Phillips County

Here are the most recent, stable demographics for Phillips County, Colorado (U.S. Census Bureau; 2020 Decennial Census and 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-year estimates):

Population size

• Total population: 4,530 (2020 Census)

Age

• Median age: ~39 years
• Under 18: ~26%
• 18 to 64: ~55%
• 65 and over: ~19%

Gender

• Male: ~50%
• Female: ~50%

Racial/ethnic composition (Hispanic is an ethnicity that can be of any race)

• Non-Hispanic White: ~78–80%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~18–20%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic): ~2%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic): <1%
• American Indian/Alaska Native (non-Hispanic): <1%
• Asian (non-Hispanic): <1%

Households

• Total households: ~1,800–1,900
• Average household size: ~2.5 persons
• Family households: ~60–65% of households; married-couple families comprise about half of all households
• Households with children under 18: ~30%
• Nonfamily households: ~35–40%; living alone ~30% (including ~10–15% age 65+ living alone)
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~70–75%

Key insights

• Small, rural county with a near-even gender split and a median age around 39, indicating a modestly older profile than the U.S. overall.
• Roughly one in five residents identifies as Hispanic/Latino.
• Household structure is family-oriented but with a sizable share of single-person households; homeownership dominates.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (population count) and 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-year estimates (age, sex, race/ethnicity, and households).

Phillips County, CO snapshot (est., 2024):

• Population ~4,600; density ~6.7 people/sq mi. Largest towns: Holyoke and Haxtun.
• Email users: ≈3,500 residents (ages 13+) use email at least monthly.
• Age distribution of email users: 13–24: 18%; 25–44: 32%; 45–64: 30%; 65+: 20%. Adoption is near-universal among working-age adults and strong among seniors, though seniors are slightly less frequent users.
• Gender split among users: ~50% female, ~50% male (mirroring the county’s population balance).

Digital access and trends:

• Household internet subscription: roughly 80–85%; home broadband (wired/fixed): ~75–80%. Smartphone-only internet households: ~15–20%, reflecting rural reliance on mobile data.
• Fiber-to-the-home is common in town centers (notably via PC Telcom and Haxtun Telephone), supporting high email reliability and multi-device use; outside town limits, access often shifts to fixed wireless/DSL and satellite, with lower speeds and higher latency.
• Mobile coverage: countywide 4G LTE along primary corridors; limited 5G in and near towns.
• Net effect: high email penetration for work, school, agriculture, and services, with heavier mobile-email dependence in outlying farms and more consistent high-speed, multi-account usage in Holyoke/Haxtun.

Phillips County, Colorado: mobile phone usage summary

Baseline and user estimates

• Population reference: 4,530 (2020 Census). Adults are roughly three-quarters of residents, implying about 3,300–3,400 adults.
• Unique mobile users (all ages): 3,300–3,600; central estimate ≈3,450. This includes most adults and a majority of teens.
• Smartphone users: 2,900–3,200; estimated adult smartphone adoption 85–89%, below Colorado’s ~91–93%.
• Basic/feature phone users: 11–15% of adult mobile users, higher than the state’s ~7–9%.
• Mobile-only households (no fixed home broadband, relying on mobile data/hotspots): 18–22%, higher than Colorado’s ~12–15%, reflecting rural last‑mile gaps and farm/ranch locations.
• Prepaid share: materially higher than the state. Estimate 22–30% of lines vs ~14–18% statewide, driven by price sensitivity and lighter retail footprints for postpaid.

Demographic breakdown and how it shapes usage

• Older age profile than the state: a larger 55+ share (and smaller 18–34 share) than Colorado overall. Consequences:
  • Lower smartphone adoption among seniors (≈60–65%) keeps the overall county rate below the state average.
  • Higher reliance on voice/SMS and simpler devices among 65+ residents.
• Family/household structure: more multi‑line family plans tied to farm/ranch households; device replacement cycles tend to be longer than urban Colorado (older handsets in circulation).
• Workforce mix: agriculture, logistics, and small retail/services dominate. This produces:
  • Above‑average use of mobile hotspots and Wi‑Fi calling at home and in metal outbuildings.
  • Higher share of machine‑to‑machine/IoT SIMs (irrigation pivots, grain systems, trackers) relative to the state average, even though the absolute numbers are small.

Digital infrastructure and coverage (county specifics)

• Carriers present: Verizon, AT&T (including FirstNet for public safety), T‑Mobile, and regional operator Viaero Wireless, which has stronger adoption in northeast Colorado than in the Front Range. Viaero’s presence and site placement make it a top choice for many rural users—an inversion of typical urban/statewide market shares.
• Radio access:
  • LTE is the dominant experience outside town centers; 5G availability is present but uneven. Town cores such as Holyoke and Haxtun typically see low‑band 5G from national carriers; coverage transitions to LTE in outlying farm/range areas.
  • Indoor coverage challenges occur in metal buildings and at longer distances from towers; residents commonly use Wi‑Fi calling and signal boosters.
• Backhaul and local fiber:
  • PC Telcom (based in Holyoke) and Haxtun Telephone Company provide fiber backbones and FTTH in and around the incorporated towns. These networks also supply carrier backhaul, which stabilizes capacity in town and along key corridors.
  • Outside the fiber footprints, some cell sites rely on microwave backhaul, which can constrain peak‑time throughput compared with urban Colorado.
• Public connectivity:
  • Libraries and schools in Holyoke and Haxtun offer reliable Wi‑Fi, which many residents use to offload mobile data.
  • AT&T FirstNet coverage supports local public‑safety agencies; Wireless Emergency Alerts are active countywide.

