Welcome to Tacoma ...
The coastal city of Tacoma is located in Pierce County<1> and is the County Seat for Pierce County.
The pronunciation of Tacoma: tuh-KOH-muh<2>
Tacoma was established in 1864.
When the people of Tacoma refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Tacoman<3>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Tacoma has a population of 218,098 people<4> (see below for details).
The community of Tacoma is 380 feet [116 m] above sea level.<5>.
Time Zone: Tacoma lies in the Pacific Time Zone (PST/PDT) and observes daylight saving time
Tacoma lies within the (253) area code.
The ZIP codes for Tacoma: 98401-98409, 98411-98413, 98415-98419, 98421-98422, 98424, 98430-98431, 98433, 98438-98439, 98443-98448, 98464-98467, 98471, 98481, 98490, 98493, 98496-98499<6>
Websites for Tacoma ...
Official Website: www.cityoftacoma.org/
Chamber of Commerce: www.tacomachamber.org/
Junior League: www.jltacoma.org/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Tacoma had an population of 218,098 people. This is an increase of 9.93% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 12.68% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Tacoma had a population of 198,397 people (which is 24.95% of the total population of Pierce County). This makes Tacoma the county's most populous community.
The population of Tacoma represents 2.95% of the population of Washington (which has 6,724,540 people), making it the state's 3rd most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 198,397 people, the population of Tacoma increased 2.5% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 193,556 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Tacoma.
Communities Also Named Tacoma ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 8 communities that are also named Tacoma - they are located in Colorado, Florida, Maine, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Texas and Virginia.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Tacoma.
Communities near Tacoma ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Tacoma.
- Kent
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent
- Kent is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 130,676 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kent <7>
- Renton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Renton
- Renton is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 101,494 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Renton <7>
- Federal Way
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Federal Way
- Federal Way is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 96,307 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Federal Way <7>
- Auburn
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburn
- Auburn is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 81,024 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Auburn <7>
- Lakewood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood
- Lakewood is located in Pierce County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 60,976 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lakewood <7>
- Burien
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burien
- Burien is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 51,268 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burien <7>
- Puyallup
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puyallup
- Puyallup is located in Pierce County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 42,569 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Puyallup <7>
- Des Moines
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Des Moines
- Des Moines is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 32,389 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Des Moines <7>
- SeaTac
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for SeaTac
- SeaTac is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,904 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for SeaTac <7>
- Maple Valley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Valley
- Maple Valley is located in King County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 27,544 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maple Valley <7>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Tacoma. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Tacoma.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Tacoma. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Tacoma.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Tacoma. Our list includes 147 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Tacoma.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Tacoma ...
Looking for more information about Tacoma? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Tacoma, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Tacoma.
Adding Tacoma to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Tacoma in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Tacoma was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>
From that list, the Tacoma post office opened in 1869.
We also found Tacoma in the book titled List of Post Offices in the United States (1870).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Tacoma.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Tacoma: www.cityoftacoma.org/
The official website for Pierce County: www.co.pierce.wa.us/
The official website for State of Washington: https://access.wa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Washington's counties, including Pierce, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Tacoma. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page. |
| <3> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Tacoma refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a city's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Tacoma may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <4> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Tacoma. |
| <5> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Tacoma - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <6> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Tacoma). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Tacoma or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). Our list of ZIP Codes for Tacoma includes: 98401, 98402, 98403, 98404, 98405, 98406, 98407, 98408, 98411, 98412, 98415, 98416, 98417, 98418, 98421, 98424, 98430, 98433, 98438, 98443, 98444, 98445, 98446, 98447, 98464, 98465, 98466, 98471, 98481, 98490, 98493, 98496, 98497, 98498 & 98499. |
| <7> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <8> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |