CHICAGO - Today the U.S. Census Bureau released the 2023 population estimates for the City of Chicago. Ensuring the accuracy of the population estimates for Chicago remains a priority effort for the City, and we will continue to work with the Census Bureau towards that goal. 

“The underlying causes of population loss in Chicago remain deeply rooted in historic disinvestment. The lack of affordable housing, loss of jobs, and closed schools and mental health clinics have impacted many of Chicago's communities, and disproportionately hurt Black Chicagoans in particular,” said Mayor Brandon Johnson. “This is why we must have equity in our education system, in our health care, and why investing in people is a critical piece of our administration. And our $1.25 billion bond plan for housing and workforce development and Cut the Tape initiative are among the ways we are working to address these long-standing issues.” 

The Covid-19 pandemic was a highly disruptive time period with population shifts occurring throughout the United States. Like other big cities, Chicago was impacted by the large drop in net international migration at the onset of the pandemic and its population counts were further impacted by incomplete counts for residents of the City living in group quarters.

For these 2023 population estimates, it is likely that the data inputs are not current enough to reflect the rebound of international migration and the recent inflow of asylum seekers. We appreciate the recent efforts of the Census Bureau to work with the City in revising the 2020 Census count and the 2022 population estimates released one year ago. 

The City’s challenge to the 2020 Census counts resulted in the identification of 5,547 people living in uncounted group quarters in Chicago and was approved by the Census Bureau in November 2023.  

The City’s challenge to its 2022 population estimate resulted in an upward revision of over 7,600 to Chicago’s 2022 population estimate and was announced this February.

The City of Chicago will continue to work with the Census Bureau to ensure that its population is accurately represented in official statistics, including these new estimates, ensuring that Chicago residents receive their fair share of funding and that services are available to residents where they need them to be.

###