Charleston County, South Carolina

Charleston County is a county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, 408,235 people lived there,^[1] making it the third-most populous county in South Carolina (after Greenville and Richland counties). Its county seat is Charleston.^[2] The county was formed in 1901.

Charleston County
County
Charleston County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of South Carolina
South Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°48′02″N 79°56′33″W
Country	United States
State	South Carolina
Founded	January 1, 1800
Named for	King Charles II
Seat	Charleston
Largest community	Charleston
Area
• Total	1,357.99 sq mi (3,517.2 km2)
• Land	917.98 sq mi (2,377.6 km2)
• Water	440.01 sq mi (1,139.6 km2)  32.40%
Population  (2020)
• Total	408,235
• Density	444.71/sq mi (171.70/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts	1st, 6th
Website	www.charlestoncounty.org

Geography

Census	Pop.		%±
1790	66,985		—
1800	57,480		−14.2%
1810	63,179		9.9%
1820	80,212		27.0%
1830	86,338		7.6%
1840	82,661		−4.3%
1850	72,805		−11.9%
1860	70,100		−3.7%
1870	88,863		26.8%
1880	102,800		15.7%
1890	59,903		−41.7%
1900	88,006		46.9%
1910	88,594		0.7%
1920	108,450		22.4%
1930	101,050		−6.8%
1940	121,105		19.8%
1950	164,856		36.1%
1960	216,382		31.3%
1970	247,650		14.5%
1980	276,974		11.8%
1990	295,039		6.5%
2000	309,969		5.1%
2010	350,209		13.0%
2020	408,235		16.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[3] 1790–1960[4] 1900–1990[5] 1990–2000[6] 2010–2020[1]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,358 square miles (3,520 km²), of which 916 square miles (2,370 km²) is land and 442 square miles (1,140 km²) (33%) is water.^[7] It is the largest county in South Carolina by total land and water area. It is along the Atlantic coast.

Bordering counties

• Berkeley County - north
• Georgetown County - northeast
• Colleton County - west
• Dorchester County - northwest

Communities

Cities

• Charleston (county seat) (partly in Berkeley County)
• Folly Beach
• Isle of Palms
• North Charleston (partly in Dorchester County and Berkeley County)

Towns

• Awendaw
• Hollywood
• James Island
• Kiawah Island
• Lincolnville (partly in Dorchester County)
• McClellanville
• Meggett
• Mount Pleasant
• Ravenel
• Rockville
• Seabrook Island
• Sullivan's Island
• Summerville (partly in Dorchester County and Berkeley County)

Census-designated place

• Adams Run
• Ladson (partly in Berkeley County)

Unincorporated communities

• Edisto Island (partly in Colleton County)
• Johns Island