Smith County Demographics

A map of Smith County's Population by Race

Race	2024 Pop	2020 Pop	2024 %	2020 %
White	18,356	18,054	90.0%	90.7%
Multiracial	880	811	4.3%	4.1%
Hispanic	641	518	3.1%	2.6%
Black	379	356	1.9%	1.8%
Asian	80	84	0.4%	0.4%
Native American/Other	53	81	0.3%	0.4%

Smith County, Tennessee has an estimated population of 20,389, a slight increase from the 19,904 recorded in the 2020 Census. The population is 90.0% White, 4.3% Multiracial, 3.1% Hispanic, 1.9% Black, 0.4% Asian, and 0.3% Native American/Other. This demographic dot map shows the population of Smith County, with one dot drawn for each person counted by the Census, color-coded by race.

Smith has become more racially diverse since the 2020 Census. It is considerably less diverse than Tennessee overall. Demographers use a diversity index to measure the probability that two randomly selected individuals belong to different racial or ethnic groups. In Smith County, that probability was 17.5% in 2020 and 18.6% in the most recent ACS estimates.

Smith County is ranked the 67th most populous county in Tennessee, out of 95 counties. Smith County was ranked the 66th most populous county in the 2020 Census.

Smith County's White Population

18,356 residents of Smith County, or 90.0% of the population, identify as White. The share of White residents in Smith County is significantly higher than in Tennessee overall, where 71% of the population is White. Smith County ranks 27th statewide in terms of White residents as a share of the population, out of 95 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Smith County's White population has grown by an estimated 1.7%. White residents' share of Smith County's population has decreased from 90.7% to 90.0%.

Smith County is more White than neighboring Trousdale County (79.1% White), Macon County (88.6% White), DeKalb County (87% White), and Wilson County (79.3% White). Smith County is less White than neighboring Jackson County (92.2% White).

Smith County's Black Population

379 residents of Smith County, or 1.9% of the population, identify as Black. The share of Black residents in Smith County is considerably lower than in Tennessee overall, where 15.4% of the population is Black. Smith County ranks 62nd statewide in terms of Black residents as a share of the population, out of 95 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Smith County's Black population has grown by an estimated 6.5%. Black residents' share of Smith County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 1.9%.

Smith County is more Black than neighboring Macon County (0.6% Black), DeKalb County (1.5% Black), and Jackson County (0.4% Black). Smith County is less Black than neighboring Trousdale County (11% Black), and Wilson County (7.1% Black).

Smith County's Asian Population

80 residents of Smith County, or 0.4% of the population, identify as Asian. The share of Asian residents in Smith County is comparable to the share in Tennessee overall, where 1.9% of the population is Asian. Smith County ranks 52nd statewide in terms of Asian residents as a share of the population, out of 95 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Smith County's Asian population has declined by an estimated 4.8%. Asian residents' share of Smith County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 0.4%.

Smith County is more Asian than neighboring Trousdale County (0.1% Asian), Macon County (0.2% Asian), and Jackson County (0% Asian). Smith County is less Asian than neighboring DeKalb County (1.1% Asian), and Wilson County (2.2% Asian).

Smith County's Hispanic Population

641 residents of Smith County, or 3.1% of the population, identify as Hispanic. The share of Hispanic residents in Smith County is slightly lower than in Tennessee overall, where 7.4% of the population is Hispanic. Smith County ranks 59th statewide in terms of Hispanic residents as a share of the population, out of 95 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Smith County's Hispanic population has grown by an estimated 23.7%. Hispanic residents' share of Smith County's population has increased from 2.6% to 3.1%.

Smith County is more Hispanic than neighboring Jackson County (2.8% Hispanic). Smith County is less Hispanic than neighboring Trousdale County (4.1% Hispanic), Macon County (7% Hispanic), DeKalb County (7.7% Hispanic), and Wilson County (6.5% Hispanic).

Smith County's Native American/Other Population

53 residents of Smith County, or 0.3% of the population, identify as American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander/Other. The share of Native American/Other residents in Smith County is comparable to the share in Tennessee overall, where 0.6% of the population is Native American/Other. Smith County ranks 76th statewide in terms of Native American/Other residents as a share of the population, out of 95 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Smith County's Native American/Other population has declined by an estimated 34.6%. Native American/Other residents' share of Smith County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 0.3%.

Smith County is more Native American/Other than neighboring Macon County (0% Native American/Other), and Jackson County (0.2% Native American/Other). Smith County is less Native American/Other than neighboring Trousdale County (1.3% Native American/Other), DeKalb County (0.4% Native American/Other), and Wilson County (1.2% Native American/Other).

Smith County's Multiracial Population

880 residents of Smith County, or 4.3% of the population, identify as Multiracial. The share of Multiracial residents in Smith County is comparable to the share in Tennessee overall, where 3.7% of the population is Multiracial. Smith County ranks 28th statewide in terms of Multiracial residents as a share of the population, out of 95 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Smith County's Multiracial population has grown by an estimated 8.5%. Multiracial residents' share of Smith County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 4.3%.

Smith County is more Multiracial than neighboring Macon County (3.6% Multiracial), DeKalb County (2.3% Multiracial), and Wilson County (3.6% Multiracial). Smith County is less Multiracial than neighboring Trousdale County (4.4% Multiracial).

Sources: Most recent population estimates are from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. 2020 population counts and map data are from 2020 Census State Redistricting Data. Geographic data are from Census TIGER/Line Shapefiles.