Connecticut ranked 29th in population in the US with an estimated total of 3,460,503 in 2002, an increase of 1.6% since 2000. Between 1990 and 2000, Connecticut's population grew from 3,287,116 to 3,405,565, an increase of 3.6%. The population is projected to reach 3.7 million by 2025.
The state had a population gain of 5.8% (about 180,000 residents) for the entire decade of the 1980s, compared with a US population growth of 9.7%. One sign of the population lag was that in 1990 Connecticut had the 11th lowest birthrate in the US, 14.5 live births per 1,000 population.
In 2000, Connesticut had the fourth-highest population density of all 50 states: 702.9 persons per sq mi, up from 678.5 persons per sq mi in 1990. The median age of residents in 2000 was 37.4; 13.8% were age 65 or older, while 24.7% were under 18 years old.
Major cities, with 2002 population estimates, are Bridgeport, 140,104; Hartford, 124,558; New Haven, 124,176; Stamford, 119,850; and Waterbury, 107,883. The three largest cities each had a slight net growth in population between 1990 and 2002, helping to reverse their losses during the 1960s and 1970s due to an exodus to the suburbs, which had increased rapidly in population. For example, Bloomfield, to the north of Hartford, gained in population from 5,700 in 1950 to 19,023 in 1984; and Trumbell, near Bridgeport, increased from 8,641 in 1950 to 33,285 in 1984.