Community & Data
Demographics
A Portrait of Fitchburg
Numbers tell a story, and Fitchburg’s is one of constant remaking. One of Worcester County’s larger cities, it was built by waves of immigrants who came for the mills, and it is being remade again today by a large and growing Latino community. That makes it one of the more diverse places in central Massachusetts. The figures below come from the U.S. Census Bureau, and the source links point you to the latest.
Key Figures
Sources: US Census Bureau (data.census.gov).
Population & Households
- Population (recent ACS estimate): ~41,800
- Population (2020 Census): 41,946
- Land area: about 27.8 sq mi
- Density: ~1,500 / sq mi
- Median age: ~36 years
- Under 18: ~22%
- Age 65+: ~15%
Race & Ethnicity
- White (non-Hispanic): ~52%
- Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~34%
- Black or African American: ~6%
- Asian: ~3 to 4%
- Two or more races: growing
- Trend: an increasingly multicultural city
Economy & Education
- Median household income: ~$73,000
- Family poverty rate: ~12%
- Top sectors: services, health care, education, manufacturing
- Higher ed: Fitchburg State University; Mount Wachusett Community College nearby
- Housing: much of the stock predates World War II
- Anchor: Fitchburg State University (founded 1894)
- Median home value: about $370,000
Registered Voters
Who actually turns power into votes here? The Secretary of the Commonwealth publishes Fitchburg’s voter rolls, and they follow the statewide pattern: a large bloc of Unenrolled (independent) voters who belong to no party, alongside registered Democrats and Republicans. Unenrolled voters are the single largest group across Massachusetts, and they can pull a ballot in either party’s primary.
- Total registered: 27,033 (February 1, 2025)
- Unenrolled (no party): 19,142 (70.81%)
- Democrats: 5,279 (19.53%)
- Republicans: 2,314 (8.56%)
- Political designations: 298 (1.10%)
- Where to check: current city totals are posted by the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
- Why it matters: the size of the unenrolled bloc decides many local races.
Sources
See how Fitchburg fits into the broader Commonwealth.