2020 census As of the
2020 census, Cortland had a population of 17,556. The median age was 32.0 years. 16.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.7 males age 18 and over. Of residents, 99.8% lived in urban areas, while 0.2% lived in rural areas. There were 6,670 households in Cortland, of which 23.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 27.9% were married-couple households, 26.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 34.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 40.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. of 2000, there were 18,740 people, 6,922 households, and 3,454 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 7,550 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.72%
White, 1.56%
African American, 0.25%
Native American, 0.57%
Asian, 0.02%
Pacific Islander, 0.56% from
other races, and 1.33% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 1.72% of the population. Of the 6,922 households, 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.7% were
married couples living together, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.1% were non-families. 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.95. In the city, the population was spread out, with 18.3% under the age of 18, 28.4% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males.
Income and poverty The median income for a household in the city was $26,478, and the median income for a family was $39,167. Males had a median income of $29,857 versus $21,614 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $14,267. About 13.9% of families and 24.7% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 24.8% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.
Demographic estimates As of 2015 the largest self-reported ancestry groups in Cortland, New York were: • English - 15.6% • Irish - 10.8% • Italian - 9.7% • German - 8.4% • "American" - 5.7% • Dutch - 2.2% • Scottish - 2.1% • French (except
Basque) - 1.8% • Polish - 1.8% ==Government==