| | Fort Walton Beach, FL | Garner, NC | United States |
| Population | 20,805 | 30,859 | 329,725,481 |
| Female Population | 48.9% | 51.5% | 50.5% |
| Male Population | 51.1% | 48.5% | 49.5% |
| Median Age | 39.5 | 36.8 | 38.4 |
| space3 | | | |
| Population - 2010 | 19,476 | 25,911 | 309,327,143 |
| Population - 2000 | 19,973 | 17,757 | 285,036,114 |
| Population - 1990 | 21,471 | 14,967 | 251,960,433 |
| Pop. 2000 to Now | 12.1% | 81.2% | 15.6% |
| Pop. 1990 to Now | 4.3% | 115.0% | 30.8% |
| space4 | | | |
| Population Density | 2,728.9 | 1,978.7 | 93.4 |
| Land Area | 7.6 | 15.6 | 3,531,905.4 |
| Water Area | 0.8 | 0.0 | 264,836.8 |
| space | | | |
| Est. Total Population By Age | | | |
| | Fort Walton Beach, FL | Garner, NC | United States |
| Age 0 to 4 | 5.7% | 6.7% | 5.9% |
| Age 5 to 9 | 6.8% | 6.2% | 6.1% |
| Age 10 to 14 | 6.7% | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| Age 15 to 17 | 3.3% | 3.6% | 3.9% |
| Age 18 to 20 | 1.9% | 3.4% | 4.0% |
| Age 21 to 24 | 5.3% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
| Age 25 to 34 | 12.8% | 18.3% | 13.8% |
| Age 35 to 44 | 14.6% | 11.5% | 12.9% |
| Age 45 to 54 | 12.3% | 13.0% | 12.6% |
| Age 55 to 59 | 6.4% | 4.9% | 6.7% |
| Age 60 to 64 | 5.9% | 7.0% | 6.3% |
| Age 65 to 74 | 9.3% | 9.8% | 9.6% |
| Age 75 to 84 | 6.6% | 4.7% | 4.5% |
| Age 85 and over | 2.6% | 1.5% | 1.9% |
| space1 | | | |
| Race | | | |
| | Fort Walton Beach, FL | Garner, NC | United States |
| White | 66.8% | 57.2% | 59.4% |
| Black | 11.0% | 27.2% | 12.2% |
| Asian | 4.9% | 1.4% | 5.6% |
| Native American | 0.0% | 0.3% | 0.6% |
| Hawaiian, Pacific Islander | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Other | 0.7% | 0.4% | 0.4% |
| Two or More Races | 4.5% | 3.4% | 3.2% |
| Hispanic | 12.1% | 10.0% | 18.4% |
| space2 | | | |
| Marriage & Family | | | |
| | Fort Walton Beach, FL | Garner, NC | United States |
| Married Population | 46.9% | 51.9% | 49.8% |
| Currently Married | 44.5% | 50.4% | 48.0% |
| Married but Separated | 2.4% | 1.4% | 1.8% |
| Single Population | 53.1% | 48.1% | 50.2% |
| Never Married | 30.3% | 33.2% | 33.8% |
| Divorced | 15.2% | 9.7% | 10.8% |
| Widowed | 7.7% | 5.2% | 5.6% |
| space5 | | | |
| Household Size | 2.33 | 2.51 | 2.60 |
| Households | 8,775 | 12,221 | 124,010,992 |
| Family Households | 5,098 | 7,884 | 80,755,759 |
| Married couple, w/children | 28.0% | 32.4% | 30.5% |
| Married couple, no children | 40.6% | 42.9% | 42.9% |
| Non Family Households | 3,677 | 4,337 | 43,255,233 |
| Single householder, w/children | 19.8% | 14.0% | 15.8% |
| Single householder, no children | 11.7% | 10.7% | 10.8% |