Nearly four in 10 Sarasota County residents are 65 or older, making it the oldest large county in the United States.

The U.S. Census Bureau's latest population estimates show 38.8 percent of Sarasota County's population was 65 or older in 2025. Among the 294 U.S. counties with at least 250,000 residents, Sarasota ranked No. 1 in median age, share of residents 65 and older, and share of residents 85 and older. Sarasota Magazine reported the findings in an analysis published Tuesday, Sept. 1.

The county's 38.8 percent figure is nearly double the 19.6 percent share the global population is projected to reach by 2060, according to a Census Bureau report published Monday, Aug. 31. It also exceeds Japan's 29.7 percent, the highest national rate in the world, by about 9 percentage points.

Sarasota County's median age hit 57.8 in 2025. That was tied for the 20th-highest among all 3,144 U.S. counties. By comparison, Florida's 65-plus population made up 22.8 percent of the state, and the national figure stood at 18.9 percent.

Neighboring Manatee County ranked seventh among similarly sized counties in all three age measures. Its median age was 49.3, and residents 65 and older made up 29.4 percent of its population.

Together, the two counties had a combined population of 948,158 in 2025. Of those, 323,934 were at least 65, meaning older adults accounted for 34.2 percent of the region. The two-county area had roughly nine residents 65 or older for every child younger than 5.

The oldest residents are growing fastest

The 85-and-older population in Sarasota County grew 20.3 percent between 2020 and 2025, climbing from 21,734 to 26,141. Manatee's 85-plus group grew even faster, rising 26.5 percent to 15,909. Together, the two counties now have more than 42,000 residents 85 or older.

Sarasota's age dependency ratio reached 109.3 in 2024, according to the American Community Survey. That means the county had roughly 109 children and older adults for every 100 working-age residents between 18 and 64. Older adults drove most of that gap: about 80 residents 65 or older for every 100 working-age people, plus 29 children.

As we reported Aug. 31, Sarasota Memorial Hospital announced a $1 billion expansion to meet growing demand in the aging county.

Younger workers are arriving

Manatee County's population of residents ages 25 to 44 jumped 24.7 percent between 2020 and 2025, outpacing the county's overall 16.6 percent growth. Sarasota County's 25-to-44 population grew 14.5 percent, ahead of its 10 percent total growth.

The North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota metro area ranked No. 4 on LinkedIn's 2026 "Cities on the Rise" list, which analyzed hiring, job postings and professional migration from March 2024 through February 2026. Real estate, hospitals and health care, and technology companies led hiring, Patch reported. The median income in the metro area was $84,050, and the average home listing price was $978,680, according to the LinkedIn ranking.

South Korea is projected to become the world's oldest country by 2060, when 41 percent of its residents are expected to be at least 65. Sarasota County is already within about 2 percentage points of that mark.