Clarke County

To keep this accurate, which dataset/year would you like me to use?

• Option A: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2019–2023) — best for age/households, small-area reliability.
• Option B: 2020 Decennial Census — exact population and race counts, less detail on households.

If you prefer, I can default to ACS 2019–2023 and provide concise bullets for population, age distribution, gender split, race/ethnicity, and household metrics.

Clarke County, IA snapshot (pop ~9.8k; low-density rural, <25 people/sq mi)

Estimated email users

• 6,900–7,400 residents age 13+, based on adult share of population and local internet/smartphone adoption.

Age distribution among email users

• 13–17: 4–6%
• 18–34: 22–28%
• 35–54: 30–35%
• 55–64: 16–19%
• 65+: 18–22%

Gender split

• Approximately even (about 50/50), with a slight female majority consistent with county demographics.

Digital access and trends

• About 8 in 10 households have a broadband subscription; 10–15% are smartphone‑only; roughly 7–12% have no home internet.
• Connectivity is strongest in and around Osceola and along the I‑35 corridor (fiber/cable more common). Outlying rural areas rely more on fixed wireless or satellite, with lower speeds and higher latency.
• Gradual growth in subscriptions and smartphone use; email access increasingly mobile-first. Older adults’ adoption continues to rise but lags younger cohorts.

Local density/connectivity facts

• Sparse settlement and agricultural land increase last‑mile costs; population clusters enable higher‑speed options, while rural residents face more variability and data caps.

Summary of mobile phone usage in Clarke County, Iowa (with differences from statewide trends)

How these estimates were built

• Baselines: 2020 Census/ACS population for a small rural Iowa county like Clarke ≈ 9.5–10.0k residents, 3.7–4.1k households, adult share ≈ 75–78%.
• Adoption rates: Pew Research and rural Iowa ACS patterns (rural smartphone adoption typically 80–85%; any-cellphone ≈ 95%+). Figures below are ranges to reflect uncertainty and rural variation.

User estimates

• Adult mobile users (any cellphone): about 7.0–7.5k adults.
• Adult smartphone users: about 6.0–6.6k adults (lower than Iowa’s metro-driven average).
• Households relying on mobile as their primary or only internet: roughly 550–850 households (≈ 15–22% of households), higher than the statewide average (≈ 12–15%).
• Plan mix: noticeably higher share of prepaid/Lifeline-style plans (roughly 30–40% of lines vs ~20–30% statewide), reflecting lower incomes and the end of the federal ACP subsidy in 2024.
• Device mix: skewed a bit more toward Android than the statewide mix, driven by price sensitivity.

Demographic breakdown (directional)

• Age:
  • 18–34: near-universal smartphone ownership (~95%+), heavy app and video use.
  • 35–64: high adoption (~85–90%), frequent hotspotting for home/work where wired options are poor.
  • 65+: materially lower smartphone adoption (~60–70%), higher voice/SMS reliance; gap vs statewide is wider here.
• Income:
  • County median income trails Iowa’s, so more multi-line family plans, prepaid, and data-capped plans. Lifeline participation is more visible than statewide.
• Race/ethnicity and language:
  • Local Hispanic/Latino presence is modest but meaningful for a rural county; common use of WhatsApp/Facebook Messenger and interest in bilingual support. This segment tends to be more mobile-first for banking, communications, and media than county averages.
• Work patterns:
  • I-35 commuting and pass-through traffic create daytime demand spikes in/near Osceola and along the interstate, with lighter loads in outlying areas. That divergence from resident demand is sharper than the state average.

Digital infrastructure highlights

• Cellular coverage:
  • Strongest LTE/5G coverage bands track I-35 and Osceola. Outside the corridor, service is predominantly low-band 5G/LTE with patchy mid-band capacity; farmsteads and wooded/low-lying areas see more dead zones than the Iowa average.
  • AT&T (including FirstNet), Verizon, and T-Mobile all cover the corridor; capacity upgrades tend to land first along I-35 and at shared tower sites.
• 5G specifics:
  • Low-band 5G is broadly available; mid-band “Ultra/UC”-class 5G is mainly in/near Osceola and the interstate. Compared with metro Iowa, a smaller share of the county can access mid-band performance consistently.
• Home internet alternatives:
  • In-town: cable (e.g., Mediacom) and some fiber passings support high speeds.
  • Rural: legacy DSL and fixed wireless ISPs remain common; 4G/5G home internet from national carriers is growing quickly and substitutes for cable/fiber where unavailable. Starlink adoption is visible at fringes with poor terrestrial options.
• Backhaul and resilience:
  • Towers along I-35 usually have better fiber backhaul; off-corridor sites may rely on microwave, limiting capacity. Storms/ice can cause brief outages; generator-backed macro sites keep voice/SMS up but data can degrade.
• Public safety:
  • FirstNet coverage is reliable along the interstate and in town; volunteer fire/EMS still depend on VHF paging in pockets with weak indoor cellular.

