Howard County Local Demographic Profile

Howard County, Indiana – key demographics (most recent available)

Population size

  • 83,658 (2020 Census)
  • 83,9xx (2023 Census Bureau estimate; essentially flat since 2020)

Age (ACS 2018–2022)

  • Median age: ~40.5 years
  • Under 18: ~22–23%
  • 18–64: ~58–59%
  • 65 and over: ~18–19%

Gender (ACS 2018–2022)

  • Female: ~50.8%
  • Male: ~49.2%

Racial/ethnic composition (ACS 2018–2022)

  • White alone: ~84%
  • Black or African American alone: ~7%
  • Asian alone: ~1%
  • American Indian/Alaska Native: ~0.5%
  • Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander: ~0.1%
  • Two or more races: ~6–7%
  • Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~4–5%
  • Non-Hispanic White: ~80–81%

Household data (ACS 2018–2022)

  • Households: ~35,000
  • Average household size: ~2.4
  • Family households: ~62% of households
  • Married-couple households: ~44% of households
  • Households with children under 18: ~27%
  • One-person households: ~31%
  • Owner-occupied housing: ~70–71% of occupied units
  • Median household income: ~$58–59K
  • Poverty rate (people): ~13%

Insights

  • Population is stable with an older age profile (nearly 1 in 5 residents are 65+).
  • County is predominantly non-Hispanic White, with modest racial/ethnic diversification led by Black and Hispanic populations.
  • Household structure skews toward owner-occupied, smaller households (average size ~2.4) with a majority of family households.

Email Usage in Howard County

Howard County, IN email usage (2024 est.)

  • Population and density: 83,700 residents across ~294 sq mi (285 people/sq mi). Roughly 70% live in Kokomo, the county’s urban core.
  • Estimated email users (13+): ~67,200 users ≈ 91% of residents aged 13+ (≈80% of total population).
  • Age distribution of email users:
    • 13–17: ~4,600 (7%)
    • 18–34: ~16,800 (25%)
    • 35–54: ~19,400 (29%)
    • 55+: ~26,400 (39%)
  • Gender split among users: ~51% female, ~49% male (mirrors county population balance).
  • Digital access and trends:
    • ~84% of households maintain a broadband internet subscription; ~89% have a computer.
    • ~13% are smartphone‑only internet households, indicating a meaningful mobile‑first segment.
    • Fiber and high‑speed cable are concentrated in Kokomo (elevating speeds and reliability), while rural townships lean more on cable/DSL and fixed wireless, which can reduce consistency and peak speeds.
  • Local connectivity insight: The urban concentration in Kokomo enables dense last‑mile infrastructure (fiber/cable) and higher adoption, whereas lower‑density areas face more variability in high‑speed availability, shaping email access patterns and usage intensity.

Mobile Phone Usage in Howard County

Howard County, Indiana — mobile phone usage snapshot (2024)

User base and penetration

  • Population: ≈83.5k residents (2023). Adults (18+): ≈65k.
  • Mobile phone owners (any cellphone): ≈62–63k adults (≈96% of adults).
  • Smartphone users: ≈58–60k adults (≈89% of adults). Including teens, total smartphone users countywide are ≈60–63k.
  • Active mobile lines (SIMs): ≈92–96k (≈110–115% of population, consistent with multi‑line ownership for watches, tablets, hotspots).
  • Mobile‑only home internet: ≈7–8k households (≈22–24% of ≈34k households) rely primarily on smartphones or cellular hotspots for home internet.

Demographic breakdown (key patterns)

  • Age:
    • 18–29: very high smartphone ownership (≈96%); heavy app and video usage.
    • 30–49: near‑universal smartphone ownership (≈97%); highest share of multi‑line/family plans.
    • 50–64: high but not universal (≈85–90%); more voice/text‑centric use than younger cohorts.
    • 65+: materially lower smartphone adoption (≈70–78%), with a larger feature‑phone segment than the state average; accessibility and larger‑screen devices more common.
  • Income:
    • With a lower median household income than the Indiana average, prepaid and budget plans are used more often. Estimated prepaid share of lines is ≈30–35% in Howard County vs ≈25–30% statewide.
    • Smartphone‑only internet reliance is elevated among lower‑income households, contributing to the above‑average mobile‑only share.
  • Geography:
    • Kokomo concentrates most data‑heavy use and multi‑line plans; rural fringes see more voice/SMS‑heavy and prepaid usage and a higher incidence of single‑line plans.

Digital infrastructure and performance

  • Coverage
    • 4G LTE: >99% population coverage across major carriers.
    • 5G: Comprehensive coverage in Kokomo and along major corridors; countywide population coverage generally high but spottier at the agricultural edges.
      • T‑Mobile: broad mid‑band 5G (2.5 GHz) footprint anchored on Kokomo and the US‑31 corridor; strongest depth of 5G coverage.
      • Verizon: widespread low‑band 5G with C‑band upgrades active on most Kokomo sites; strong suburban coverage, improving rural infill.
      • AT&T: countywide low‑band 5G; mid‑band capacity concentrated in Kokomo core and primary corridors; FirstNet Band 14 present on public‑safety‑focused sites.
  • Capacity and speeds (typical observed ranges)
    • Kokomo urban area:
      • T‑Mobile mid‑band 5G: roughly 200–350 Mbps down, single‑digit to mid‑double‑digit Mbps up.
      • Verizon C‑band 5G: roughly 100–250 Mbps down, 10–30 Mbps up.
      • AT&T 5G/LTE: roughly 60–120 Mbps down, 10–25 Mbps up.
    • Rural fringes and in‑building (metal/industrial): LTE often 10–40 Mbps down; uplink can fall below 10 Mbps, with occasional dead spots in low‑lying or heavily wooded areas.
  • Sites and upgrades
    • 2022–2024 saw visible mid‑band 5G upgrades (T‑Mobile 2.5 GHz; Verizon/AT&T C‑band) on existing macro sites, plus small‑cell infill near high‑traffic retail and industrial zones in Kokomo.
    • Fixed wireless access (FWA): T‑Mobile 5G Home widely offered in Kokomo; Verizon 5G Home available in select sectors. Availability of FWA aligns with stronger mid‑band coverage zones.
  • Public safety and resilience
    • FirstNet coverage is established across the county’s primary corridors and population centers, improving in‑building reliability for emergency services.

How Howard County differs from Indiana statewide

  • Slightly lower overall smartphone adoption: Driven by an older age structure and lower median income than the state, the county’s adult smartphone penetration sits a point or two below Indiana’s ~90% norm.
  • Higher reliance on prepaid and mobile‑only internet: Prepaid share and smartphone‑only home internet usage are both a few points higher than the state average, reflecting cost‑sensitive adoption and substituting for wired broadband where fiber/coax are limited or budgets are tight.
  • Coverage mix: Howard benefits from strong mid‑band 5G along US‑31 and in Kokomo, but depth of mid‑band 5G outside the urban core lags the build density seen in Indianapolis‑area counties; rural edges fall back to LTE more often than state urban counties.
  • Speeds: Median mobile speeds in Kokomo are competitive with state medians, but the countywide median is pulled down by rural sectors more than in metro‑heavy statewide results. Evening and shift‑change congestion is noticeable near industrial facilities.
  • Device and plan mix: A larger share of budget Android devices and MVNO lines (Cricket, Metro by T‑Mobile, Straight Talk) than the state average, consistent with local income distribution and higher prepaid usage.

Practical implications

  • For residents: T‑Mobile generally offers the strongest 5G capacity in Kokomo; Verizon and AT&T are reliable countywide, with Verizon’s C‑band narrowing the capacity gap in town. Rural users should verify LTE signal strength and consider external antennas or carriers with stronger low‑band coverage at their address.
  • For policymakers: Investments that extend mid‑band 5G beyond Kokomo (additional sectors and small cells) and targeted indoor coverage solutions at industrial sites would address the county’s main performance gaps. Programs that subsidize devices/plans can materially reduce the higher‑than‑average mobile‑only burden among low‑income households.

