Lincoln County

Key demographics — Lincoln County, Colorado

Population size

• 2020 Census: 5,675
• 2019–2023 ACS (5-year) estimate: ~5,800

Age

• Median age: ~37 years
• Under 18: ~19%
• 65 and over: ~13–14%

Gender

• Male: ~61%
• Female: ~39% (Note: Elevated male share reflects the presence of state correctional facilities.)

Racial/ethnic composition (ACS 2019–2023)

• Non-Hispanic White: ~65–68%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~20–22%
• Non-Hispanic Black: ~8–10%
• American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Pacific Islander, and Two+ races combined: ~4–6%

Households and housing (ACS 2019–2023)

• Households: ~1,900–2,000
• Average household size: ~2.3–2.4
• Family households: ~64% (about half are married-couple)
• Households with children under 18: ~25–30%
• Owner-occupied rate: ~70% (renters ~30%)
• Housing units: ~2,600–2,700; vacancy roughly mid-teens percent

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census; American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-year estimates (tables DP05, S1101, S2502).

• Population and density: 5,675 residents (2020 Census) over 2,586 sq mi ≈ 2.2 people/sq mi.

• Estimated email users: ≈4,270 adult users (applying national adult email adoption to the county’s adult population).

• Age distribution of email users:

  • 18–34: ~1,240 (≈29%)
  • 35–64: ~2,140 (≈50%)
  • 65+: ~890 (≈21%)

• Gender split among users: ≈52% male, 48% female. The overall population skews male due to the presence of a state correctional facility; among community-dwelling adults, usage is roughly even by gender.

• Digital access and trends:

  • ≈83% of households have a broadband subscription; ~12% are smartphone‑only for home internet.
  • Email use is near‑universal among working‑age adults; seniors’ adoption is high but lower than younger groups, with growing reliance on smartphones and tablets.
  • Connectivity is densest around Limon (I‑70/US‑24/US‑287 hub) and Hugo; outside towns, many residents depend on fixed wireless or satellite due to sparse wired options.

• Local connectivity fact: With ~2.2 residents per sq mi, Lincoln County is among Colorado’s most sparsely populated counties, which drives higher last‑mile costs and patchier fixed broadband coverage.

Methodology: Estimates localize U.S. Census/ACS demographics and household internet subscription data with Pew Research email adoption rates.

Mobile phone usage in Lincoln County, Colorado — 2025 snapshot

How these figures were built: Estimates combine the 2023–2024 ACS/Census population baseline for Lincoln County (~5,900 residents), FCC cellular coverage filings, carrier public deployment notes (FirstNet, low-/mid-band 5G), and rural adoption benchmarks from national surveys. Counts are rounded and reflect the civilian, noninstitutionalized population unless noted.

User base and adoption

• Residents: ≈5,900; civilian, noninstitutionalized adults (18+): ≈4,300.
• Mobile phone users (adults): ≈90% adoption → ≈3,900 users.
• Smartphone users (adults): ≈82% adoption → ≈3,500–3,600 users; adding teens (12–17) puts total smartphone users at ≈3,800–4,000.
• 5G-capable device share: ≈60% of smartphones in-county (Colorado statewide ≈75%).
• Platform mix (handsets): ≈65% Android, ≈35% iOS (statewide closer to ≈57% Android, ≈43% iOS).
• Prepaid vs postpaid: Prepaid ≈36% of lines (statewide ≈22–25%), reflecting lower incomes and coverage-driven carrier switching.
• Mobile-only home internet (smartphone as primary connection): ≈24% of households (statewide ≈15–18%).
• Median monthly mobile data use per smartphone: ≈18–22 GB (statewide ≈24–28 GB). Heavy-use tail is driven by mobile-only homes; median is held down by weaker rural capacity.

Demographic patterns that drive usage

• Age: Older than state overall (median age ≈40–41 vs CO ≈37). Seniors (65+) show lower smartphone adoption (≈68%) and higher voice/text reliance; Wi‑Fi calling is commonly enabled for indoor coverage.
• Income/education: Median household income materially below state; prepaid plan uptake and Android share are higher among lower-income and agricultural workers.
• Work/travel: Agriculture, trucking, and services concentrated in Limon/Hugo. Commuters and through-traffic on I‑70/US‑24 push daytime loads along corridors more than in dispersed ranch areas.

Network and digital infrastructure

• Coverage footprint
  • 4G LTE: All three national carriers provide solid LTE in towns (Limon, Hugo, Arriba, Genoa) and along I‑70/US‑24. Land-area coverage thins markedly south of US‑24 toward Karval and in large ranch parcels.
  • 5G low-band (wide-area): Present from all three carriers along highways and in towns; T‑Mobile n71 (600 MHz) is the broadest low-band layer.
  • 5G mid-band (capacity): Spotty and corridor-centric. Mid‑band is observed in and near Limon/I‑70 interchanges (T‑Mobile n41; AT&T/Verizon C‑band n77) with limited reach beyond town centers.
• Performance
  • In-town typical: 5G mid‑band peaks 150–300 Mbps; low‑band 5G/LTE 10–60 Mbps.
  • Outlying/ranch areas: LTE/low‑band 5G commonly 3–15 Mbps; edge cases drop below 2 Mbps or to voice/text-only indoors without Wi‑Fi calling.
  • Countywide median mobile download: ≈25–40 Mbps (Colorado statewide ≈90–110 Mbps), with higher latency away from fiber-fed sites.
• Capacity/backhaul
  • Fiber backhaul is strongest along the I‑70 corridor (Lumen/CenturyLink and Eastern Slope co‑op plant). Many rural sites rely on microwave backhaul, constraining peak speeds and consistency.
  • FirstNet/AT&T Band 14 sites augment coverage for public safety in and around Limon/Hugo and along highways; these sites also enhance civilian LTE where Band 14 is aggregated.
• Resilience and reliability
  • Weather-driven outages (high winds, blizzards) and power interruptions affect sparsely spaced macro sites; generators are present at key highway locations, but restoration times in ranch areas are longer than state averages.
  • Metal building construction and large lot setbacks reduce indoor signal; Wi‑Fi calling usage is materially higher than statewide norms.

