Orange County

Orange County, Indiana — key demographics

Population size

• 19,867 (2020 Census)

Age

• Under 18: ~23%
• 65 and over: ~20%
• Median age: ~42 years (Source: ACS 2018–2022 5-year estimates)

Gender

• Female: ~50% (Male ~50%) (Source: ACS 2018–2022)

Racial/ethnic composition

• White alone: ~95%
• Black or African American alone: ~0.5%
• American Indian/Alaska Native alone: ~0.3%
• Asian alone: ~0.3%
• Two or more races: ~4%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~2–3%
• White alone, not Hispanic or Latino: ~93% (Source: ACS 2018–2022)

Household data

• Households: ~7,800
• Persons per household: ~2.5
• Family households: ~5,200
• Owner-occupied housing unit rate: ~76%
• Median household income: ~$55K (Source: ACS 2018–2022)

Notes

• Figures use the latest decennial count for population (2020) and the most recent ACS 5-year estimates for composition and household characteristics, which provide stable county-level statistics.

Orange County, IN has ≈19,900 residents; ≈15,200 are adults (18+). Applying recent U.S. email adoption to the local age mix, an estimated ≈13,700 adults use email regularly (~90% of adults). By age: 18–34 ≈3,300 users (≈24% of users), 35–64 ≈6,900 (≈50%), 65+ ≈3,500 (≈26%). Gender split among users is essentially even, with a slight female edge (about 51–52%).

Digital access: roughly 80–85% of households have a broadband subscription (ACS/Census), and about 18–20% of adults in rural counties are smartphone‑only internet users (Pew), so a notable share accesses email primarily via mobile. The county is sparsely populated (~50 people per square mile) and largely rural, which, along with hilly/forested terrain, contributes to spottier fixed and mobile coverage than metro Indiana. Public libraries in Paoli, Orleans, and Springs Valley (French Lick/West Baden) act as key Wi‑Fi/email access points.

Overall, email is near‑universal among working‑age adults and growing among seniors, with access constraints driven more by connectivity than by demand.

Mobile phone usage in Orange County, Indiana — 2024 snapshot

Headline takeaways

• Mobile adoption is high but trails Indiana’s average, with a larger share of cellular-only households and more coverage variability due to terrain and rural dispersion.
• 5G is available in towns and along highways but is less prevalent in mid-band (fast) spectrum than statewide, keeping typical speeds lower and volatility higher.

User estimates

• Population base: ~19,600 residents (2024 est.); ~77% are adults ≈ 15,100.
• Adult smartphone users: ~13,100 (≈ 86% of adults), below Indiana’s ~89–91%.
• Adult mobile phone users (any cellphone): ~14,300 (≈ 95% of adults).
• Household smartphone access: ~86–88% of households have at least one smartphone (state ~90–92%).
• Cellular-only home internet: ~15–18% of households rely primarily on a smartphone/cellular data plan for home internet (state ~11–13%).
• Prepaid vs. postpaid: Prepaid lines are meaningfully higher than state average (≈ 25–30% of handset lines vs. Indiana ≈ 18–22%), reflecting income mix and coverage-driven carrier switching.
• Total human handset lines in market: ~18,000–19,500; total cellular connections including tablets/watches/IoT: ~24,000–27,000.

Demographic breakdown of usage

• By age (share with a smartphone):
  • 18–34: ~96% (near parity with state)
  • 35–64: ~88–90% (slightly below state)
  • 65+: ~70–75% (notably below state)
• By income:
  • Lower-income households are more likely to be smartphone-dependent and cellular-only for home internet (Orange County ~3–6 percentage points above state for cellular-only reliance).
• By geography within the county:
  • Highest adoption and best performance in/around Paoli, French Lick/West Baden, and along primary corridors (US-150/IN-56/IN-37 vicinity).
  • Lower adoption and more coverage gaps in wooded hollows and ridge/valley areas, especially toward the Hoosier National Forest edge and low-density tracts.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• Carrier presence: AT&T, Verizon, and T‑Mobile provide county coverage; UScellular roaming is present in parts of Southern Indiana. AT&T’s FirstNet public-safety layer improves reliability for voice/SMS in town centers and along key routes.
• 4G LTE: Countywide LTE reach is broad but not uniform; practical outdoor coverage is strong in towns/arterials and weaker in forested/lowland pockets.
• 5G availability:
  • Low-band 5G covers most population centers; mid-band 5G (faster) is concentrated in and between towns and along main highways.
  • Estimated 5G population coverage: ~70–80% in Orange County vs. ~90%+ statewide; mid-band share is the main gap.
• Speeds and reliability:
  • Typical download speeds: ~25–80 Mbps in town centers and along corridors; <10–20 Mbps and higher latency in fringe areas.
  • Statewide typical speeds are materially higher (often 100–200+ Mbps on mid-band 5G), highlighting the local mid-band coverage deficit.
• Capacity pressure:
  • Tourism in French Lick/West Baden and event weekends create short-term congestion spikes (evening and weekend peaks).
• Backhaul/middle-mile:
  • A mix of fiber-fed and microwave-fed cell sites; non-fiber backhaul on some rural sites contributes to variability and lower peak throughput compared with state averages.
• Emergency and redundancy:
  • FirstNet/priority access improves public-safety reliability; commercial redundancy is moderate, with overlapping AT&T/Verizon coverage in towns and more single-carrier dominance off-corridor.

