The "Current" Population of New York City (2007):

The latest available information on New York City’s population from population estimates prepared initially by the U.S. Census Bureau and challenged successfully by the Department of City Planning.

As of July 1, 2007, the population of the City of New York was 8,310,212, an increase of more than 301,900 persons or 3.8 percent since April 2000. Staten Island continues to outpace the four other boroughs of the city, with a growth rate of 8.8 percent, placing it among the fastest growing counties in New York State. Manhattan increased by 5.7 percent, the Bronx by 3.9 percent, Brooklyn by 3.0 percent and Queens had an estimated increase of 2.2 percent.

The population estimates presented here were prepared by the U.S. Census Bureau, with substantial input from New York City. Each year, the Census Bureau releases estimates that are then reviewed by Department of City Planning demographers. Through a process afforded by the Census Bureau, the City of New York successfully challenged the Bureau’s 2007 population estimates for every borough. Information about the challenge process is available at the population estimates web site:

http://www.census.gov/popest/archives/challenges.html

The table below shows the 2000 Census enumerated population, the initial 2007 Census Bureau population estimates and the Department of City Planning (DCP) estimates now adopted by the Census Bureau. The DCP estimates increased the population of New York City in 2007 over the Bureau’s estimate by some 35,700 persons, from 8,274,500 to 8,310,200, or 0.4 percent.

The estimates submitted to the Census Bureau by the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP) were based on a housing unit method of population estimation. This method was very different from that used by the Census Bureau. (For a detailed description of these methods, please see the document below.)

The Census Bureau has accepted the City’s estimates in the prior four years. The cumulative impact of these revisions since 2003 has been the addition of some 235,000 persons: the July 2003 estimate added 28,500 in two boroughs, the July 2004 estimate added 64,300 persons in three boroughs, the July 2005 estimate added 70,600 in five boroughs, the July 2006 estimate added 36,100 in five boroughs, and the July 2007 added 35,700 in the five boroughs.

The 2006 and 2007 increases over the Census Bureau’s estimate were each smaller than the change in 2005, because that challenge captured many newly created housing units in commercial-to-residential conversions that the Census Bureau had not accounted for in its estimates over several years.

Related Document: A detailed discussion of the methods and data used to estimate the population of New York City.