Knox County, Tennessee
A county in Tennessee, ranked 3 of 95 by population.
CountyFIPS 47093
- Population
- 511,453
- +30,981 (+6.4%) since 2020
- Land area
- 508.3
- square miles. A further 3.3% of the total area is water
- Population density
- 1,006
- people per square mile, computed rather than published
- County seat
- Knoxville
- Seat of county government.
- Established
- 1792
- 233 years ago
- Largest city
- Knoxville city
- Population 202,021.
Sources: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026; US Census Bureau, Gazetteer Files, 2025 Gazetteer Files, released 10 September 2025; Wikidata (CC0), Wikidata. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
Satellite view
Aerial imagery of Knox County with its boundary drawn on top. A map shows you the shape; this shows you what is inside it, and which side of the line a place falls on.
Where Knox County ranks
Position among the 95 counties of Tennessee, and among all 3,144 US counties and county-equivalents. Computed from the figures on this page.
| Measure | Value | In Tennessee | Nationally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 511,453 | 3rd of 95 | 146th of 3,144 |
| Land area | 508.3 sq mi | 36th of 95 | 2,042nd of 3,144 |
| Population density | 1,006 per sq mi | 3rd of 95 | 161st of 3,144 |
| Median household income | $74,222 | 15th of 95 | 891st of 3,143 |
Full data for Knox County
| Measure | Value | Source and vintage |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 511,453 | Vintage 2025 Population Estimates |
| Population in 2020 | 480,472 | Vintage 2025 Population Estimates |
| 2020 estimates base? | 478,925 | Vintage 2025 Population Estimates |
| Land area | 508.3 sq mi | 2025 Gazetteer Files |
| Water area | 17.6 sq mi | 2025 Gazetteer Files |
| Total area | 525.9 sq mi | 2025 Gazetteer Files |
| Population density? | 1,006 per sq mi | Computed: Vintage 2025 estimates divided by 2025 Gazetteer land area |
| Median household income | $74,222 | American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates |
| Median home value | $320,900 | American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates |
| Median age | 37.4 | American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates |
| Households | 201,146 | American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates |
| Housing units | 218,661 | American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates |
Sources: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026; US Census Bureau, Gazetteer Files, 2025 Gazetteer Files, released 10 September 2025; US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates, released 29 January 2026. Population density is computed here, not published: it divides the Vintage 2025 population estimate by the 2025 Gazetteer land area, which are two different Census products. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
How the population changed
The Census Bureau publishes the components behind an estimate, not just the total. For the year to July 2025:
- Births minus deaths
- +163
- 5,598 births, 5,435 deaths
- Net migration
- +3,671
- More people moved in than moved out.
Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
The 8 areas bordering Knox County
Ordered by the length of the border actually shared, which the Census Bureau publishes in its county adjacency file and which no other county reference presents.
| Bordering area | State | Shared border | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anderson County | Tennessee | 41 mi | 82,066 |
| Blount County | Tennessee | 40 mi | 143,820 |
| Sevier County | Tennessee | 18 mi | 101,342 |
| Union County | Tennessee | 14 mi | 21,450 |
| Grainger County | Tennessee | 9.9 mi | 25,739 |
| Loudon County | Tennessee | 8.5 mi | 63,764 |
| Jefferson County | Tennessee | 8.4 mi | 60,024 |
| Roane County | Tennessee | 1.0 mi | 57,395 |
Source: US Census Bureau, County Adjacency File, 2025 County Adjacency File, released 15 September 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
All 95 counties of Tennessee
Open the interactive Tennessee county map, or jump straight to any of them.
- Anderson County
- Bedford County
- Benton County
- Bledsoe County
- Blount County
- Bradley County
- Campbell County
- Cannon County
- Carroll County
- Carter County
- Cheatham County
- Chester County
- Claiborne County
- Clay County
- Cocke County
- Coffee County
- Crockett County
- Cumberland County
- Davidson County
- Decatur County
- DeKalb County
- Dickson County
- Dyer County
- Fayette County
- Fentress County
- Franklin County
- Gibson County
- Giles County
- Grainger County
- Greene County
- Grundy County
- Hamblen County
- Hamilton County
- Hancock County
- Hardeman County
- Hardin County
- Hawkins County
- Haywood County
- Henderson County
- Henry County
- Hickman County
- Houston County
- Humphreys County
- Jackson County
- Jefferson County
- Johnson County
- Knox County
- Lake County
- Lauderdale County
- Lawrence County
- Lewis County
- Lincoln County
- Loudon County
- Macon County
- Madison County
- Marion County
- Marshall County
- Maury County
- McMinn County
- McNairy County
- Meigs County
- Monroe County
- Montgomery County
- Moore County
- Morgan County
- Obion County
- Overton County
- Perry County
- Pickett County
- Polk County
- Putnam County
- Rhea County
- Roane County
- Robertson County
- Rutherford County
- Scott County
- Sequatchie County
- Sevier County
- Shelby County
- Smith County
- Stewart County
- Sullivan County
- Sumner County
- Tipton County
- Trousdale County
- Unicoi County
- Union County
- Van Buren County
- Warren County
- Washington County
- Wayne County
- Weakley County
- White County
- Williamson County
- Wilson County
Data on this page last rebuilt 30 August 2026. How these figures are produced.