The Athens-Clarke County Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of four counties - Clarke, Madison, Oconee, and Oglethorpe - in northeastern Georgia, anchored by the city of Athens.

[1] As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 166,079 people, 63,406 households, and 37,885 families residing in the MSA.

The racial makeup of the MSA was 73.54% White, 20.48% African American, 0.20% Native American, 2.20% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.32% from other races, and 1.22% from two or more races.

Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.79% of the population.

Males had a median income of $33,441 versus $23,764 for females.