Kansas City, Missouri Population 2023

509,319

Kansas City is a city located in Cass County, Clay County, Jackson County, and Platte County Missouri. Kansas City has a 2023 population of 509,319. Kansas City is currently growing at a rate of 0.09% annually and its population has increased by 0.27% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 507,932 in 2020.

The average household income in Kansas City is $81,577 with a poverty rate of 14.99%. The median rental costs in recent years comes to - per month, and the median house value is -. The median age in Kansas City is 35.4 years, 34.8 years for males, and 36 years for females.

Kansas City is a 15-county metropolitan area that's anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. To make things confusing, however, the metro area also includes Kansas City, Kansas, which is much smaller in size. This article will cover Kansas City, Missouri and the metropolitan area as a whole. The city is located on the border of Kansas and Missouri, and it's the second largest metro area in the state after Greater St. Louis.

The most densely populated area is within the Historic Kansas City boundary with about 58 square miles and a density of around 5,000 people per square mile. The urban core of the city has dropped in population continually for the past 13 years, while only a few areas -- especially the Greater Downtown area in the city center -- have gained population. The most significant growth has been in the Northland area.

Kansas City Metropolitan Area

The Kansas City metropolitan area (or just KC) has a population of 2.34 million people. MC has an area of 7,952 square miles, which means its density is 260 people per square mile (100/square kilometers).

Located on the border of Kansas and Missouri, KC spreads over 15 counties in both states. Kansas City, Missouri is the anchor city with a population of 488,600, but cities with at least 50,000 inhabitants include:

  • Overland Park, Kansas: 179,000
  • Kansas City, Kansas: 147,000
  • Olathe, Kansas: 130,000
  • Independence, Missouri: 117,000
  • Lee's Summit, Missouri: 93,000
  • Shawnee, Kansas: 64,000
  • Blue Springs, Missouri: 53,000
  • Lenexa, Kansas: 50,000

Johnson County, Kansas (JoCo) makes up the southwestern area of the metro and includes Overland, Lenexa, Olathe, and Shawnee. Wyandotte County, Kansas (The Dotte) is on the western side, and it contains Kansas City, Kansas. Leavenworth County, Kansas is just outside the Kansas City area, but it is included in the 15-county metropolitan area. Kansas City, Missouri is in the center of the metro area.

The Kansas City metropolitan area also includes many suburbs and cities, the largest of which are Overland Park, Kansas; Kansas City, Kansas; and Independence, Missouri, all of which have over 100,000 people each.

Kansas City Diversity

Kansas City is home to the second largest Sudanese population in the United States. Its Hispanic and Latino community, mostly from Central America and Mexico, is spread throughout the metropolitan area with the highest concentration southwest of downtown and in the northeast region of Kansas City. The Asian population, meanwhile, is mostly from Southeast Asia and is heavily concentrated around the Columbus Park area of Greater Downtown.

Kansas City is also home to a large Irish-American community of about 250,000. This community has many bookstores, Browne's Irish Market and numerous newspapers. This large population means that 1 in 2 people in Kansas City has Irish ancestry.

Kansas City Population Growth

Kansas City has already outgrown Missouri's previously largest city, St. Louis. St. Louis has been slowly fading, losing 538,000 people from 1950 (when it was the 8th largest city) to 2010 (when it was the 58th largest). Still, St. Louis does have the largest metropolitan area in the state, but this will probably change in the future.

Kansas City has put much emphasis on encouraging entrepreneurs in the area, and it's been increasing its funding of the arts and boosting spending on road repairs and park maintenance. Kansas City now makes up 23% of the KC metropolitan area's population, and the region's growth rate was at a very healthy 11% from 2000 to 2010.

It's hard to say what Kansas City will look like in the coming decades, but its growth is healthy, and it is growing twice as fast as nearby St. Louis.

Kansas City Demographics

According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Kansas City was:

  • White: 59.72%
  • Black or African American: 26.54%
  • Two or more races: 6.28%
  • Other race: 4.1%
  • Asian: 2.68%
  • Native American: 0.43%
  • Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 0.25%
Land Area (mi²)
314.9 sq mi
Density (mi²)
1,617.50/sq mi
Growth Rate
0.09% (463)
Growth Since 2020
0.27% (1,387)
The current population of Kansas City, Missouri is 509,319 based on our projections of the latest US Census estimates.The last official US Census in 2020 recorded the population at 507,932.

