America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2010

Demographic Background

Understanding the changing demographic characteristics of America's children is critical for shaping social programs and policies. The number of children determines the demand for schools, health care, and other services that are essential to meet the daily needs of families. Although the number of children living in the United States has grown, the ratio of children to adults has decreased. At the same time, the racial and ethnic composition of the Nation's children continues to change.

In 2009, there were 74.5 million children in the United States, 2 million more than in 2000. This number is projected to increase to 101.6 million by 2050. In 2009, there were similar numbers of children in each of three age groups: 0–5 years (25.5 million), 6–11 years (24.3 million), and 12–17 years (24.8 million).

Since the mid-1960s, children have been decreasing as a proportion of the total U.S. population. In 2009, children made up 24 percent of the population, down from a peak of 36 percent at the end of the "baby boom" (1964). Children are projected to remain a fairly stable percentage of the total population through 2050, when they are projected to compose 23 percent of the population.

Racial and ethnic diversity has grown in the United States, and the population is projected to become even more diverse in the decades to come. In 2023, less than half of all children are projected to be White, non-Hispanic (Figure 1). By 2050, 39 percent of U.S. children are projected to be Hispanic (up from 22 percent in 2009), and 38 percent are projected to be White, non-Hispanic (down from 55 percent in 2009).

Figure 1: Percentage of U.S. children ages 0–17 by race and Hispanic origin, 1980–2009 and projected 2010–2050