Erie County

Erie County is a large urban county along the shore of Lake Erie in the western region of the U.S. state of New York, and the most populated county in New York State outside of the NYC Metro. As of the 2020 census, the population was 954,236. In 2025 the estimated population was 946,741. The county seat is Buffalo, which makes up about 28% of the county's population. Both the county and Lake Erie were named for the regional Iroquoian language-speaking Erie tribe of Native Americans, who lived in the area before 1654. They were later pushed out by the more powerful Iroquoian nations tribes. The county is part of the Western New York region of the state.