Washington

Washington by the Numbers:
Key Statistical Data and Facts

Key Details

• Washington is the 13th most populous US state, with 7,785,786 residents as of July 2022. 
• As of 2021, there were 3,257,185 housing units in Washington with a median value of $397,600 and a median gross rent of $1,439. 
• 91.9% of individuals 25 years and over are high school graduates or higher in Washington compared to 88.9% for the US overall between 2017 and 2021. 
• The median household income in Washington was $82,400 from 2017 to 2021 in 2021 dollars, and the per-capita income was $43,817 during the same period. 
• In 2021, the marriage rate in Washington was 5.5 marriages per 1000 persons (or approximately 42,821 marriages). 

Washington Population Demographics

Ranked the 13th most-populous US state (and 18th-largest in size), Washington is home to 7,785,786 people as of July 2022. According to the US Census Bureau, the state population grew by 0.5% between 2020 and 2022. As of 2022, nearly 22% of Washington’s population was under the age of 18. Close to 5.6% of residents were under the age of 5, and 16.2% were 65 years and above. Washington also has an almost even distribution of men and women. 49.6% of the state’s population are women, while 50.4% are men. 

Washington Housing

3,257,185 housing

The US Census Bureau estimates that there were 3,257,185 housing units in Washington as of 2021.

63.6%

The Bureau also concluded that between 2017 and 2021, 63.6% of the houses were owner-occupied.

2.55 persons

On average, there were 2.55 persons per household in the same period.

$397,600

The median value of these owner-occupied units between 2017 and 2021 was $397,600.

$2,064

At that same time, the median selected monthly owner's cost with a mortgage was $2,064.

$646

On the other hand, the median selected monthly owners' cost without a mortgage was $646.

$1,439

Washington had a relatively high median gross rent from 2017 to 2021, at $1,439. For context, the US median gross rent was $1,163 in the same period. 

Washington Racial Demographics

Elections in Washington

The state of Washington voted exclusively Democrat between 1985 and 2022 in Gubernatorial elections. Residents elected democrats Booth Gardner (1985 to 1993), Mike Lowry (1993 to 1997), Gary Locke (1997 to 2005), Christine Gregoire (2005 to 2013), and Jay Inslee (2013 to present).  

Jay Inslee became the 23rd governor of Washington in 2013 after defeating Republican Rob McKenna with 51% of the vote in the 2012 Gubernatorial Elections. Inslee was elected again in 2016. He won 54% of the vote, beating Bill Bryant in the process. In 2020, Inslee was elected again, becoming the first Washington governor to be elected for a third term since Dan Evans in 1972.  

Washington’s Blue streak can also be seen in the presidential elections between the 1980s and 2020s. Since 1988, Washington has voted only Democrat in presidential elections. Additionally, as of 2022, the two senators from Washington are Democrats Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell.  

Patty Murray was first elected in 1993 after she defeated Republican Congressman Rod Chandler, winning 54% of the votes. Maria Cantwell was elected for Washington’s senate seat in 2001. She defeated Slade Gorton in one of the closest elections in Washington’s history.  

2020 Presidential Election 

Democratic candidate Joe Biden defeated his Republican opponent—Donald Trump—by one of the largest margins seen for a presidential candidate since 1964. In the election results released by Washington’s Secretary of State, Joe Biden won 2,369,612, which was 57.97% of the votes, while runner-up, Donald Trump, won 1,584,651 votes, 38.77% of the votes. A total of 4,087,631 votes were cast, and there was a turnout rate of 84.11%.  

Joe Biden

Donald Trump

Washington Voting Statistics

According to data published by the Washington Secretary of State, there were 4,804,453 active voter registrations as of May 1, 2023. With inactive voters, there were a total of 5,243,778 registered voters.  

General Election 

For the 2020 general elections, the state of Washington registered 4,892,871 voters, according to data released by the Washington Secretary of State. A total of 4,116,894 ballots were counted. The state saw a voter turnout of 84.14%. Washington has seen a relatively high voter turnout since 2008. The state has only recorded a voter turnout lower than 70% just twice since 2008, those years being 2022 (63.82%) and 2014 (54.16%).  

How Educated is Washington

The US Census Bureau estimates that between 2017 and 2021, 91.9% of individuals 25 years and over were high school graduates or higher. In comparison, the percentage of people 25 and over with a high school degree or higher in the US is 88.9% during the same period. 37.3% of  

Washington residents who were 25 and older between 2017 and 2021 had a bachelor’s degree or higher.  According to the American Community Survey data published by the Bureau, 10.1% of Washington’s population had an associate's degree. Also, Washington had a higher percentage of women aged 25 and over (39.9%) with a bachelor’s degree or higher than men aged 25 and over (38%).   

South Carolina Employment Rate

Washington’s civilian labor force, as of March 2023, is 4,047,700. 3,866,900 of the entire civilian labor force were employed, per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. In March 2023, the unemployment rate in Washington was 4.5%, with 180,700 members of its civilian labor force unemployed.  