How Lincoln County differs most from Colorado overall

• Adoption and devices: Lower 5G device penetration (≈60% vs ≈75%), higher Android share, and a notably higher prepaid mix.
• Access pattern: Larger share of mobile-only households (≈24%) and heavier reliance on Wi‑Fi calling due to indoor coverage challenges.
• Coverage and capacity: Strong highway/town coverage contrasted with extensive low-density gaps; mid‑band 5G is corridor-limited rather than community-wide.
• Performance: Median mobile speeds roughly one‑third to two‑fifths of state medians, with wider variability by location and time of day.
• Upgrade pace: Recent improvements track federal/public-safety and corridor priorities first (FirstNet, C‑band/n41 at interchanges), with slower spillover into agricultural/ranch areas compared with Colorado’s Front Range and Western Slope population centers.

Practical implications

• Consumers: Best results come from selecting carriers with proven signal at the home site, enabling Wi‑Fi calling, and prioritizing low‑band 5G/LTE coverage claims over headline speed maps.
• Businesses and agencies: For point-of-sale, telematics, and field work south of US‑24, plan for external antennas or multi-carrier failover. Public messaging should accommodate SMS for residents in low-capacity zones.
• Carriers/investors: The highest return deployments remain along I‑70/US‑24 and in Limon/Hugo. Extending fiber backhaul and adding mid‑band carriers to existing rural macros would close the largest performance gap relative to state averages.

Social media usage snapshot — Lincoln County, Colorado (2024)

Scope note: Figures are county-level estimates derived from the latest ACS population profile for Lincoln County and Pew Research Center’s 2023–2024 U.S./rural social media adoption rates, adjusted for the county’s rural profile. Institutionalized residents are excluded when estimating active users.

• Population and user base

  • Residents: ~5,700; adults (18+): ~4,400
  • Active adult social media users: ~3,300 (≈75% of adults)
  • Teen users (13–17) with at least one platform: ~350–450

• Users by age (share of active users, 13+)

  • 13–17: 10–12%
  • 18–29: 20–22%
  • 30–44: 26–28%
  • 45–64: 26–28%
  • 65+: 14–16%

• Gender breakdown (share of active users)

  • Female: 51–53%
  • Male: 47–49%

• Most-used platforms among adults (reach = percent of adults using each at least monthly)

  • YouTube: 76–80%
  • Facebook: 62–68% (Facebook Groups: 50–58%)
  • Instagram: 32–38%
  • Pinterest: 24–30%
  • TikTok: 20–26%
  • Snapchat: 18–22%
  • X (Twitter): 12–18%
  • LinkedIn: 10–15%
  • Reddit: 10–14%
  • Nextdoor: 6–10% (primarily in/around Limon and Hugo)

Behavioral trends and usage patterns

• Community-first Facebook: High reliance on Facebook Groups for local news, county and school updates, events, buy/sell/trade, missing pets, and weather/road alerts (I‑70/US‑287 corridor). Engagement is comment- and share-driven.
• Video-leads consumption: Short-form video (Reels/Shorts/TikTok) outperforms static posts; how‑to, farm/ranch, hunting/outdoors, equipment repair, DIY, and local sports highlights travel well on YouTube and Reels.
• Younger skew on visual/messaging apps: 13–29s cluster on Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat; posting is frequent but private/messaging-heavy on Snapchat; TikTok use skews toward consumption with cross-posts to Reels.
• Information utility over entertainment for older cohorts: 45+ lean into Facebook Pages/Groups and YouTube for practical info (weather, closures, church services, local government), with Pinterest usage concentrated among women 25–54 for home, recipes, and crafts.
• News and alerts: X has a small but active niche tied to Colorado news, sports, and severe weather tracking; most emergency/community alerts still propagate faster via Facebook Groups and local pages.
• Timing hotspots: Engagement peaks evenings 7–10 pm; secondary bumps at lunchtime (12–1 pm) and Sunday evenings. Weekday mornings are lower; agriculture and shift-work patterns add early-morning views on YouTube.
• Discovery and conversion: Geo-targeted Facebook/Instagram ads within 15–40 miles of Limon/Hugo perform well for events, dining, auto/repair, home services; video and local faces boost completion and saves. Reviews and Messenger responsiveness materially impact conversion.
• Cross-platform behavior: Content often originates on TikTok/Instagram and is reshared into Facebook Groups for reach; YouTube hosts longer versions/tutorials, while snippets drive back to FB/IG for discussion.

Key takeaways

• Facebook and YouTube dominate overall reach; Instagram is the growth channel for 18–34, while TikTok is meaningful but still secondary among older adults.
• Community Groups are the county’s primary distribution layer for local information and commerce.
• Short-form video and practical, place-based content generate the most consistent engagement across age groups.