Miami-Dade County, Florida

Miami-Dade County (/maɪˈæmi ˈdeɪd/) is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census,[4] making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in the United States.[7] It is Florida's third largest county in terms of land area with 1,946 square miles (5,040 km2). The county seat is Miami, the core of the nation's ninth-largest and world's 65th-largest metropolitan area with a 2020 population of 6.138 million people, exceeding the population of 31 of the nation's 50 states as of 2022.[8]

As of 2021, Miami-Dade County has a gross domestic product of $154.9 billion, making it the 14th-largest of the nation's 3,033 counties. The county is home to the Port of Miami on Biscayne Bay, the world's largest passenger port with a world record 5.5 million passengers in 2018, and Miami International Airport, the third largest U.S. airport for international passengers and largest U.S. airport for international cargo. The county's land area of nearly 2,000 square miles exceeds that of two U.S. states, Delaware and Rhode Island.[9] The county is home to several universities and colleges, including Florida International University, one of the largest public universities in the country, and the University of Miami in Coral Gables, a private research university that is routinely ranked as one of the nation's top universities and is the county's second-largest employer with nearly 17,000 employees as of 2021.[10][11]

Miami-Dade County is heavily Hispanic and was the most populous majority-Hispanic county in the nation as of 2020. It is home to 34 incorporated cities and many unincorporated areas.[12] The northern, central and eastern portions of the county are heavily urbanized with many high-rise buildings along the coastline, including Miami's Central Business District in Downtown Miami. Southern Miami-Dade County includes the Redland and Homestead areas, which make up the agricultural economy of the county. Agricultural Redland makes up roughly one third of Miami-Dade County's inhabited land area, and is sparsely populated, a stark contrast to the densely populated, urban portions of the county’s northern sections.

The county includes portions of two national parks. To the west, the county extends into the Everglades National Park and is populated only by a Miccosukee tribal village. Biscayne National Park and the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserves are located east of the mainland in Biscayne Bay.[13][14]