Kansas City, Missouri Population 2023

Population by Race

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Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White300,14859.72%
Black or African American133,37026.54%
Two or more races31,5726.28%
Other race20,5864.1%
Asian13,4752.68%
Native American2,1740.43%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander1,2720.25%
showing: 7 rows

White

Black or African American

Two or more races

Other race

Asian

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Kansas City Population by Race

Kansas City Population Pyramid 2023

Kansas City Median Age

35.4

Total

34.8

Male

36

Female

Kansas City Adults

There are 387,938 adults, (67,298 of whom are seniors) in Kansas City.

Kansas City Age Dependency

56.7

Age Dependency Ratio

21

Old Age Dependency Ratio

35.8

Child Dependency Ratio

Kansas City Sex Ratio

Female258,72751.48%
Male243,87048.52%

Kansas City Population by Age

Kansas City Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All213,5602.3153.946.1
Non Family99,0201.2739.860.2
Married76,8433.1877.122.9
Female28,2173.3541.658.4
Male9,4803.1149.650.4
showing: 5 rows

3.12

Average Family Size

2.31

Average Household Size

53.9%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Kansas City Households and Families

Male

Female

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Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Kansas City Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Kansas City Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

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The highest rate of high school graduation is among white people with a rate of 83.77%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among white people with a rate of 40.86%.

Kansas City Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

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$42,608

Average Earnings

$49,038

Average Male

$38,005

Average Female

Kansas City Earnings by Educational Attainment

Kansas City Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Kansas City Language

88.05% of Kansas City residents speak only English, while 11.95% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 6.84% of the population.

Kansas City Language

Kansas City Poverty by Race

rate

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Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
Black131,13332,29224.63%
White274,06425,3949.27%
Hispanic53,30410,15419.05%
Multiple31,0605,35317.23%
Other20,4873,97119.38%
Asian13,2752,22616.77%
Native2,12968732.27%
Islander1,27226220.6%
showing: 8 rows

14.99%

Overall Poverty Rate

13.88%

Male Poverty Rate

16.02%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Kansas City

The race most likely to be in poverty in Kansas City is Native, with 32.27% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Kansas City is White, with 9.27% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 3.08%. Among those working part-time, it was 18.76%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 26.7%.

Kansas City Poverty

rate

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Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade29.95%
High School17.93%
Some College10.58%
Bachelors or Greater4.38%
showing: 4 rows

Kansas City Poverty Rate by Education

rate

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Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed37.82%
Male Unemployed29.89%
Female Employed7.82%
Male Employed5.42%
showing: 4 rows

Kansas City Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Kansas City Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

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mean

median

Income by Household Type

Kansas City Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

40.6%

Overall Marriage Rate

42.7%

Male Marriage Rate

38.6%

Female Marriage Rate

Kansas City Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Kansas City Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 35-44.

Kansas City Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Kansas City Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

24,643

Number of Veterans

22,080

Male Veterans

2,563

Female Veterans

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Kansas City Veterans by War

count

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Kansas City Veterans by Age

count

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Kansas City Veterans by Race

Kansas City Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

8.65%

Veteran Poverty Rate

30.8%

Veteran Disability Rate

Kansas City Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

69.7%

Labor Force Participation

66%

Employment Rate

5.1%

Unemployment Rate

Kansas City Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Kansas City Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Kansas City Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

54.46%

Born in Kansas City

93.52%

Native Born

8.14%

Foreign Born

4.45%

Non Citizen

3.69%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

93.52% of Kansas City residents were born in the United States, with 54.46% having been born in Missouri. 4.45% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Kansas City Place of Birth

Note: data after 2021 is projected based on recent change

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Year
Population
Growth
Growth Rate
18604,418-507,6872.85%
187032,26027,84222%
188055,78523,5255.63%
1890132,71676,9319.05%
1900163,75231,0362.12%
1910248,38184,6294.25%
1920324,41076,0292.71%
1930399,74675,3362.11%
1940399,178-568-0.01%
1950456,62257,4441.35%
1960475,53918,9170.41%
1970507,33031,7910.65%
1980448,028-59,302-1.24%
1990435,146-12,882-0.29%
2000441,5456,3990.15%
2010459,787
2011464,6174,8301.05%
2012469,4474,8301.04%
2013474,2774,8301.03%
2014479,1074,8301.02%
2015483,9374,8301.01%
2016488,7674,8301%
2017493,5974,8300.99%
2018498,4274,8300.98%
2019503,2574,8300.97%
2020507,9324,6750.93%
2021508,3944620.09%
2022508,8564620.09%
2023509,3194630.09%
2024509,7824630.09%
2025510,2464640.09%
2026510,7104640.09%
2027511,1754650.09%
2028511,6404650.09%
2029512,1054650.09%
showing: 35 rows

Kansas City Population by Year