Hempstead County

Hempstead County, Arkansas — key demographics

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau 2020 Decennial Census (population, race/ethnicity) and 2018–2022 American Community Survey 5-year estimates (age, gender, households).

Population size

• Total population: 20,065 (2020)

Age

• Median age: ~38 years (ACS 2018–2022)
• Under 18: ~25%
• 18 to 64: ~58%
• 65 and over: ~17%

Gender

• Female: ~51%
• Male: ~49%

Racial/ethnic composition (2020 Census; shares of total)

• White (non-Hispanic): ~50%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic): ~31%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~15%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic): ~3%
• Asian (non-Hispanic): ~0.4%
• American Indian/Alaska Native (non-Hispanic): ~0.3%
• Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic): ~0.1%

Household data (ACS 2018–2022)

• Households: ~7,500
• Average household size: ~2.6
• Family households: ~64% of households
• Married-couple families: ~42% of households
• Nonfamily households: ~36% of households
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~69%

Insights

• Population declined from 2010 to 2020, consistent with broader rural trends.
• The county is racially diverse for rural Arkansas, with Black and Hispanic residents together comprising roughly 45–50% of the population.

Hempstead County, AR email usage overview (2025)

• Estimated email users: ~14,200 residents, about 70–72% of the county’s ~20,000 population.
• Age distribution of email users:
  • 13–17: 5% (~710)
  • 18–34: 26% (~3,690)
  • 35–54: 35% (~4,970)
  • 55–64: 14% (~1,990)
  • 65+: 20% (~2,840)
• Gender split among email users: ~51% female, ~49% male.

Digital access and usage trends

• Households with an internet subscription: ~74%.
• Households with a computer or smartphone: ~89%.
• Smartphone-only internet households: ~15%, reflecting affordability and rural coverage gaps.
• Trend: Email adoption is stable to slowly rising, led by smartphone diffusion; usage among 65+ continues to grow but lags younger cohorts. The 2024 lapse of the Affordable Connectivity Program likely increased smartphone-only reliance and slowed broadband retention. State/federal buildouts are expanding fiber and fixed wireless, supporting higher adoption through 2027–2028.

Local density/connectivity facts

• Area ~740 sq. mi.; population density ~27 people/sq. mi., indicating dispersed settlements outside Hope.
• High-speed options are concentrated in Hope and along main corridors; outlying areas rely more on DSL/fixed wireless. 4G coverage is broad; 5G is strongest in and near Hope, thinning in remote zones.

Mobile phone usage in Hempstead County, Arkansas — 2024 snapshot

Headline estimates

• Population base: 20,065 (2020 Census). Estimated households: ~8,000 (assumes ~2.5 persons/household). Adults 18+: ~15,200 (typical rural AR age structure ~76% adult).
• Mobile phone users (any cellphone): ~14,500–15,800 adults (95–104 per 100 adults; aligns with near-universal cellphone ownership in rural U.S.).
• Smartphone users: ~11,800–13,200 adults (78–87% of adults, reflecting rural/older age mix).
• Mobile-only internet households (primarily rely on a cellular data plan for home internet): ~22–28% of households, materially higher than Arkansas statewide, which is typically in the mid-teens to about one-fifth.
• Prepaid vs postpaid: Prepaid penetration is notably higher than statewide; estimated 45–55% of lines in the county vs roughly a high-30s to low-40s share at the state level.

Demographic breakdown (modeled from Census age and rural adoption patterns)

• By age (smartphone ownership among adults; counts approximate):
  • 18–34: 90–95% (≈3,200–3,500 users)
  • 35–64: 80–88% (≈6,000–6,800 users)
  • 65+: 55–65% (≈2,000–2,400 users)
• By race/ethnicity (usage characteristics):
  • Black and Hispanic adults constitute a larger share of the county than the Arkansas average. These groups show above-average reliance on mobile data for home connectivity relative to wireline broadband, contributing to the county’s higher mobile-only rate.
• Income and plan type:
  • Below-median income households are more likely to use prepaid plans, multi-line family plans, and refurbished devices; they also exhibit higher mobile-only internet reliance due to affordability and limited wireline options.
• Language and access:
  • Spanish-speaking households are more likely to use messaging apps and Wi‑Fi offload at public anchor institutions (schools, libraries) to manage data costs.

Usage patterns that differ from Arkansas statewide norms

• Higher mobile-only reliance: A larger share of households depend on cellular data for home internet than the state average, driven by affordability constraints and patchier wireline options outside Hope.
• More LTE, less mid-band 5G: Day-to-day usage skews toward LTE and low-band 5G, with fewer areas enjoying mid-band 5G performance compared to metro-heavy state averages. Typical rural speeds are lower and more variable, with greater sensitivity to congestion and terrain.
• Greater prepaid share: Budget-conscious prepaid and MVNO plans are more prevalent than statewide, increasing price sensitivity and data-cap management behaviors (e.g., aggressive Wi‑Fi offload, lower-bitrate streaming).
• Older age mix: A larger 65+ share than state metro areas pulls overall smartphone adoption a few points below the state average and sustains a niche for basic/feature phones.

