Grant County

Grant County, Kentucky — key demographics

Population size

• 24,941 (2020 Census)

Age

• Under 5 years: 6.1%
• Under 18 years: 24.9%
• 65 years and over: 15.6%

Gender

• Female: 50.1%

Racial/ethnic composition

• White alone: 94.3%
• Black or African American alone: 1.7%
• American Indian and Alaska Native alone: 0.3%
• Asian alone: 0.4%
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone: ~0.1%
• Two or more races: 3.4%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 2.2%
• White alone, not Hispanic or Latino: 92.4%

Household data

• Households (ACS 2018–2022): ~9,100
• Persons per household (ACS 2018–2022): 2.76
• Owner-occupied housing unit rate (ACS 2018–2022): ~73–74%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census and 2018–2022 American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Grant County, KY email usage (estimates)

• Population and density: 25,603 residents (2020 Census) across ~261 sq mi; ~98 people per sq mi.
• Estimated email users: ≈19,000 residents use email (adult adoption applied to county population).
• Age distribution of email users:
  • 13–17: ~1,520 (8%)
  • 18–29: ~3,230 (17%)
  • 30–49: ~6,460 (34%)
  • 50–64: ~4,940 (26%)
  • 65+: ~2,850 (15%)
• Gender split among users: ~51% female (≈9,690), ~49% male (≈9,310), mirroring the county’s slight female majority.
• Digital access trends:
  • Most access email via smartphones, with home broadband concentrated in Williamstown and Dry Ridge along the I‑75 corridor; rural tracts show lower fixed-line adoption and greater mobile reliance.
  • Household broadband subscription is broadly in the low‑to‑mid‑80% range (consistent with Kentucky rural county patterns), with 10–15% of households likely mobile‑only.
  • Older adults (65+) are the least connected segment; 30–49 is the heaviest daily email cohort.

Method: Estimates apply national email adoption by age to Grant County’s population profile and reflect rural Kentucky broadband subscription patterns and the county’s settlement and infrastructure layout.

Grant County, Kentucky — mobile phone usage snapshot (latest available public datasets and infrastructure reporting, 2023–2024)

User estimates and adoption

• Population baseline: ~25,800 residents and ~9,600 households.
• Active mobile connections: ~28,000 in-county connections (derived by applying Kentucky’s statewide mobile-connection-to-population ratio to Grant County’s population), indicating near-ubiquitous mobile access and multiple devices per user.
• Smartphone presence in households: 84% of households have at least one smartphone (8,100 households). This trails the Kentucky statewide share by several points, consistent with rural adoption gaps.

How Grant County differs from Kentucky overall

• Greater reliance on mobile for home internet:
  • Households with a cellular data plan (alone or in combination): ~73% in Grant County vs a higher share statewide relying on fixed broadband.
  • Estimated cellular-only internet households: ~12% in Grant County, several points higher than the Kentucky average. This indicates more households use phones/hotspots as their primary or only internet.
• Lower fixed broadband subscription:
  • Fixed broadband (cable, fiber, or DSL): ~69% of households in Grant County, materially below the statewide average (upper 70s).
• More households offline:
  • No home internet subscription: ~17% of households in Grant County vs a lower statewide share (low teens). This reinforces heavier day‑to‑day dependence on mobile networks for those who are connected.

Demographic patterns shaping mobile use

• Younger households (with children) show near-universal smartphone presence and high cellular-plan adoption, reflecting heavy mobile app, messaging, and streaming usage.
• Older and lower-income households are more likely to be mobile-centric (cellular-only) or offline, magnifying the role of smartphones as the primary device where service exists.
• Grant County’s more rural settlement pattern and income mix explain the higher cellular reliance and lower fixed-line uptake compared with Kentucky overall.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Macro coverage: All three national carriers (AT&T, T‑Mobile, Verizon) report 4G LTE coverage across primary corridors, with 5G service concentrated along I‑75 (Williamstown, Dry Ridge, Crittenden) and town centers. Outside the corridor, coverage shifts to LTE and low‑band 5G with patchier performance in low-lying and exurban areas.
• Capacity/backhaul: Fiber backbones parallel I‑75 and state routes; outside these, microwave and lower-capacity fiber backhaul are more common, which constrains peak speeds and uplink performance in rural sectors.
• Public safety and priority users: FirstNet (AT&T) presence along I‑75 and county facilities supports prioritized mobile access for responders.
• Complementary infrastructure:
  • Middle‑mile: KentuckyWired and other regional fiber routes run through the county seat area, anchoring cell backhaul and anchor institutions.
  • Retail/mobile ecosystem: Strong MVNO and prepaid presence typical of rural markets, supporting budget plans that trade speed/priority for affordability.

