Plainfield, New Jersey

City in Union County, New Jersey

Population, 2000 to 2020+14.1%

Population of Plainfield at each census
Census	Population
2000	47,829
2010	49,808
2020	54,586

As counted at each census, within the boundaries the area had then; the current estimate is in the glance card.

Sources: Census 2000 Summary File 1: total population, place level, state 34, retrieved November 14, 2026; Census 2010 Summary File 1: total population, place level, state 34, retrieved November 14, 2026; Census 2020 Redistricting Data (P.L. 94-171): total population, place level, state 34, retrieved November 14, 2026.

Plainfield compared with its county and state

Plainfield compared with its county and state, American Community Survey 2019-2023
Measure	Plainfield	Union County	New Jersey
Population	54,515	572,549	9,267,014
Median household income	$80,334	$100,117	$101,050
Median age	33.0	39.1	40.1
Median home value	$383,300	$488,800	$427,600
Bachelor’s degree or higher	22.8%	38.6%	42.9%
Foreign-born residents	41.5%	32.8%	23.5%
Owner-occupied homes	42.4%	57.6%	63.7%
Mean commute to work	30.1 minutes	30.7 minutes	30.9 minutes

Source: American Community Survey 5-year data profile 2019–2023, place level, state 34, retrieved November 14, 2026.

Household income in Plainfield

Under $50k29%

$50k to $100k34.3%

$100k to $150k16.7%

$150k to $200k10.5%

$200k and over9.5%

Median household income $80,334 · Share of households by income, American Community Survey 5-year 2019-2023, table S1901.

Source: American Community Survey 5-year subject table S1901 (household income) 2019–2023, place level, state 34, retrieved November 14, 2026.

Housing tenure in Plainfield

42.4%owner occupied

Owner occupied: 6,891 units
Renter occupied: 9,361 units
Vacancy rate: 5.2%

Occupied housing units by tenure and the share of all units vacant, American Community Survey 5-year 2019-2023, table DP04.

Source: American Community Survey 5-year data profile 2019–2023, place level, state 34, retrieved November 14, 2026.

Public schools in Plainfield20

Public schools in Plainfield, NCES directory 2023–2024
School	Type	Grades	District
Cedarbrook Elementary School	Public	K–8	Plainfield Public School District
Charles and Anna Booker Elementary School	Public	Pre-K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Charles H. Stillman Elementary School	Public	K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Clinton Elementary School	Public	Pre-K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Cresthaven Academy Charter School	Charter	K–7	Cresthaven Academy Charter School
Dewitt D. Barlow Elementary School	Public	K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Emerson Community School	Public	K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Evergreen Elementary School	Public	K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Frederic W. Cook Elementary School	Public	K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Jefferson Elementary School	Public	Pre-K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Washington Community School	Public	Pre-K–5	Plainfield Public School District
Hubbard Middle School	Public	6–8	Plainfield Public School District
Maxson Middle School	Public	6–8	Plainfield Public School District
Pinnacle Academy High School	Public	9–12	Plainfield Public School District
Plainfield Academy For The Arts & Advanced Studies	Public	7–12	Plainfield Public School District
Plainfield High School	Public	9–12	Plainfield Public School District
The Barack Obama Green Charter High School	Charter	6–12	The Barack Obama Green Charter High School District
College Achieve Central Charter School	Charter	K–12	College Achieve Central Charter School
The Queen City Academy Charter School	Charter	K–12	The Queen City Academy Charter School District
Union County TEAMS Charter School	Charter	K–12	Union County TEAMS Charter School-High School/College LA

Open public schools in the NCES directory for 2023–2024, placed by their listed location; private schools are not in the source. Enrollment and ratings are not shown.

Sources: NCES Common Core of Data, public school directory 2023–2024, retrieved November 14, 2026; NCES EDGE public school geocodes 2024–2025, retrieved November 14, 2026.