2006 State Report > Who We Are > Gender
Who We Are: Gender
As the population ages, women begin to outnumber men. According to 2004 estimates from the American Community Survey, 54.6 percent of the population aged 50 and over was female. For the 85 and over population, the percentage of females had increased to 63.8.
South Carolina Population by Age and Gender: 2004
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2004 American Community Survey.
The male-female ratio (the number of men multiplied by 100 and divided by the number of women) drops steadily with age. For the South Carolina population aged 50 and over in 2004, the male-female ratio was 83, meaning that there were 83 men for every 100 women in that age range. For the 85 and over population, the ratio had dropped to 57 men per 100 women.
Male-Female Ratio in South Carolina: 2004
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2004 American Community Survey, Table B01001.
The median age for females is consistently higher than that for males. South Carolina's median age for both genders was slightly higher than the national average in 2004.
Median Age by Gender: 2000 and 2004
| South Carolina | United States | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2004 | 2000 | 2004 | |
| Male | 34.0 | 35.3 | 34.0 | 35.0 |
| Female | 36.7 | 38.4 | 36.5 | 37.4 |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 and 2004 American Community Survey.