What is the median rent in Bartow, FL?

Name: Median rent in Bartow, FL, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Bartow, FL is $1,142 (±$165) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 2,468 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Bartow, the median gross rent went from $841 in 2015–2019 to $1,142 in 2020–2024 (+35.8%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,142 (±$165)
Rented homes: 2,468 (±339)
$2,000 or more: 9.8%
Since 2015–2019: +35.8%

How much rent costs in Bartow

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Bartow	Polk County	Florida	United States
Less than $500	19.1% (±6.0 points)	4.5%	3.6%	6.3%
$500 to $999	24.9% (±7.5 points)	20.4%	10.7%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	26.1% (±8.4 points)	33.4%	26.0%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	20.0% (±7.9 points)	23.2%	28.8%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	7.6% (±5.0 points)	12.6%	17.4%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	1.8% (±2.0 points)	4.3%	7.2%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	0.4% (±0.9 points)	1.6%	6.3%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,000 to $1,499, paid by 26.1% of renting households.

9.8% of rented homes in Bartow cost $2,000 or more a month.

Bartow against Polk County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Bartow	Polk County	Florida	United States
Median gross rent	$1,142 (±$165)	$1,363 (±$28)	$1,669 (±$5)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	2,468 (±339)	81,077 (±1,915)	2,716,443 (±16,958)	42,849,984

In Bartow, median gross rent is lower than in Polk County ($1,363).

It is also lower than in Florida ($1,669).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

In Polk County, Bartow ranks 23 of 33 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 622 of 793.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Bartow has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$841 (±$29)	$1,142 (±$165)	+35.8%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	41.1% (±4.1 points)	34.1% (±4.2 points)	−7.0 percentage points	Measurable decrease
Rental vacancy rate	5.8% (±3.1 points)	5.2% (±3.9 points)	−0.6 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Bartow

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Bartow
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Bartow	—	$1,142 (±$165)	—
Highland City	6.3 mi	$1,993 (±$338)	Higher
Eagle Lake	7.3 mi	$1,688 (±$422)	Higher
Wahneta	7.5 mi	$1,113 (±$335)	Not measurably different
Fort Meade	8.4 mi	$922 (±$64)	Lower
Jan Phyl Village	9.1 mi	$1,210 (±$231)	Not measurably different
Alturas	9.1 mi	$1,017 (±$401)	Not measurably different
Lakeland Highlands	9.3 mi	$1,704 (±$261)	Higher
Mulberry	10 mi	$920 (±$93)	Lower

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Fort Meade, FL ($922), Mulberry, FL ($920).

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Highland City, FL ($1,993), Eagle Lake, FL ($1,688), Lakeland Highlands, FL ($1,704).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Polk County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
17	Haines City	$1,224 (±$110)
18	Jan Phyl Village	$1,210 (±$231)
19	Auburndale	$1,208 (±$137)
20	Crystal Lake	$1,181 (±$87)
21 (tie)	Grenelefe	$1,180 (±$229)
21 (tie)	Lake Hamilton	$1,180 (±$165)
23	Bartow	$1,142 (±$165)
24	Combee Settlement	$1,130 (±$117)
25	Willow Oak	$1,117 (±$89)
26	Wahneta	$1,113 (±$335)
27	Polk City	$1,111 (±$436)
28	Lake Wales	$1,110 (±$79)
29	Alturas	$1,017 (±$401)

Showing 13 of 33 places in Polk County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Bartow

What is the average rent in Bartow, FL?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Bartow is $1,142 (±$165) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Bartow?

In Bartow, the median gross rent went from $841 in 2015–2019 to $1,142 in 2020–2024 (+35.8%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Bartow cost more than $2,000 a month?

9.8% of rented homes in Bartow have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 19.1% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Bartow higher than in Polk County?

In Bartow, median gross rent is lower than in Polk County ($1,363).

It is also lower than in Florida ($1,669).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Bartow city, Florida (place:03675, in state:12).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.