Young kids make up less of the Seattle area population
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The share of young children in the Seattle metro area has fallen over the past two decades, mirroring a national decline, census data shows.
Why it matters: The child population trend can reflect cities' ability to attract, retain and support families.
- But larger nationwide factors are also at play, including birth and death rates as well as immigration.
By the numbers: The share of the Seattle-area population under age 5 fell by 0.9 percentage points between 2005 and 2024, from 6.3% to 5.4%.
- That's slightly smaller than the national decline, which was 1.6 percentage points.
- Among the 50 biggest U.S. metros, Salt Lake City saw the biggest dip in its population of young children (-3.2 percentage points), followed by San Jose (-3pp) and Los Angeles (-2.8pp).
State of play: Within the Seattle city limits, the total number of households with children has fallen by 16% since 2017, according to a Seattle Public Schools enrollment report from this year.
- The lack of affordable housing is one of the factors making it hard for families with children to live in the city, the report notes.
- Local families also struggle to afford child care, a 2023 report found, with infant care in King County easily costing $30,000 per year.
The big picture: The U.S. birth rate hit a record low in 2024, while life expectancy is approaching 80 following a pandemic-era dip.
- Those data points might suggest children will make up less of the overall population over time — fewer kids, more older folks.
- Yet the country grew around 1% between 2023 and 2024 — breakneck speed, as such things go — driven primarily by immigrants (including children, complicating the births vs. deaths picture).
The bottom line: Seattle has long been known as a city where households with dogs outnumber those with children — and that trend doesn't appear to be reversing itself.