The city of

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

, is the hub city of a

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

in southern

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

. The region is commonly known as Greater Portland or the Portland metropolitan area. For statistical purposes, the U.S. federal government defines three different representations of the Portland metropolitan area. The Portland–South Portland, Maine, metropolitan statistical area is a region consisting of three counties in

, anchored by the city of Portland and the smaller city of South Portland. As of the 2020 census, the MSA had a population of 551,740. A larger combined statistical area (CSA), the Portland–Lewiston–South Portland combined statistical area, is defined as the combination of this metropolitan statistical area (MSA) with the adjacent Lewiston–Auburn MSA. The CSA comprises four counties in southern Maine. The Portland–South Portland metropolitan New England city and town area is defined on the basis of cities and

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

s rather than entire counties. It consists of most of Cumberland and York counties plus the town of Durham in Androscoggin County. The Greater Portland area has emerged as an important center for the creative economy, which is also bringing

gentrification Gentrification is the process whereby the character of a neighborhood changes through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents (the "gentry") and investment. There is no agreed-upon definition of gentrification. In public discourse, it has ...

Metropolitan statistical area

Components

The Portland–South Portland Metropolitan Statistical Area MSA is defined as consisting of Cumberland, Sagadahoc, and

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

counties. Portland and South Portland are the largest cities in this area and are defined as principal cities of the MSA. Other cities in the MSA are: *

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

* Biddeford * Saco * Sanford * Westbrook

Towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in the three-county MSA are: * Acton * Alfred * Arrowsic * Arundel * Baldwin * Berwick * Bowdoin * Bowdoinham * Bridgton * Brunswick * Buxton * Cape Elizabeth * Casco * Chebeague Island * Cornish * Cumberland *

Dayton Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

* Eliot * Falmouth * Freeport * Frye Island * Georgetown * Gorham * Gray * Harpswell * Harrison * Hollis * Kennebunk * Kennebunkport * Kittery *

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

* Limington *

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

* Lyman *

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

* New Gloucester * Newfield *

North Berwick North Berwick (; ) is a seaside resort, seaside town and former royal burgh in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately east-northeast of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable holi ...

* North Yarmouth * Ogunquit * Old Orchard Beach * Parsonsfield * Phippsburg * Pownal *

Raymond Raymond is a male given name of Germanic origin. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷ� ...

* Richmond *

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

* Sebago * Shapleigh * South Berwick * Standish * Topsham * Waterboro * Wells * West Bath * Windham * Woolwich * Yarmouth *

Census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

s in the MSA are: * Berwick * Bridgton * Brunswick * Brunswick Station * Cape Neddick * Cumberland Center * Falmouth Foreside * Freeport * Gorham * Kennebunk * Kennebunkport * Kittery * Kittery Point * Lake Arrowhead * Little Falls *

* North Windham * Old Orchard Beach * Richmond *

* South Eliot * South Sanford * South Windham * Springvale * Topsham * West Kennebunk * Yarmouth * York Harbor The MSA includes one unorganized territory, the township of Perkins.

Demographics

Ten years earlier, as of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 487,568 people, 196,669 households, and 128,201 families residing within the MSA. The racial makeup of the MSA was 96.49%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.80%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.27% Native American, 1.09% Asian, 0.04%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.28% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.87% of the population. As of the 2000 census, the median income for a household in the MSA was $43,195, and the median income for a family was $51,873. Males had a median income of $35,402 versus $26,213 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the MSA was $21,851.

Combined statistical area

The Portland– Lewiston–South Portland Combined Statistical Area is made up of four counties in Maine. The statistical area includes two metropolitan statistical areas. As of the 2000 Census, the CSA had a population of 591,361 (a July 1, 2009, estimate placed the population at 623,365).

Components

Metropolitan statistical areas: *Portland-South Portland (Cumberland, Sagadahoc, and York counties) *Lewiston- Auburn ( Androscoggin County)

New England city and town areas

An alternative federal government delineation of Portland's metropolitan area is the Portland–South Portland, ME Metropolitan New England City and Town Area. A New England City and Town Area (NECTA) is typically a finer-grained definition of a metropolitan area because it is based on cities and

s rather than entire counties. The Portland–South Portland NECTA consists of 24 cities and towns in Cumberland County, 14 cities and towns in York County, and the town of Durham in Androscoggin County. Other parts of the Southern Maine region are identified as components of other NECTAs. The towns of Sanford and Shapleigh in York County form the Sanford, Maine, Micropolitan NECTA. The Brunswick, Maine, Micropolitan NECTA consists of two towns in Cumberland County, one city and eight towns in Sagadahoc County, and three towns in Lincoln County. Two metropolitan NECTAs centered in New Hampshire, the Dover-Durham, NH-ME Metropolitan NECTA (anchored by the principal cities of

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

and Durham, New Hampshire) and the Portsmouth, NH-ME Metropolitan NECTA (anchored by

Portsmouth, New Hampshire Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census it had a population of 21,956. A historic seaport and popular summer tourist destination on ...

) each include three York County towns. The Lewiston-Auburn Metropolitan NECTA is defined as including 11 Androscoggin County cities and towns, as well as four towns in Oxford County and one in Kennebec County. Similar to a CSA, the Portland–Lewiston–South Portland Combined NECTA is defined to consist of the Portland–South Portland and Lewiston–Auburn Metropolitan NECTAs and the Brunswick and Sanford Micropolitan NECTAs. The three York County towns that are included in the Portsmouth, New Hampshire Metropolitan NECTA are, however, considered to be part of the Boston–Worcester–Providence, MA–RI–NH–CT–ME Combined NECTA. The state of Maine uses NECTAs as one basis for defining labor market areas for purposes of compiling and reporting statistics on employment and

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work du ...

. Labor market area definitions used for the Portland area include the Portland–South Portland Metropolitan Area, the Sanford Micropolitan Area, and the combination of these two areas, known as Portland–South Portland–Sanford combined statistical area.

References

{{authority control Metropolitan areas of Maine Geography of Cumberland County, Maine Geography of York County, Maine Geography of Sagadahoc County, Maine Demographics of Maine . Northeast megalopolis

Metropolitan statistical area

Components

Demographics

Combined statistical area

Components

New England city and town areas

See also

References