To understand what it looks like
to grow up in DC we start with
Demographics.
Population by Age
The population of children is growing at a faster rate than the overall DC population.
- DC’s population of children increased 11% from roughly 115,300 in 2014 to 127,900 in 2019.
- DC’s population of young adults ages 18-24 shrank during the same period, from roughly 80,650 to 72,700.
200,604 Children and Young Adults Reside in DC

Race & Equity
Children Under 5
Black
White
Latinx
Population by Race
Children continue to reflect the “Chocolate City” moniker, but just barely.
- While a majority of children are Black, the share of Black children has declined in DC over the last five years to 56%.
- One in four DC children have at least one parent who was born abroad.
- DC’s population of 18- to 24-year-olds has similar demographics to the overall population. DC’s young adult population is whiter than DC’s children: 44% are Black, 10% are Latinx, and 38% are white.
DC Children’s Black Majority is Shrinking
Population by Ward
Where DC’s children live.
- Wards 7 and 8 are home to more than one-third of DC’s children.
- Wards 6 and 7 saw significant population increases for young children. Wards 4 and 8 also saw steady annual increases in children under age 5.
- DC’s Latinx child population has grown in every ward but ward 1. Latinx children are clustered, with almost half living in wards 1 and 4. However, the increase in the number of Latinx children is actually bigger in ward 3 than ward 1 with sizeable percentage increases in wards 2 and 8 as well.
DC Children Living in Each Ward
Find more information about all the demographic measures in our data references section and visit our appendix to download a table with the full DC Kids Count 2021 data set.

Kim Perry
Executive Director, DC Action