How Orange County differs from Indiana overall

• Adoption: Smartphone adoption is a few points lower and the senior adoption gap is wider.
• Access pattern: Cellular-only home internet reliance is higher, reflecting patchier wired options and cost sensitivity.
• Network quality: 5G mid-band coverage and median speeds are lower; performance varies more sharply by micro‑location.
• Plan mix: Higher prepaid share and more switching between carriers/MVNOs tied to coverage pockets and promotional pricing.
• Seasonal variability: Tourism-driven demand spikes are more pronounced than the state average.

Implications

• For carriers: Highest ROI from adding/expanding mid-band 5G on existing macro sites between Paoli–French Lick/West Baden and along US‑150/IN‑56, plus selective small cells near resort/event venues. Fiberizing remaining microwave-fed sites would lift consistency.
• For households and businesses: Where wired broadband is limited, dual‑carrier failover or fixed wireless access (FWA) on the best mid-band 5G signal can materially improve reliability.
• For public sector and economic development: Addressing mid-band 5G gaps and backhaul constraints will narrow the performance gap with the rest of Indiana and reduce the county’s higher-than-average reliance on cellular-only home internet.

Social media usage in Orange County, Indiana — snapshot (2024)

What’s certain about the market

• Population: 19,867 (U.S. Census, 2020). Rural, older-leaning age mix compared with U.S. average.
• County-level social usage isn’t directly published by major datasets. The figures below apply 2024 Pew Research Center U.S. adoption rates to Orange County’s older profile to produce localized estimates.

Estimated platform reach among adults

• YouTube: 80–85% of adults
• Facebook: 70–75%
• Instagram: 35–45%
• Pinterest: 32–38%
• TikTok: 25–30%
• Snapchat: 15–20%
• X (Twitter): 15–18%
• Reddit: 12–15%
• LinkedIn: 20–25%

Age-group usage patterns (aligning with Pew 2024, adjusted to local age mix)

• 18–29: YouTube 90%+, Instagram 70–80%, TikTok 60–65%, Snapchat 60–65%, Facebook ~65–70%
• 30–49: YouTube ~90%, Facebook 75–80%, Instagram 55–60%, TikTok 35–40%
• 50–64: YouTube 80–85%, Facebook ~70%, Instagram 30–40%, TikTok 20–25%
• 65+: Facebook 60–65%, YouTube 55–60%, Instagram 15–20%, TikTok 8–12%

Gender breakdown (platform skews mirror national patterns)

• Overall users are roughly evenly split by gender.
• Female-leaning: Pinterest (~70% of users female), TikTok (modest female skew), Snapchat (modest female skew), Facebook (slight female skew), Instagram (slight female skew)
• Male-leaning: Reddit (strong), X/Twitter (moderate), YouTube (slight)
• LinkedIn: near-balanced to slight male skew

Behavioral trends observed for rural Midwest counties like Orange County

• Facebook is the hub: community groups, school/church updates, local news/weather, and Marketplace drive the highest routine engagement.
• Video-first consumption: short-form video (Reels/TikTok/Shorts) lifts reach; local event recaps, how‑to, and “faces of the community” outperform generic brand content.
• Peak activity windows: evenings 7–9 pm ET and weekend mornings; mobile-first viewing dominates.
• Messaging over email: Facebook Messenger and SMS are common for coordinating buys, services, and appointments; businesses see steady inbound via DMs.
• Trust and relevance rule: posts from local institutions (schools, first responders, town/county pages) and known local businesses earn higher click‑through and share rates.
• Paid performance notes: tight geo-radius targeting around Paoli, French Lick, and West Baden Springs; event-based and interest targeting (outdoors, youth sports, hospitality) convert well; on-platform lead forms outperform off-site clicks for many small businesses.

Sources and method

• U.S. Census Bureau (2020 Decennial) for population baseline.
• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024, for platform adoption by age cohort and overall. County percentages are localized estimates derived from these rates and Orange County’s older age profile.