In 2020, the population of centenarians in the United States—those aged 100 or older—increased significantly compared to a decade earlier. According to a special report released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of centenarians rose by 50% from 53,364 in 2010 to 80,139 in 2020. Despite this increase, centenarians made up only about two out of every 10,000 people.
The report draws on data from the 2020 Census and provides details on age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, living arrangements, and geographic distribution among centenarians. It compares these characteristics with other older age groups to highlight distinctions within this population segment.
Among key findings:
– In 2020, women represented the majority of centenarians at 78.8%, though this share decreased slightly from 82.8% in 2010.
– The male centenarian population grew at a faster rate than females between 2010 and 2020: an increase of 85.3% for males compared to a rise of 42.9% for females.
– The group became somewhat more racially diverse and included more men in 2020 than it did in previous years. The percentage of White alone centenarians declined by about eight points—a trend similar to that seen among other older adults but less pronounced than among those under age 65.
– Black or African American alone centenarians were an exception; their proportion dropped from 12.2% in 2010 to 10.3% in 2020.
Geographically, the Northeast had the highest proportion of centenarians among regions with about 3.19 per every 10,000 people—compared to a national average of roughly 2.42 per every 10,000 people. Hawaii was notable as the only state with more than four centenarians per every ten thousand residents (4.44), followed by Puerto Rico (4.14). No state had fewer than one centenarian per ten thousand; Utah and Alaska had some of the lowest proportions at just over one per ten thousand.
States with high proportions of centenarians tended to match patterns found among those aged between eighty-five and ninety-nine years old but differed from trends observed for adults ages sixty-five to eighty-four.
Regarding living arrangements:
– Female centenarians were much more likely than males to live alone without family members.
– Roughly half (49.7%) of male centenarians lived with others in a household; for females it was about one-third (33.8%).
– When considering group quarters such as nursing homes, female centenarians were twice as likely as males to live there—27.6% versus 14.2%.
– Combining these categories shows that two-thirds (66.2%) of female centenarians lived either alone or in group settings compared with about half (50.3%) for males.
The report also noted differences across racial and ethnic groups regarding living arrangements:
Centenarian living situations that involved residing with others showed greater racial and ethnic diversity compared with those who lived alone or in nursing homes—which were less diverse overall.
Centenarians who identified as Hispanic or Latino, Asian alone, or “All Other Races” were more likely than White alone not Hispanic peers to live with others; each group had over sixty percent residing with others compared to less than thirty-five percent among White alone not Hispanic individuals.
Black or African American alone centenarians fell between these groups—with about half living alongside others in households.
There was no news release associated with this special report.