According to the US Census Bureau, from 2017 to 2021, 63.7% of Washington’s population aged 16 years and over were in the labor force. At the same time, 58.9% of women aged 16 years and over were in the civilian labor force. In 2021, the total annual payroll in Washington was $224,059,967,000.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics, in data released in 2023, estimated that there were 3,615,100 Nonfarm jobs. This was a 3.2% increase from March of the previous year. Trade, Transportation, and Utilities sectors had the highest number of jobs, with 619,800 jobs. This sector was closely followed by the Government (579,800 jobs), Professional & Business Services (559,900), and the Education & Health Services sectors (534,100).  

Average Income in Washington

The median household income in Washington, according to data published by the US Census Bureau from 2017 to 2021 (in 2021 dollars), was $82,400. Meanwhile, the per-capita income over the past year was $43,817. As of 2022, 9.9% of Washington residents lived below the poverty line.  

However, how much a household is not the same across the board since there are varying factors involved. One such factor is how many earners reside in a particular household. The Department of Justice, in 2022, released data showing how much households with one-, two-, and three-earner households earn by state. Households with one and two earners had a median family income of $74,398 and $90,292, respectively. Three-earner households had a median family income of $104,644.  

Families in Washington

Washington Marriage Rates

Washington Divorce Rates

The divorce rate in Washington is 2.9 divorces per 1000 persons, significantly lower than the rate of marriages. Historically, Washington had one of the highest divorce rates in the US. For instance, in 1990, the rate of divorce was 5.9 per 1000 persons, a figure only surpassed by nine other states. Nonetheless, the divorce rate has experienced a significant decline since then, falling to 4.2 in 2010 and 2.8 in 2020.  

According to the community survey, 11.4% of Washington’s population 15 and over were divorced. 8.7% of men between the ages of 35 and 44 were divorced. The age group with the highest percentage of divorced men was 55 to 64 years (17.5%). Regarding the female population, 3.9% of women aged 20 to 34 were divorced. Meanwhile, women aged between 55 to 64 years had the highest percentage of divorcees.  

Life Expectancy in Washington

Washington is known for having a high life expectancy. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, Washington had a life expectancy of 79.2 in 2020, which was two years longer than the national average at the time. It was also the state with the highest life expectancy that year, behind Hawaii.  

The leading cause of death in Washington is cancer. In 2021, the cancer death rate in the state was 149.3 per 100,000 persons, killing 13,547 people. Closely following behind cancer, heart disease was the most common cause of death in Washington, with 147 deaths per 100,000 people.  

Drug overdose and firearm injuries were other common causes of death in Washington. The drug overdose death rate in 2021 was 28.1 per 100,000 individuals, and the firearm injury death rate was 11.2 per 100,000 individuals.  

Washington Crime Rates

According to Washington State’s Statistical Analysis Center’s statistical data, a total of 484,588 crimes were reported in the state in 2021. The 2021 crime total was a 3% increase from the total of the previous year, which was 499,418. A vast majority of the crimes reported in 2021 were property crimes (363,839), followed by theft (232,227) and “crimes against the person” (104,293).  

The Center’s data also showed Washington had a reported National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) crime rate of 2,225.8 per 10,000 persons aged between 18 to 39. In 2021, Washington recorded a murder of 1.49 per 10,000 persons aged between 18 to 39. Again, property crime had the highest rate of the types of crimes reported at a rate of 1,671.18.  

The counties with the highest reported NIBRS crime rates were Garfield, Spokane, and Pierce, at a rate of 4,060.4, 3,340.34, and 2,742.14 per 10,000 persons aged 18 to 38. respectively. On the other hand, the counties with the least amount of reported NIBRS crime rates were Ferry (492.81), Whitman (683.96), and Pacific (757.7).  

Washington Incarceration Rate

59 jails

According to the National Institute of Corrections statistics, in 2019, Washington had 59 jails and 12 state prisons in its 39 counties.

19,261

The jail population was 12,060 while the prison population was 19,261.

8,956

There were a total of 8,956 staff in state-run facilities.

$2,340,157,000

These facilities have a budget

1,353

In 2019, the incarceration rate was 250 per 100,000 persons. There were also 1,353 probationers per 100,000 persons.

Washington Bankruptcy Rate

2022

5,162 bankruptcy filings

The American Bankruptcy Institute, in a report, estimated that there were 5,162 bankruptcy filings in Washington in 2022. Bankruptcy filings have dropped slightly from the previous year, as 845 more bankruptcies were filed in 2021.  

In 2022, 3,879 of the bankruptcies filed were Chapter 7 bankruptcies. Meanwhile, the number of Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 filings was 43 and 1,237, respectively.

It is important to note that bankruptcy filing rates have significantly reduced since 2005. For instance, bankruptcy filings have fallen by 89% from 2005 to 2022. This fall in bankruptcy filings can be attributed to many things, including financial stability, better investment decisions, and so on. 

Weird Laws in Washington

In every corner of the globe, there is hardly any place one can find without any unusual laws. The state of Washington is no exception to this. The following are examples of weird laws in Washington.