Data / Rankings / Black or African American population share / Counties in Tennessee

Counties in Tennessee by black or African American population share

Shelby County had the highest black or African American population share of 95 counties in 2021, at 53.6%. Pickett County had the lowest, at 0.1%. The median was 3.2% and the figure for Tennessee was 16.3%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest53.6Shelby County
Lowest0.1Pickett County
Median3.295 counties
Tennessee16.3History

Top 40 counties, 2021

CSVChart (SVG)

Shelby CountyShelby County: 53.6 %53.6Haywood CountyHaywood County: 50.3 %50.3Hardeman CountyHardeman County: 40.7 %40.7Madison CountyMadison County: 36.9 %36.9Lauderdale CountyLauderdale County: 34.1 %34.1Fayette CountyFayette County: 27.1 %27.1Davidson CountyDavidson County: 26.4 %26.4Lake CountyLake County: 25.9 %25.9Montgomery CountyMontgomery County: 19.1 %19.1Tipton CountyTipton County: 18.4 %18.4Hamilton CountyHamilton County: 18.3 %18.3Gibson CountyGibson County: 16.3 %16.3Rutherford CountyRutherford County: 15 %15Crockett CountyCrockett County: 13.3 %13.3Dyer CountyDyer County: 12.8 %12.8Maury CountyMaury County: 11.2 %11.2Obion CountyObion County: 10.8 %10.8Trousdale CountyTrousdale County: 10.7 %10.7Chester CountyChester County: 10.3 %10.3Giles CountyGiles County: 10 %10Carroll CountyCarroll County: 8.5 %8.5Knox CountyKnox County: 8.4 %8.4Henderson CountyHenderson County: 8.1 %8.1Sumner CountySumner County: 8 %8Weakley CountyWeakley County: 7.9 %7.9Bledsoe CountyBledsoe County: 7.5 %7.5Henry CountyHenry County: 7.4 %7.4Robertson CountyRobertson County: 7.1 %7.1Wilson CountyWilson County: 6.7 %6.7Bedford CountyBedford County: 6.6 %6.6Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 6.5 %6.5McNairy CountyMcNairy County: 5.8 %5.8Wayne CountyWayne County: 5.8 %5.8Morgan CountyMorgan County: 5.5 %5.5Marshall CountyMarshall County: 5.2 %5.2Franklin CountyFranklin County: 4.9 %4.9Bradley CountyBradley County: 4.6 %4.6Hickman CountyHickman County: 4.3 %4.3Williamson CountyWilliamson County: 4 %4Washington CountyWashington County: 3.9 %3.9
%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

RankCounties2021 (%)
1Shelby County53.6
2Haywood County50.3
3Hardeman County40.7
4Madison County36.9
5Lauderdale County34.1
6Fayette County27.1
7Davidson County26.4
8Lake County25.9
9Montgomery County19.1
10Tipton County18.4
11Hamilton County18.3
12Gibson County16.3
13Rutherford County15
14Crockett County13.3
15Dyer County12.8
16Maury County11.2
17Obion County10.8
18Trousdale County10.7
19Chester County10.3
20Giles County10
21Carroll County8.5
22Knox County8.4
23Henderson County8.1
24Sumner County8
25Weakley County7.9
26Bledsoe County7.5
27Henry County7.4
28Robertson County7.1
29Wilson County6.7
30Bedford County6.6
31Lincoln County6.5
32McNairy County5.8
32Wayne County5.8
34Morgan County5.5
35Marshall County5.2
36Franklin County4.9
37Bradley County4.6
38Hickman County4.3
39Williamson County4
40Washington County3.9
41Johnson County3.9
42Houston County3.9
43Coffee County3.7
44Hardin County3.7
45McMinn County3.7
46Dickson County3.5
47Hamblen County3.4
48Marion County3.2
49Anderson County3.1
50Roane County3
51Warren County2.9
52Decatur County2.6
53Meigs County2.5
54Blount County2.4
54Cannon County2.4
56Putnam County2.3
57Benton County2.1
57Monroe County2.1
59Clay County2
60Smith County1.9
61Carter County1.9
62Rhea County1.8
63Jefferson County1.8
63Sullivan County1.8
65White County1.8
66Greene County1.7
67Moore County1.7
68DeKalb County1.7
69Lawrence County1.6
70Cheatham County1.5
71Hawkins County1.4
72Cocke County1.4
73Loudon County1.2
74Lewis County1.2
75Humphreys County1.1
76Sevier County1.1
77Polk County0.8
78Claiborne County0.8
79Perry County0.7
80Overton County0.7
81Cumberland County0.6
82Union County0.6
83Macon County0.6
84Jackson County0.4
85Sequatchie County0.4
86Scott County0.4
87Unicoi County0.4
88Hancock County0.4
89Grundy County0.3
90Grainger County0.3
91Campbell County0.3
91Fentress County0.3
93Stewart County0.3
94Van Buren County0.1
95Pickett County0.1

Other periods

About this ranking

People who are not Hispanic or Latino and report Black or African American as their only race, as a percentage of the total population. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

US federal statistics ask about Hispanic origin and race separately, and Hispanic or Latino people can be of any race. The shares for White, Black and Asian count people who are not Hispanic and report that race alone, so the published shares do not add up to 100 (people of two or more races and other races are not shown). Calculated from counts in ACS table B03002, which are stored as inputs. EU and Spanish statistics do not collect race.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B03002: Black or African American alone, not Hispanic or Latino, as a percentage of the total population, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b03002.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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Rank Counties in Tennessee by black or African American population share using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest black or African American population share?

Shelby County, with 53.6% in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest black or African American population share?

Pickett County, with 0.1% in 2021.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B03002: Black or African American alone, not Hispanic or Latino, as a percentage of the total population, calculated with stored inputs. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Black or African American population share: other rankings

Counties in Tennessee: more rankings