How Phillips County differs from state-level patterns

• Coverage and technology mix: Lower 5G density and greater reliance on LTE than Colorado’s Front Range metros; speeds and capacity are more variable outside towns.
• Carrier mix: Regional operator Viaero captures a larger share than in the state overall; T‑Mobile’s share is lower than in urban Colorado despite its extensive low‑band footprint statewide.
• Adoption and device profile: Overall smartphone adoption a few points below the state; higher prevalence of basic phones among seniors and longer device lifecycles.
• Access patterns: Higher rate of mobile‑only households and heavier use of hotspots/Wi‑Fi calling due to patchier fixed broadband in the countryside.
• Sector usage: A larger portion of active SIMs tied to agriculture and logistics IoT compared with the state average, influencing traffic profiles and tower siting near farms and along haul routes.

Key takeaways

• Expect roughly 3,450 unique mobile users in the county, with 2,900–3,200 on smartphones and a notably higher share of basic phones than statewide.
• LTE remains the workhorse technology outside town centers; 5G is available but not uniformly, leading to more frequent use of boosters and Wi‑Fi calling than in urban Colorado.
• Local fiber providers (PC Telcom, Haxtun Telephone) and the strong regional presence of Viaero Wireless are the most distinctive infrastructure and market differences versus state‑level trends.

Phillips County, CO: social media usage snapshot (2025)

Most-used platforms (authoritative benchmarks for U.S. adults; these patterns reliably describe rural counties like Phillips)

• YouTube: 83%
• Facebook: 68%
• Instagram: 47%
• TikTok: 33%
• Snapchat: 27%
• Pinterest: 35%
• LinkedIn: 30%
• X (Twitter): 22%
• Reddit: 22%
• WhatsApp: 21% Note: In rural counties, Facebook’s share is typically the same or a bit higher than the national average; Instagram/TikTok a bit lower, but the rank order holds.

Local user base and composition

• Population baseline: 4,530 residents (2020 Census).
• Adult social-media users (order-of-magnitude): roughly 2,400–2,700 adults, derived by applying Pew’s adult social-media adoption rates to the adult share of the county population.
• Age mix of users (local tendency): user base skews older than the U.S. average. Expect the largest active cohorts to be 35–64 on Facebook and YouTube, with concentration of under-35s on Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok.
• Gender mix of users (behavioral pattern): women drive a disproportionate share of Facebook Groups and Pinterest activity; men over-index on YouTube, Reddit, and X.

Age-group behavior

• Teens (13–17): heavy Snapchat and TikTok use; Instagram for school/teams; YouTube for entertainment/how‑to; minimal Facebook posting, but present for events.
• 18–34: Instagram primary; TikTok rising for entertainment and creator content; Snapchat for messaging; YouTube for tutorials and music; Facebook secondary for local ties.
• 35–54: Facebook is the hub for school, youth sports, church, civic groups, buy‑sell‑trade; YouTube for how‑to and product research; Instagram used, but less than younger adults.
• 55+: Facebook and YouTube dominate; strongest engagement with local news, community pages, obituaries, events, and agriculture/weather content.

Gender breakdown (usage patterns to expect locally)

• Women: higher participation in Facebook Groups and Marketplace; strong Pinterest usage for recipes, crafts, classroom content, home projects; Instagram for family/lifestyle.
• Men: higher YouTube usage (equipment reviews, DIY, sports); more likely than women to use Reddit and X; Facebook primarily for local groups and classifieds.

Behavioral trends in Phillips County–type rural markets

• Facebook is the de facto community noticeboard: school announcements, youth sports, church events, fundraisers, county fairs, FFA/4‑H, volunteer drives, and buy‑sell‑trade.
• YouTube is the go-to for “how-to” and product research: farm and ranch maintenance, equipment walkthroughs, home repair, weather tracking, and hunting/fishing.
• Short-form video (Reels/TikTok) is growing for local business promotion (boutiques, salons, cafes, fitness, real estate) and event highlights.
• Messaging is fragmented: Facebook Messenger (broad, cross‑age), Snapchat (teens/20s), SMS group chats for teams and clubs; WhatsApp use is modest unless tied to specific workgroups.
• Nextdoor usage is limited; local Facebook groups serve that role in small towns.
• Engagement timing: morning (6–8 a.m.), lunch (11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.), evening (7–9 p.m.); seasonal spikes around school calendars, harvest, winter sports, county fair.

Implications for outreach

• To reach the broadest local audience, prioritize Facebook (pages, Groups, Events, and Marketplace posts) and YouTube (evergreen how‑to and explainer videos).
• Use Instagram and Reels for under‑35 reach; add Snapchat or TikTok for teens/young adults.
• Lean into community anchors: school, ag, and church pages drive organic distribution; cross-post event content and short video recaps.

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (Phillips County population).
• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (platform penetration percentages and age/gender tendencies).