How Clarke County differs from Iowa statewide

• Higher mobile-only internet reliance: more households depend on phones or 5G home internet in lieu of cable/fiber.
• Bigger rural capacity gaps: mid-band 5G and dense sectorization are mostly confined to the interstate/town, creating a starker urban-rural performance split than the state’s average.
• More price-sensitive usage: higher prepaid and Lifeline participation; more Android devices; noticeable churn after ACP’s 2024 wind-down.
• Older adult gap: the 65+ smartphone adoption gap versus younger adults is wider than statewide.
• Traffic mix: interstate pass-through traffic causes atypical load patterns relative to resident population, which is less of a factor in many Iowa counties away from major corridors.

What to watch in the next 12–24 months

• Carrier mid-band 5G infill beyond I-35 to ease rural capacity constraints.
• Continued growth of 5G fixed wireless as DSL is retired; potential small fiber builds funded by state/rural grants.
• Post-ACP affordability pressures sustaining or increasing prepaid/mobile-only households unless new subsidies emerge.

Below is a concise, best-available snapshot. Because county-level social media stats aren’t directly published, figures are estimates based on Clarke County’s age/gender mix from the U.S. Census (ACS) and Pew Research Center’s 2024 platform-usage rates, with minor adjustments for a rural, slightly older profile. Treat ranges as directional.

Quick snapshot

• Population: ~9,800; Adults (18+): ~7,300
• Adult social media users (any platform): ~5,500–6,000 (about 75–82% of adults)
• Internet access: most households have an internet subscription; rural Iowa typically trends ~80–85%

Age mix of adult social users (share of users)

• 18–29: ~20–22%
• 30–49: ~35–38%
• 50–64: ~24–26%
• 65+: ~15–20%

Gender among adult social users

• Women: ~52–55% (over-index on Facebook and Pinterest)
• Men: ~45–48% (over-index on YouTube, X/Twitter, Reddit)

Most-used platforms in Clarke County (share of adult population; users may use multiple)

• YouTube: ~75–80%
• Facebook: ~60–68%
• Instagram: ~30–38%
• TikTok: ~22–30%
• Snapchat: ~20–25%
• Pinterest: ~25–30% (skews female)
• X/Twitter: ~15–20%
• LinkedIn: ~12–18% (lower in rural areas)
• WhatsApp: ~14–20% (higher among bilingual/immigrant households)
• Nextdoor: typically <10% in small towns

Behavioral trends observed in counties like Clarke

• Facebook as the community hub: Local news, school updates, buy/sell groups, church and sports pages, county/city notices, weather and road alerts drive consistent engagement.
• Video-first habits: Heavy YouTube for DIY, ag, outdoors and local highlights; short-form video (Reels/TikTok) is rising, especially under 35.
• Messaging: Facebook Messenger dominates; WhatsApp adoption is notable in Hispanic/Latino households; SMS remains common for quick coordination.
• Youth patterns (teens/young adults): Daily use of Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok; preference for Stories/DMs over public posts; Facebook used mainly for groups/events.
• Commerce and events: Facebook Marketplace and local swap groups are primary for peer-to-peer sales; strong traction for community events, fundraisers, school/sports ticketing and local promotions.
• Engagement triggers: Severe weather, school closings, local sports wins, missing pets, new business openings and community milestones consistently outperform.
• Timing: Peaks before work (6–8 a.m.), lunch, and evenings (7–10 p.m.); Friday–Sunday spikes for events/sports; sharp surges during storms or public-safety notices.
• Civics: Noticeable spikes around elections, local bonds/school board issues; comments can be polarized but highly participatory.

Notes and sources

• Method: Applied Pew’s 2024 platform-usage rates by age to Clarke County’s ACS age structure; adjusted slightly for rural/older skew to produce county-level estimates.
• Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (latest 1–5 year releases for Clarke County, IA); Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024.