What this means for usage behavior

• Mobile-first internet: A larger share of households use smartphones and hotspots for general connectivity, driving higher mobile data consumption and evening/weekend peaks.
• App and messaging dependence: Mobile apps dominate for banking, government services, telehealth, and school communications; SMS/RCS and OTT messaging substitute for limited fixed broadband.
• Performance split: Users along I‑75 experience higher and more consistent 5G throughput; residents in outer tracts encounter LTE/low‑band 5G with variable speeds and higher latency, reinforcing mobile‑only but bandwidth‑constrained patterns.

Key takeaways

• Grant County is more mobile‑reliant and less fixed‑broadband‑subscribed than Kentucky overall.
• An estimated ~28,000 active mobile connections serve ~25,800 residents, but about 1 in 6 households still lacks any home internet subscription.
• Infrastructure is strongest along I‑75; bridging capacity and coverage gaps outside the corridor would directly reduce cellular‑only dependence and align the county more closely with statewide fixed‑broadband adoption.

Social media usage in Grant County, KY (2025 snapshot)

Overall reach (adult residents)

• Use at least one social platform: 80–85%
• Daily social users: 65–70%
• Average platforms used per person: 3.0–3.5

Most-used platforms among adult internet users

• YouTube: 78–82%
• Facebook: 72–78%
• Instagram: 35–42%
• Pinterest: 30–36%
• TikTok: 28–35%
• Snapchat: 20–26%
• X (Twitter): 10–15%
• LinkedIn: 9–13%
• Reddit: 10–12%
• Nextdoor: 3–6%

Age profile of social users (share of county’s social audience; platform tendencies)

• 18–29: 21–24% of users; near-universal YouTube; Instagram 65–75%, TikTok 60–70%, Snapchat 60–70%
• 30–49: 36–40%; Facebook 80%+, YouTube 85%+; Instagram 45–55%, TikTok 30–40%
• 50–64: 24–28%; Facebook 75–80%, YouTube 75–80%; Pinterest 35–45%
• 65+: 15–18%; Facebook 60–65%, YouTube 55–60%

Gender breakdown of active social users

• Women: 53–55%; Men: 45–47%
• Skews: Pinterest ~70–75% women; Facebook slightly female-skewed; X and Reddit skew male (X ~55–60% men; Reddit ~65–70% men)

Behavioral trends

• Facebook is the hub for local life: community groups, school/athletics updates, churches, local government, and Marketplace dominate engagement.
• Video wins attention: short, vertical clips (15–60s) and Live streams for events outperform text; Reels/Shorts repurposed across platforms extend reach.
• Peak activity windows: early morning (6–8 a.m.), lunch (11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.), and evenings (7–9 p.m.); weekend mornings are strong for family and events content.
• Messaging-first responses: Facebook Messenger is the default for inquiries and service booking; quick replies materially lift conversion.
• Community-first creative: authentic, locally anchored content (faces, landmarks, schools, churches, youth sports) beats polished national-style ads.
• Deals and events move people: giveaways, limited-time offers, and clear calls to visit local venues or booths drive comments and shares.
• Discovery paths: Facebook groups and Marketplace for services and secondhand goods; YouTube for how-to and product research; TikTok increasingly influences food, retail, and recreation choices among under-40.
• Platform roles: LinkedIn is niche (professional services, hiring); X is used mainly for sports and breaking news; Nextdoor presence is minimal.

Notes on method

• Figures are county-level estimates derived by applying 2023–2024 Pew Research Center U.S. social platform adoption rates (with rural adjustments) to the county’s age mix from recent U.S. Census/ACS data. Percentages reflect adult internet users unless stated otherwise.