%
Cincinnatus (town)	town	902	998±239	$68,698	$123,800	7.5%	100%
Willet (town)	town	894	768±157	$74,042	$120,400	10.0%	100%
Marathon	village	892	952±209	$52,198	$124,800	13.2%	100%
Harford (town)	town	876	980±202	$75,905	$109,800	13.6%	100%
Lapeer (town)	town	795	718±137	$62,955	$160,600	16.9%	100%
Freetown (town)	town	767	911±182	$62,386	$141,800	18.6%	100%
Taylor (town)	town	452	451±124	$57,708	$112,500	27.7%	100%
VirgilGEOID 3677585	CDP	298	220±94	$67,813	$251,800	2.3%	100%
Blodgett MillsGEOID 3606937	CDP	274	212±117	not published	$135,000	11.3%	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 Cortland County?

The median resident of Cortland County is 37.0 years old; 18.5% are under 18 and 17.1% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 89.2%, then Hispanic or Latino residents (of any race) at 3.6%. 2.8% 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	Cortland County	New York	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	37.0±0.6	39.8	no clear change
Under 18 years	18.5%±0.1 pts	20.5%	–
65 years and over	17.1%±0.2 pts	17.9%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	3.6%	19.8%	+0.9 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	89.2%±0.7 pts	52.8%	−3.4 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	1.7%±0.2 pts	13.4%	no clear change
Asian alone, not Hispanic	1.4%±0.2 pts	9.0%	+0.6 pts
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.2%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.6%±0.5 pts	3.8%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.5%±0.4 pts	1.0%	–
Born outside the United States	2.8%±0.5 pts	22.8%	+0.9 pts
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	5.6%±1.0 pts	30.9%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	6.2%±0.7 pts	3.7%	–
With a disability	14.2%±1.2 pts	12.6%	–
No health insurance coverage	4.5%±0.9 pts	5.1%	+1.3 pts
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	91.9%±1.1 pts	88.0%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	29.1%±1.8 pts	40.2%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	13.8%±1.4 pts	17.9%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.4%±0.5 pts	1.5%	–

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 Cortland County earn?

Half of Cortland County's 18,999 households earn less than $70,418 a year (±$2,912), against $85,974 in New York. In 2015-2019 it was $68,947 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 12.8% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Cortland County	New York	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$70,418±$2,912	$85,974	no clear change
Mean household income	$85,337±$2,831	$128,247	–
Per capita income	$34,752±$1,053	$50,712	no clear change
People below the poverty line	12.8%±1.6 pts	14.0%	−3.6 pts
Children under 18 below the poverty line	11.0%±3.3 pts	18.3%	−7.2 pts
Households receiving SNAP	15.5%±1.6 pts	15.6%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	88.3%±1.7 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 Cortland County?

Owners occupy 66.3% of Cortland County's occupied homes and renters 33.7%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $162,100 by its owner (±$3,172). The median renter pays $984 a month including utilities, and 42.0% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Cortland County	New York	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$162,100±$3,172	$423,800	+$9,740
Median gross rent	$984±$50	$1,621	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	42.0%±4.8 pts	43.1%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,537±$60	$2,555	–
Owner-occupied homes	66.3%±2.3 pts	54.3%	no clear change
Housing units	20,841±64	8,585,241	no clear change
Homeowner vacancy rate	1.1%±0.9 pts	1.1%	–
Rental vacancy rate	4.2%±2.6 pts	3.8%	–
Single-family detached homes	62.6%±2.1 pts	41.2%	–
Mobile homes	7.6%±0.9 pts	2.1%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.8%±0.4 pts	0.8%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	33.2%±2.3 pts	30.3%	–

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 Cortland County building?

Builders took permits for 37 new housing units across Cortland County in 2025 (31 single-family), 0.8 per 1,000 residents.

2019 24 units
2020 36 units
2021 43 units
2022 41 units
2023 47 units
2024 41 units
2025 37 units

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

How do people in Cortland County get to work?

72.3% of Cortland County's workers drive alone and 7.8% work from home. The average trip to work takes 22.3 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 4.6%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Cortland County	New York	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	62.4%±1.3 pts	62.7%	–
Unemployment rate	4.6%±0.9 pts	6.4%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	72.3%±1.9 pts	48.8%	–
Carpooled	11.8%±1.9 pts	6.3%	–
Public transportation	0.9%±0.7 pts	21.6%	–
Walked	5.7%±1.0 pts	5.6%	–
Worked from home	7.8%±1.2 pts	14.9%	+3.7 pts
Mean travel time to work	22.3 min±0.8	32.6 min	+1.1 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 Cortland County's census tracts?

Cortland County is divided into 13 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $45,813 (Tract 9706) to $89,229 (Tract 9707).

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

Tract 970136023970100	–	3,420	3,165±245	$79,063	$159,500	$894	9.1%
Tract 9702.0136023970201	–	2,434	2,232±182	$88,750	$164,900	$1,135	9.0%
Tract 9702.0236023970202	Homer (6%)	3,254	3,191±84	$74,043	$194,200	$1,633	10.1%
Tract 970336023970300	Homer (98%)	3,039	2,987±79	$73,958	$165,200	$1,166	2.2%
Tract 970436023970400	McGraw (17%)	2,812	2,673±414	$66,875	$153,800	$725	6.1%
Tract 970536023970500	Cortland	3,656	3,798±496	$60,952	$149,200	$975	23.8%
Tract 970636023970600	Cortland	3,049	2,736±440	$45,813	$140,200	$935	23.1%
Tract 970736023970700	Cortland	4,000	4,001±482	$89,229	$161,000	$1,006	15.8%
Tract 970836023970800	Cortland	2,781	2,682±109	not published	$153,800	not published	23.2%
Tract 970936023970900	Cortland	4,070	4,233±478	$48,009	$135,900	$1,018	21.2%
Tract 971036023971000	Cortland West (33%)	5,597	5,606±418	$83,993	$206,400	$955	8.7%
Tract 971136023971100	Marathon (10%)	4,601	4,719±295	$67,258	$132,800	$840	11.3%
Tract 971236023971200	Virgil (3%)	4,096	4,223±288	$78,655	$182,800	$1,125	10.2%

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

How does Cortland County compare with New York's other counties?

Cortland County's rank among New York's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	52nd of 62
Growth 2020-2025	42nd of 62
Residents per square mile	39th of 62
Median household income	34th of 62
Median home value	47th of 62
Median gross rent	32nd of 62
Poverty rate	35th of 62
Bachelor's degree or higher	32nd of 62
Median age	56th of 62

Every county in New York

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 Cortland 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.