Deerfield Beach is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. Located 40 miles (64 km) north of Miami, it is a principal city in the Miami metropolitan area in South Florida, which was home to 6.14 million people in 2020. As of the 2020 census, its population was 86,859, making it the 10th-largest city in Broward County and the 13th-largest city in the Miami metropolitan area. The Hillsboro River and the city of Boca Raton border the city to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Coconut Creek to the west, and Pompano Beach to the south.

The city's contemporary history dates back to the late 19th century, with the construction of the Florida East Coast Railway in 1896, built by Henry Flagler. The city's first post office was established in 1898. On June 11, 1925, the city was incorporated as the Town of Deerfield. The city grew very rapidly in the mid-20th century, particularly between 1950 and 1980, as new neighborhoods were built. The city has continued to grow since, and as of 2024, it has an estimated population of 90,507.

The city is known for its beaches and pier on Deerfield Beach Island, as well as its parks, particularly the botanical gardens of the Deerfield Beach Arboretum and Quiet Waters Park.

History Deerfield Beach's history dates to 1890, when a small settlement named Hillsborough was developed along the Hillsboro River. As the population grew to 20 by 1898, the settlement was served by its own post office, and the town was named Deerfield for the deer that grazed along the river.

By the early 20th century, as the town's population continued to grow, the Florida East Coast Railroad constructed tracks en route to Miami, bisecting Deerfield. Deerfield's early settlers were mostly farmers who grew pineapples, tomatoes, green beans, and squash, and fished along the Intracoastal Waterway. Deerfield remained a largely agricultural community, but in 1939, the town's name was changed to Deerfield Beach to let tourists know it has a beach. In 1952, the original Deerfield Beach Pier was built of wood.

Many of the city's oldest structures, mostly built in the 1920s, are built in a Spanish Mediterranean Revival style, a traditionally popular architectural style in South Florida.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are covered by water (7.12%). Of Deerfield Beach's land mass, 0.3 square mile is located on Deerfield Beach Island

Climate

Deerfield Beach has a borderline tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification: Af), bordering on a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen Am), featuring hot summer days, frequent thunderstorms in the summer, and less frequent rain in the fall.

During the summer, average temperatures generally are in the 80s, while during the winter, they are in the 60s. July is generally the warmest month of the year, with an average maximum temperature of , while the coldest month of the year is February, with an average minimum temperature of . The all-time record high is recorded in 1981, while the all-time record low is which was recorded in 1995. The year-round average temperature is .

The annual average precipitation at Deerfield Beach is . Summers tend to be wetter than winters. The wettest month of the year is June, with an average rainfall of .

Deerfield Beach falls under the USDA 10b Plant hardiness zone.

Climate data for Deerfield BeachMonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYearMean daily daylight hours10.511.512.012.513.513.513.513.012.511.511.010.512.1Source: Weather Atlas

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

Historical racial composition20202010200019901980White (non-Hispanic)41.7%56.0%71.2%78.9%80.4%Hispanic or Latino20.2%14.2%8.7%3.9%2.1%Black or African American (non-Hispanic)24.4%25.0%15.7%16.2%17.1%Asian and Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic)1.9%1.5%1.4%0.8%0.4%Native American (non-Hispanic)0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%Some other race (non-Hispanic)3.3%1.4%0.7%0.1%Two or more races (non-Hispanic)8.3%1.9%2.1%N/AN/APopulation86,85975,01864,58346,32539,193

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Deerfield Beach had a population of 86,859. The median age was 43.7 years; 17.7% of residents were under 18, 60.8% were between 18 and 64, and 21.6% were 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were 93.5 males, and for every 100 females 18 and over, there were 91.5 males 18 and over.

All of the residents lived in urban areas, while none lived in rural areas.

Of the 37,858 households in Deerfield Beach, 23.1% had children under 18 living in them, 36.0% were married-couple households, 23.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 35.8% of all households were made up of individuals, 17.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, and the average household size was 1.85.

The city had 46,993 housing units, of which 19.4% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.0%.

+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percentage White 39,945 46.0% Black or African American 21,642 24.9% American Indian and Alaska Native 282 0.3% Asian 1,666 1.9% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander 41 0.0% Some other race 8,466 9.7% Two or more races 14,817 17.1% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 17,568 20.2%