Method notes

  • Population and household counts are based on 2023 Census estimates. Smartphone ownership by age uses 2023 Pew Research Center benchmarks applied to the county’s age mix. Line penetration uses typical U.S. ratios of active mobile lines to population for counties of similar profile. Coverage and speed characterizations synthesize carrier buildouts (mid‑band 5G deployments since 2022) and widely reported crowd‑sourced test ranges. Figures are rounded to reflect estimation uncertainty while remaining decision‑useful.

Social Media Trends in Howard County

Howard County, IN social media snapshot (2025)

Context

  • Population: ~83k residents; ~64k adults (18+). Roughly 51% female, 49% male (U.S. Census Bureau estimates).
  • Benchmark note: No source publishes county-level platform adoption directly. The figures below apply the latest Pew Research Center U.S. adult adoption rates (2023–2024) to Howard County’s adult population to produce reasonable local estimates. Percentages shown are national adult usage; local counts are estimated.

Overall usage

  • Adults using any social media: ~72% of adults ≈ 46k users

Most-used platforms (U.S. adult usage rates applied locally)

  • YouTube: 83% → ~53k adults
  • Facebook: 68% → ~44k adults
  • Instagram: 47% → ~30k adults
  • Pinterest: 35% → ~22k adults
  • TikTok: 33% → ~21k adults
  • Snapchat: 30% → ~19k adults
  • LinkedIn: 30% → ~19k adults
  • X (Twitter): 22% → ~14k adults
  • Reddit: 22% → ~14k adults
  • WhatsApp: 21% → ~13k adults Note: Audiences overlap; counts are not additive.

Age-group patterns (behavioral tendencies you can expect locally)

  • Teens/young adults (under 30): Very heavy on YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram; Facebook used primarily for family/groups and Marketplace, not posting.
  • 30–49: Facebook remains the daily anchor (Groups, Marketplace, school and youth sports updates); Instagram used for local businesses, family, and Reels; YouTube for how‑to, product research.
  • 50–64: Facebook dominant for local news, community groups, church and civic info; YouTube for tutorials and streaming; rising Instagram/Reels viewing.
  • 65+: Facebook + YouTube core; Facebook used for community updates, obituaries, events; lower adoption of TikTok/Snapchat.

Gender breakdown (usage tendencies)

  • Women: Higher likelihood of Facebook, Instagram, and especially Pinterest; frequent participation in local buy/sell and community groups; strong engagement with visual content (Reels/Stories).
  • Men: Higher relative use of YouTube, Reddit, and X; strong consumption of sports, automotive, tech, and local news content.

Local behavioral trends to plan around

  • Facebook Groups and Marketplace are the hub of county-level activity: community announcements, lost/found, local services, garage sales, and small-business promos see high engagement.
  • Local information utility drives usage: school district, city/county offices, libraries, parks, first responders, and weather alerts perform best on Facebook; reposts expand reach via Groups.
  • Short-form video is surging: Instagram Reels and TikTok clips from local eateries, boutiques, fitness, and event venues reach under‑40 audiences; cross-posting Reels to Facebook improves reach to 30–60.
  • YouTube is the default for how‑to and hobby content; strong interest in DIY, home, auto, and trades aligns with regional workforce skills; churches and schools commonly stream to YouTube.
  • Messaging-first behavior: FB Messenger and Snapchat carry a large share of one-to-one/local micro‑group communication; public posting is more selective.
  • Event-driven spikes: Weather incidents, school sports, festivals, and city announcements trigger short, intense engagement bursts—optimize posting right before and during these windows.
  • Reviews and recommendations: Residents rely on Facebook word-of-mouth for contractors, healthcare, restaurants; prompt satisfied customers to post in local groups to accelerate discovery.

Sources and methodology

  • U.S. Census Bureau (population, age/sex composition for counties).
  • Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2023–2024 (national adult platform adoption). Local user counts are estimates derived by applying Pew’s percentages to Howard County’s ~64k adults.