Digital infrastructure snapshot

• Macro coverage: All three national carriers (AT&T, Verizon, T‑Mobile) provide countywide LTE coverage with strongest signals in and around Hope and along I‑30, US‑67, and AR‑29. Terrain and foliage create shadow zones in low-lying and forested areas, especially away from major corridors.
• 5G availability:
  • Low-band 5G: Broad but not universal; primarily improves coverage and uplink rather than delivering large speed gains.
  • Mid-band 5G: Concentrated in/near Hope and along I‑30. Outside these areas, users often fall back to LTE or low-band 5G, so median 5G speeds trail state metro corridors.
• Backhaul: Tower backhaul is a mix of fiber and microwave; fiberized sites cluster around Hope and along interstate rights-of-way, with more microwave-fed sites in rural north and west of the county.
• Wireline context (impacts mobile reliance):
  • Hope has cable broadband and pockets of fiber; rural areas rely on legacy DSL, fixed wireless, and selective fiber buildouts. Where wireline options are limited or costly, households substitute with unlimited or high-cap mobile data plans.
  • Public anchors (schools, libraries, clinics) provide important Wi‑Fi offload points, influencing data usage patterns and device ownership among lower-income residents.
• Public safety and resilience:
  • FirstNet (AT&T Band 14) covers primary corridors and population centers; coverage gaps persist off-corridor in rural tracts, affecting reliability during severe weather. Power backup and microwave paths at outlying sites are operational considerations.

What this means in practice

• Market composition: Expect a higher mix of prepaid/MVNO subscribers, multi-line discounts, and refurbished device uptake than statewide averages.
• Network performance: Median mobile speeds and consistency are lower than statewide, with the best 5G experiences concentrated around Hope and I‑30. Capacity upgrades (mid-band 5G plus fiber backhaul) in and just beyond Hope would yield outsized benefits.
• Digital equity: With the end of ACP subsidies in 2024, cost pressures are shifting more households toward mobile-only connectivity. Affordable fixed options and community Wi‑Fi will be key to narrowing gaps.
• Emergency preparedness: Filling low-band coverage and backup-power gaps on rural sites, and extending Band 14/FirstNet north and west of Hope, would materially improve resilience relative to current conditions.

Notes on method

• Counts and percentages are modeled from the 2020 Census population, a typical rural Arkansas age structure, national/rural smartphone adoption benchmarks (Pew), and observed differences between metro and rural 5G deployments and wireline availability reflected in FCC coverage and provider materials as of 2023–2024. Where county-specific measurements are unavailable, results are provided as bounded estimates tailored to Hempstead County’s demographics and infrastructure profile.

Hempstead County, AR — Social media usage snapshot (2025)

Population base

• Residents: ~20,000 (ACS 2023 estimate)
• Residents age 13+: ~16,400

Overall user stats (13+)

• Estimated social media users: ~12,100
• Penetration: 74% of residents age 13+ (≈60% of total residents)

Age profile (share of social media users; adoption within each age group in parentheses)

• 13–17: 9% (≈95% use social media)
• 18–24: 13% (≈90%)
• 25–34: 17% (≈85%)
• 35–44: 16% (≈80%)
• 45–54: 15% (≈74%)
• 55–64: 15% (≈68%)
• 65+: 15% (≈50%)

Gender breakdown (share of social media users)

• Female: ~52%
• Male: ~48%

Most-used platforms among local social media users

• YouTube: ~82%
• Facebook: ~74%
• Facebook Messenger: ~63%
• Instagram: ~40%
• TikTok: ~33%
• Snapchat: ~28%
• Pinterest: ~27%
• X (Twitter): ~17%
• LinkedIn: ~14%
• Reddit: ~12%
• WhatsApp: ~16%
• Nextdoor: ~6%

Behavioral trends

• Facebook is the community hub: high engagement with local news, churches, school and sports updates, events, and Marketplace listings.
• Video-first consumption: YouTube for how‑to and longer viewing; Facebook Reels and TikTok for short, shareable local content.
• Mobile-dominant: the vast majority of usage is on smartphones; vertical video, large text, and concise captions perform best.
• Messaging matters: coordination happens in Facebook Messenger group chats; DMs drive responses more than public comments for service businesses.
• Time-of-day peaks: evenings (7–10 pm CT) and weekends show the strongest activity; weekday early mornings see secondary spikes.
• Younger users (13–34) split time across Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat; older users (45+) concentrate on Facebook and YouTube.
• Practical content wins: promotions, hours, closures, weather impacts, job postings, and “what’s happening this week” posts outperform generic branding.
• Trust is local: posts from known people, churches, schools, local officials, and small businesses outperform national pages; user-generated photos/videos boost reach.

Method note: Figures are county-level estimates derived from U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 population structure and Pew Research Center’s 2024 U.S./rural platform adoption patterns, applied to Hempstead County’s age mix. Percentages for platforms reflect the share of local social media users using each platform (multi-platform usage means totals exceed 100%).