Other demographics

Demographic characteristics20202010200019901980Housing units46,99342,67137,34323,11818,422Persons per household1.851.761.732.002.1393.593.487.283.281.8Ages 0–1717.7%18.0%15.6%13.6%14.6%Ages 18–6460.8%60.6%55.1%50.1%44.2%Ages 65 +21.6%21.5%29.3%36.3%41.3%Median age43.743.344.648.660.6Population86,85975,01864,58346,32539,193 Economic indicators2017–21 American Community SurveyDeerfield BeachBroward CountyFlorida$31,343$36,222$34,367$49,650$64,522$61,777Poverty Rate15.6%12.4%13.1%85.4%90.0%89.0%26.9%34.3%31.5%9.0%13.1%11.7% Language spoken at home20152010200019901980English57.8%59.3%74.7%85.3%87.7%Spanish or Spanish Creole14.6%12.6%8.6%3.2%2.1%French or Haitian Creole12.5%12.5%5.5%3.7%1.5%PortugueseN/A9.5%4.9%0.4%N/AYiddishN/A0.6%1.2%2.4%N/AOther Languages15.1%5.5%5.1%5.0%8.7% Nativity20152010200019901980% population native-born66.0%68.5%77.3%84.9%85.5%... born in the United States63.9%66.5%75.8%83.8%84.8%... born in Puerto Rico or Island Areas0.9%1.1%0.9%0.3%0.7%... born to American parents abroad1.2%0.9%0.7%0.8%% population foreign-born34.0%31.5%22.7%15.1%14.5%... born in Haiti7.9%7.3%2.8%2.1%N/A... born in Brazil7.1%8.3%4.7%0.3%N/A... born in Canada2.2%2.2%2.0%1.6%1.6%... born in Russia0.2%0.1%0.4%1.4%2.4%... born in Poland0.1%0.6%0.9%1.7%2.8%... born in other countries16.5%13.0%11.9%8.0%7.7%

2000 census , 16.3% of households had children under 18 living with them, 38.2% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.9% were not families. About 40.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.5% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.02, and the average family size was 2.72.

In 2000, the median income in the city for a household was $34,041 and for a family was $44,853. Males had a median income of $35,154 versus $27,451 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,296. About 9.2% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.3% of those under 18 and 10.2% of those 65 or over.

, Deerfield Beach also had the highest percentage of Brazilian and Brazilian American population in the United States at 11.06%. It also has a significant percentage of Haitian and Haitian American residents in the United States at 12.1%.

Arts and culture

Cultural events The City of Deerfield Beach organizes free live music and cultural events in parks around the city throughout the year. Two major cultural series are "All that Jazz" with free, live jazz music and "Movies in the Park". These events are held outdoors in major parks around the city such as Crystal Heights Central Park.

Museums and historic sites Deerfield Beach has numerous historic sites and museums, many operated by the Deerfield Beach Historical Society. Most of the oldest structures in the city date to the 1920s. Two major historic sites operated by the historical society and open to the public are the James D. and Alice Butler House, a historic house museum, built in 1923 in a Spanish Mediterranean style, and the Old Deerfield School, a historic school house built in 1920 in Spanish Mission and Spanish Mediterranean architectural styles. Additionally, the historical society operates the Deerfield Beach Historical Society Museum and Culture Center, in a Mid-century Modern house, for arts, music, and cultural events.

The Deerfield Beach Station is a historic, Spanish Mediterranean railway station built in 1926 by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad. Today, the station serves Amtrak and Tri-Rail. Inside the train station, the South Florida Railway Museum has model trains, train equipment, and historic rail artifacts.

The Museum of Discovery and Science is building a new museum, the Deerfield Beach Marine Science Center, with exhibits focused on marine science and South Florida's subtropical ecology and ecosystems. The new museum is planned to open in the summer of 2026.

Libraries Two locations of the Broward County Library system are in Deerfield Beach: Century Plaza and Percy White.

Beaches and parks Beaches

Deerfield Beach is famous for its beach on the Atlantic Ocean, its boardwalk along Ocean Way, and the Deerfield Beach International Fishing Pier on Deerfield Beach Island.

Deerfield Beach is a popular spot for surfing. The area of the beach north of the pier is more popular with more skilled and competitive surfers. The southern end of the beach is more popular for beginner and intermediate surfers.

Deerfield Beach is also a protected sea turtle habitat and a popular spot for sea turtle nesting. Lighting on the beach is designed to be dimmer to avoid disorienting the sea turtles. The three main sea turtle species in Deerfield Beach are the loggerhead sea turtle, green sea turtle, and leatherback sea turtle.

Parks and nature preserves

The City of Deerfield Beach operates 54 parks throughout the city of varying size and uses. Two of the best known parks in the city are Pioneer Park in the city's historic center and the Deerfield Beach Arboretum, an arboretum and botanical garden. The Deerfield Beach Arboretum contains more than 200 different species of trees and palms from around the world with more than 50 different species of flowering trees, waterfalls, and gardens. Other parks, playgrounds, nature preserves and athletic facilities are scattered throughout the city's neighborhoods.

Quiet Waters Park, the largest park in the city, includes water skiing, bicycling, and walking trails. The Florida Renaissance Festival is held annually in Quiet Waters Park.

Deerfield Island Park is a nature preserve and only island park in Broward County. The island park is accessible by a free public ferry from Sullivan Park.

One 18-hole golf course is in the city, the Deer Creek Golf Club.

Future public park The city is planning to build a new public park on the site of the former Tam O'Santer Golf Course off of Military Trail in Crystal Lake (1085 NW 45th St). The new park, called Marty Popelsky Park, will have about 50 acres of green space, making it one of the largest parks in the city. As of November 2025, the city was working on design ideas for the public park, which include more trees, walking and bicycle trails, gardens, nature preserves, and athletic fields.

Economy Deerfield Beach is the headquarters of JM Family Enterprises, Southeast Toyota Distributors, MAPEI Americas, YouFit, and Ashbritt.

Education