2025

Counties in South Carolina ranked by Non-Hispanic Black Population

This list ranks the 46 counties in South Carolina based on their Non-Hispanic Black or African American population, as estimated by the United States Census Bureau. It also highlights population changes in these counties over the past five years.
Updated Feb 13, 2025

Top 5 counties with the largest Non-Hispanic Black population in South Carolina

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  • 1
    Richland County
    Non-Hispanic Black population in Richland County is 196,182
    44.10% of Richland County population is Non-Hispanic Black
  • 2
    Charleston County
    Non-Hispanic Black population in Charleston County is 97,371
    22.34% of Charleston County population is Non-Hispanic Black
  • 3
    Greenville County
    Non-Hispanic Black population in Greenville County is 88,076
    15.15% of Greenville County population is Non-Hispanic Black
  • 4
    Spartanburg County
    Non-Hispanic Black population in Spartanburg County is 66,690
    18.36% of Spartanburg County population is Non-Hispanic Black
  • 5
    Florence County
    Non-Hispanic Black population in Florence County is 58,691
    41.50% of Florence County population is Non-Hispanic Black

List of 46 counties in South Carolina by Non-Hispanic Black Population

View Methodology
Rank by Non-Hispanic Black Population
County
Non-Hispanic Black Population
% of Total County Population
% of Total South Carolina Non-Hispanic Black Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Richland County 196,182 44.10% 15.00%
2 Charleston County 97,371 22.34% 7.45%
3 Greenville County 88,076 15.15% 6.74%
4 Spartanburg County 66,690 18.36% 5.10%
5 Florence County 58,691 41.50% 4.49%
6 Berkeley County 54,584 21.25% 4.17%
7 York County 53,435 17.34% 4.09%
8 51,371 60.12% 3.93%
9 48,203 43.66% 3.69%
10 44,607 13.86% 3.41%
11 43,355 11.02% 3.32%
12 41,597 22.61% 3.18%
13 40,707 23.36% 3.11%
14 30,072 14.54% 2.30%
15 28,084 12.73% 2.15%
16 25,647 39.56% 1.96%
17 21,645 30.19% 1.66%
18 19,558 18.30% 1.50%
19 19,497 63.28% 1.49%
20 18,448 28.00% 1.41%
21 16,101 54.13% 1.23%
22 15,657 22.36% 1.20%
23 15,594 21.74% 1.19%
24 14,019 44.06% 1.07%
25 13,350 32.39% 1.02%
26 13,267 28.63% 1.01%
27 12,905 45.98% 0.99%
28 12,806 43.53% 0.98%
29 11,526 34.15% 0.88%
30 11,438 52.54% 0.87%
31 11,091 27.64% 0.85%
32 10,575 17.60% 0.81%
33 10,539 31.63% 0.81%
34 10,159 60.79% 0.78%
35 9,714 51.16% 0.74%
36 8,862 41.76% 0.68%
37 8,319 29.46% 0.64%
38 8,084 5.82% 0.62%
39 7,847 59.00% 0.60%
40 7,789 27.49% 0.60%
41 6,287 24.86% 0.48%
42 5,460 37.55% 0.42%
43 5,345 6.42% 0.41%
44 4,951 62.31% 0.38%
45 4,194 19.54% 0.32%
46 3,988 39.82% 0.30%

Methodology

This ranking list is based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is one of the most reliable sources for understanding population trends across different locations, and it provides estimates for various racial and ethnic groups at city, county, state and all geography levels down to the Census block group.
This list ranks counties in South Carolina by their Non-Hispanic Black or African American population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census Defines Non-Hispanic Black Population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their race, meaning individuals can choose one or more racial categories when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as Non-Hispanic Black, whether alone or in combination with another race.
Here are a few important things to know about how race is reported:
  • Some people identify as Non-Hispanic Black alone, while others identify as Non-Hispanic Black along with another race (such as Non-Hispanic Black and White).
  • Hispanic / Latino origin is reported separately from race, so someone can be both Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Black .
  • We’ve used the “Non-Hispanic Black alone or in combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Non-Hispanic Black population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Non-Hispanic Black alone or in combination in counties. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total County Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Non-Hispanic Black .
  2. % of Total South Carolina Non-Hispanic Black Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Non-Hispanic Black population lives in that state.
To keep things simple, all population numbers have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place. Because of rounding, some percentages may not add up to exactly 100%.

Things to Keep in Mind

Like all survey-based data, ACS estimates come with some limitations. Here are a few things to be aware of:
  • In places with very small Non-Hispanic Black populations, the numbers may not be reported at all due to privacy protections or sampling variability in the survey.
  • Since the ACS is based on a sample, the numbers are estimates, not exact counts. That means they may slightly differ from other sources like the decennial U.S. Census.
  • Counties that don’t have any reported Non-Hispanic Black population are not included in the ranking but are listed separately below for reference.
This ranking is meant to provide a clear, data-driven look at where Non-Hispanic Black populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.