Tennessee Counties by Population (2025)

Top 5 Most Populous Counties

Tennessee flag Shelby County

897,412

Tennessee flag Davidson County

722,300

Tennessee flag Knox County

511,247

Tennessee flag Hamilton County

390,388

Tennessee flag Rutherford County

379,939

95 counties

County
2025 Pop. ↓
Area (mi²)
Density
Change (2020)
Shelby County897,4127611,179-3.48%
Davidson County722,3005031,4360.87%
Knox County511,2475081,0066.4%
Hamilton County390,3885427206.3%
Rutherford County379,93961961410.67%
Williamson County271,9045834668.96%
Montgomery County249,81853946312.9%
Sumner County216,5405294099.69%
Wilson County173,83657130416.94%
Sullivan County164,6814143984.07%
Blount County144,7485592596.7%
Washington County142,9663274377.32%
Maury County116,28861319014.2%
Bradley County113,6593293454.44%
Sevier County100,6335931702.1%
Madison County99,2355571780.41%
Putnam County86,5924012168.14%
Anderson County82,8443372467.14%
Robertson County79,5324761679.02%
Greene County75,1476221216.83%
Hamblen County68,3141614245.84%
Cumberland County67,316681999.67%
Loudon County65,28522928518.42%
Tipton County62,7454561382.79%
Coffee County62,3414291457.23%
Jefferson County60,1942752199.61%
Hawkins County59,9944871235.77%
Dickson County58,7334901207.89%
Carter County58,0963411703.06%
Roane County58,0303611618.43%
McMinn County57,6444301348.06%
Bedford County55,2374741179.63%
Gibson County51,483603852.06%
Monroe County50,422636798.68%
Lawrence County47,338617777.15%
Fayette County45,849704659.5%
Franklin County45,724554836.72%
Warren County43,9124331016.97%
Cheatham County43,2343021435.11%
Campbell County41,541480875.7%
Marshall County39,16937510413.62%
Cocke County38,514436886.85%
Dyer County36,61451272-0.28%
Lincoln County36,495570643.29%
Rhea County34,3943151094.42%
Claiborne County33,248435763.67%
Weakley County33,166580570.8%
Henry County32,898562592.33%
Giles County31,083611512.45%
Obion County30,48554556-0.94%
White County30,076377809.59%
Marion County30,046498604.07%
Carroll County29,744598504.61%
Henderson County28,396520552.06%
Macon County27,9513079110.62%
Hardin County27,557577482.81%
Hickman County26,516612436.18%
McNairy County26,503563472.5%
Hardeman County25,679668380.94%
Grainger County25,673281918.93%
Lauderdale County24,34847252-3.08%
Overton County23,995433556.22%
Scott County22,515532422.92%
Morgan County22,305522436%
DeKalb County21,671304717.34%
Union County21,277224957.22%
Smith County20,674314663.52%
Fentress County20,4184994110.17%
Humphreys County19,581531373.07%
Johnson County19,033298645.8%
Polk County18,543435435.56%
Unicoi County18,086186971.12%
Chester County17,702286621.88%
Sequatchie County17,6472666611.35%
Haywood County16,94853332-4.93%
Benton County16,321394412.94%
Wayne County15,66673421-3.43%
Cannon County15,575266596.93%
Bledsoe County15,532407383.85%
Stewart County14,678460327.09%
Meigs County14,5571957513.66%
Grundy County14,307360405.64%
Crockett County14,222266532.26%
Lewis County13,374282476.09%
Jackson County13,0593094212.26%
Trousdale County12,6591141118.8%
Decatur County11,870334363.82%
Perry County9,2634152210.52%
Houston County8,685200434.54%
Clay County7,830237333.19%
Hancock County7,176222328.28%
Moore County6,812129535.29%
Van Buren County6,619273247.21%
Lake County6,04116636-13.64%
Pickett County5,178163323.56%

Overview of Tennessee Counties

There are 95 counties in Tennessee.

The most populous county in Tennessee is Shelby County, home of Memphis, with 936,961 residents. This represents very slight growth of 0.91% since the 2010 census.

The largest counties by population are:

These are the only Tennessee counties with a population of more than 300,000. Of these counties, Rutherford County has seen the highest population growth of 20.25%.

Counties with Fewest Residents

Pickett County is the least populated county in Tennessee with a population of just 5,073. This represents flat population growth since the census.

Tennessee has several other counties with a population below 10,000:

Most of these counties have experienced negative growth since the census. Of these, Lake County has experienced the most significant population loss of -4.60%.

Counties with Rapid Growth

Trousdale County has experienced the highest growth rate in the state since the census at 28.05%, bringing its population to 10,083.

The only other counties with population growth over 15% are:

Lauderdale County has experienced the greatest population loss with a growth rate of -8.82%, bringing its population down to 25,274.

Sources

  1. US Census State Population Estimates - Most recent state estimates from the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program
  2. US Census County Population Estimates - Most recent county estimates from the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program
  3. American Community Survey (2009 - 2013)
  4. Census QuickFacts
  5. Historical Populations of States and Counties (1790 - 1990)