Escambia County, Florida

Escambia County is a county in Florida, United States, in the state’s northwest corner about 59 miles east of Mobile, Alabama. It had a population of 321,905 at the 2020 census, an estimated 333,834 by 2025, and covers 656 square miles (1,700 km2) of land and water centred near 30°37′N 87°20′W.

Pensacola is the county seat and the county’s only incorporated city; its postal code is 32501. The county holds 1 city, 1 incorporated town and 11 census-designated places, and it runs on Central Time. Its FIPS code is 12033.

Towns & Villages in Escambia County

Escambia County has 13 places the Census Bureau tracks individually: Pensacola, the town of Century, and 11 census-designated places (CDPs) with no city government of their own. CDP stands for census designated place; Unincorp. covers named crossroads and communities the Census does not track separately.

Pensacola Station is a 2020-vintage CDP covering Naval Air Station Pensacola; the base has its own
ZIP but no population figure has been separately published for the CDP. Beyond these 13 tracked
places, Escambia County carries roughly 60 more named communities on older maps and county
records — Barrineau Park, Beulah, Bluff Springs, Bogia, Bratt, Brownsville, Cantonment,
Innerarity Point, McDavid, Millview, Oak Grove, Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key and Walnut Hill among
them. These are crossroads, beach communities and rural neighborhoods with no CDP boundary and no
population the Census reports on their own; Muscogee and Pine Barren are former mill towns now
considered ghost towns.

ZIP Codes

• 32501 — downtown Pensacola (also serves 32502, 32504, 32511 and several PO-box-only codes)
• 32505 — West Pensacola
• 32506 — Myrtle Grove
• 32514 — Ferry Pass
• 32526 — Bellview
• 32503 — Brent
• 32534 — Ensley
• 32507 — Warrington
• 32508 — NAS Pensacola (Pensacola Station)
• 32533 — Gonzalez (also serves Cantonment)
• 32535 — Century
• 32577 — Molino
• 32568 — McDavid

Goulding has no ZIP code of its own; mail there is delivered under a neighboring Pensacola code.
Rural communities such as Barrineau Park, Bratt and Walnut Hill share the 32535 Century code or the
32568 McDavid code depending on which road they sit on.

Geography

Escambia County sits at Florida’s far northwest tip, the westernmost and one of the two
oldest counties in the state. Of its 656 square miles, 438 are land and 218 are water — a
quarter of the county’s area, reflecting Pensacola Bay, Escambia Bay and the barrier islands along
its Gulf shore. The Escambia River, which gives the county its name, flows south through the
county’s eastern side into Escambia Bay. Perdido Key and Santa Rosa Island, both barrier islands,
carry the county’s Gulf-front communities and its share of Gulf Islands National Seashore.

Santa Rosa County borders Escambia to the east, and the Alabama state line runs along the
county’s north and west edges, with Escambia County, Alabama, to the north and Baldwin County,
Alabama, to the northwest. Santa Rosa
County is the only bordering county with a page on this site; Alabama’s Escambia and Baldwin
counties are not yet covered.

Demographics

Escambia County had a population of 321,905 at the 2020 census, and the latest county estimate
puts it near 333,834 residents. Pensacola and Ferry Pass are the two largest communities on the
list, together holding roughly a quarter of the county’s population. Median household income runs
$67,500, below Florida’s statewide figure of $73,311. Population density works out to roughly 735
people per square mile of land, high for the Florida Panhandle, concentrated around Pensacola and
its inland suburbs.

Economy & Local Life

Health care and social assistance employs the most workers in the county, about 21,471 people,
followed by retail trade at 17,654 and educational services at 13,242. Naval Air Station Pensacola,
home to the Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron since 1946 and known as the “Cradle of
Naval Aviation,” anchors the county’s defense economy from Warrington. Navy Federal Credit Union,
Baptist Health Care and Sacred Heart Health System rank among the county’s largest civilian
employers. The county’s biggest annual event is the Pensacola Interstate Fair each October,
alongside the Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival and the Pensacon comic convention downtown.

History

Florida’s territorial legislature organized Escambia County on 21 July 1821, the same day as St.
Johns County — the state’s two original counties. It took its name from the Escambia River,
itself a name of Muskogean origin. Pensacola, already a Spanish and later British colonial port,
became the county seat.

Naval Air Station Pensacola opened in 1914 on the site of an earlier Navy yard and trained
astronauts John Glenn and Neil Armstrong before either flew in space. Century and several now-gone
mill towns, including Muscogee and Pine Barren, grew up around the timber and turpentine industry
that dominated the county’s rural north through the early 1900s; that industry had largely
collapsed by mid-century, leaving both as ghost towns.

Getting There

Interstate 10 crosses the county east–west through Pensacola, and Interstate 110 spurs north
from downtown to meet it. US 29, US 90 and US 98 also run through the county, along with several
state roads linking the rural north to the coast.

• Mobile, Alabama — about 59 miles west
• Fort Walton Beach — about 45 miles east
• Milton — about 20 miles northeast
• Century — about 30 miles north of downtown Pensacola

Pensacola International Airport, about 4 miles northeast of downtown, is the county’s
commercial airport. Amtrak does not currently serve Escambia County; the nearest station is in
Mobile, Alabama.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Escambia County located?
It sits in Florida’s northwest corner, on the Alabama state line, about 59 miles east of Mobile
and bordered by Santa Rosa County to the east.

What is the population of Escambia County?
321,905 at the 2020 census, with an estimate near 333,834 by 2025.

How big is Escambia County?
656 square miles (1,700 km2) total, of which 438 square miles are land and 218 are water.

What is the county seat of Escambia County?
Pensacola, founded as a colonial port centuries before the county was organized, is the county
seat and its only incorporated city.

How many towns and communities are in Escambia County?
One city (Pensacola), one incorporated town (Century), and 11 census-designated places, plus about
60 smaller named communities the Census does not track separately.

What ZIP codes does Escambia County use?
32501 through 32509 and several PO-box-only codes for Pensacola, 32526 for Bellview, 32514 for
Ferry Pass, 32507 for Warrington, 32533 for Gonzalez, 32535 for Century and 32577 for Molino.

What is Escambia County known for?
Naval Air Station Pensacola, home of the Blue Angels and known as the Cradle of Naval Aviation
since 1914.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Florida.