D.C. has more kids — but its families look different
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Kids play at Yards Park. Photo: The Washington Post/Getty Images
More families with kids are sticking around D.C. — but the city's child population is changing.
Why it matters: The District and Seattle are the rare exceptions among large, expensive U.S. cities where child populations have decreased over the past decade, according to the Wall Street Journal.
By the numbers: The number of D.C. kids under 18 grew 10% from 2015 to 2024, per the WSJ's analysis of Census Bureau data.
- But the number of children living in households earning less than $100,000 dropped 9% over the past decade.
- Those in households earning six figures jumped 37%.
Meanwhile, the number of D.C.'s Black children dropped 10% over the decade ending in 2024.
- The number of Asian children increased 71%, Hispanic children 36% and white children 16%.
Zoom in: Births in Ward 8 — a majority-Black area with some of the city's highest poverty rates — dropped 29% in the decade ending in 2024.
- Ward 4 now has the most kids being born.
The big picture: The shifts mirror D.C.'s broader gentrification over the past two decades, and the exodus of many of its Black residents.
- The WSJ traces some of the growth in children to the affluent young professionals who moved to the city during the mid-2000s and stayed to raise families.
- Universal pre-K, high-paying jobs, public transit and cultural amenities have helped make staying in the city more attractive to families, per the Journal.
The intrigue: While more D.C. kids attend public schools, the number of kids in private school jumped 37% when comparing 2014-2015 to 2023-2024.
Yes, but: The data ends in 2024, before federal job cuts began weighing on Washington's economy and workforce, points out City Cast D.C.
- And births are falling overall: The number of kids under 5 in D.C. fell 9% over the past decade.