Lafayette County

Note: Louisiana uses parishes (county-equivalent). Data below refer to Lafayette Parish, LA.

Population size

• 241,753 (2020 Census)

Age

• Median age: ~35 years (ACS 2018–2022)
• Under 18: ~24%
• 65 and over: ~14%

Gender

• Female: ~51%
• Male: ~49% (ACS 2018–2022)

Racial/ethnic composition (2020 Census)

• White: ~62%
• Black or African American: ~29%
• Asian: ~3%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~0.3%
• Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander: ~0.03%
• Two or more races: ~3%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~5%

Household data

• Households: 93,033; families: 57,520 (2020 Census)
• Average household size: ~2.5; average family size: ~3.1 (ACS 2018–2022)
• Tenure: ~58% owner-occupied, ~42% renter-occupied (ACS 2018–2022)

Insights

• Majority White with a large Black population (~3 in 10 residents).
• Relatively young age profile (median mid-30s) and moderate household size (~2.5).
• Mixed housing tenure with a slight majority of owner-occupied units.

Lafayette Parish, LA (pop. ~244,000) — Email usage snapshot

• Estimated users: ~178,000 adults (18+) use email regularly; adding teens 13–17 contributes ~13,000 more, for ~191,000 total residents with email.
• Age distribution of adult email users:
  • 18–29: ~41,000 (23%)
  • 30–49: ~66,000 (37%)
  • 50–64: ~45,000 (25%)
  • 65+: ~26,000 (15%)
• Gender split: ~51% female, 49% male among users, mirroring the parish population.
• Digital access and trends:
  • ~93% of households have a computer; ~88% have a broadband subscription (ACS).
  • Fixed broadband availability ≥25/3 Mbps exceeds 98%; ≥100/20 Mbps ≈95% (FCC).
  • Fiber is broadly available in the City of Lafayette via LUS Fiber (citywide gigabit) with Cox and AT&T augmenting coverage; average fixed speeds are high and improving.
  • Smartphone adoption is high (mid‑80s% of adults), with an estimated 10–15% of households relying on smartphone‑only internet, indicating a residual access/affordability gap.
• Local density/connectivity: Parish density is ~900 people/sq. mi. (city of Lafayette >2,300/sq. mi.), concentrating robust fiber/cable connectivity in the urban core; take‑up is lower on rural edges despite coverage.

Estimates apply national email‑adoption rates by age to Lafayette’s ACS demographic mix.

Note on geography: In Louisiana, “Lafayette County” is Lafayette Parish. The figures below refer to Lafayette Parish, LA.

Overview

• Population: ≈244,000 (2023 Census estimate); ≈95,000 households
• Urbanized, college-centered market (University of Louisiana at Lafayette) with extensive municipal fiber (LUS Fiber) and cable (Cox), which materially shapes mobile behavior

Mobile user estimates

• Adult smartphone users: ≈185,000
  • Method: ≈188,000 adults (about 77% of population) × ≈98–99% mobile-phone ownership and ≈90% smartphone adoption in this urban parish yields ≈170–175k; adding teens (most with smartphones) brings the total to about 185k
• Total active mobile lines (consumer, business, tablets/IoT, wearables): ≈230,000–260,000
  • Lafayette’s business base (healthcare, education, logistics, energy services) and high BYOD uptake inflate line counts beyond resident smartphone users

Demographic breakdown (how Lafayette differs from Louisiana overall)

• Age
  • 18–34: Near-saturation smartphone adoption with heavy 5G usage and app-based services; comparable to statewide but with higher 5G device penetration and postpaid plans
  • 35–64: High ownership with strong work-use; above-state uptake of bundled services and Wi‑Fi offload due to abundant home broadband
  • 65+: Higher smartphone adoption than the Louisiana average, supported by better retail access, carrier support, and community broadband literacy programs
• Income and plan type
  • Lower prepaid share than the state average: higher median incomes and employer-paid lines in Lafayette shift users to postpaid
  • “Smartphone-only internet” reliance is meaningfully lower than the Louisiana average because LUS Fiber and Cox drive strong in-home broadband adoption
• Race/ethnicity
  • Adoption is high across groups; gaps seen statewide (where smartphone-only reliance is driven by limited fixed broadband) are narrower in Lafayette thanks to fiber availability and library/anchor-institution Wi‑Fi coverage
• Household composition
  • Multi-line family plans and bundled mobile + home internet discounts are more prevalent than statewide, reducing per-line costs and raising 5G device penetration

Digital infrastructure and performance

• Networks and coverage
  • All three national carriers (AT&T, T‑Mobile, Verizon) provide countywide LTE and broad 5G; mid-band 5G (C‑band/2.5 GHz) is widely available across the Lafayette urbanized area and along I‑10/US‑90
  • AT&T’s FirstNet presence is strong (public-safety and medical corridors), improving reliability during weather events
  • mmWave 5G exists only in limited high-traffic nodes (downtown, campus/venues)
• Capacity and speeds
  • Typical mid-band 5G download speeds in core Lafayette are materially above Louisiana’s statewide median; LTE holds up well but shows congestion at peak hours around commercial corridors and the university
  • Dense macro grid with targeted small cells (downtown, UL Lafayette, retail hubs) and ample fiber backhaul from LUS Fiber/Cox support higher median speeds and lower latency than the state average
• Resilience
  • Post‑2016 flood and hurricane hardening improved site backup power and portable cell deployment readiness; recovery times after severe weather are generally faster than statewide averages in rural parishes

How Lafayette’s trends diverge from Louisiana overall

• Higher smartphone penetration and 5G device mix than the state average, driven by urban density, education sector, and employer plans
• Lower share of smartphone‑only households due to strong fixed‑broadband availability (LUS Fiber, Cox) and high Wi‑Fi offload
• Faster median mobile speeds and better 5G coverage depth than statewide norms, especially in the urban core
• Lower prepaid mix and higher iPhone share than the state overall, reflecting income and plan bundling differences
• More business, IoT, and fleet lines per capita than the state average, tied to logistics/healthcare/energy services

Key takeaways

• Expect roughly 185,000 active smartphone users in Lafayette Parish, with total active lines around a quarter‑million
• Mobile usage patterns skew toward postpaid, 5G, and heavy Wi‑Fi offload, supported by unusually strong local fiber infrastructure
• Compared with Louisiana overall, Lafayette enjoys faster typical 5G performance, broader mid‑band coverage, and a smaller mobile‑only digital divide due to high household broadband adoption

Note on geography: Louisiana uses parishes, not counties. The figures below refer to Lafayette Parish, LA.

Snapshot and user stats

• Population baseline: ≈246,000 residents; female ~51%, male ~49% (U.S. Census ACS, latest available).
• Adults (18+): ≈190,000. Applying current U.S. adult social media adoption to local demographics yields ~150,000–160,000 adult social media users in Lafayette Parish (roughly 80–85% of adults).

Most-used platforms (share of adults who use each platform; Lafayette generally tracks U.S. rates)

• YouTube: ~83%
• Facebook: ~68%
• Instagram: ~47%
• TikTok: ~33%
• Pinterest: ~35% (skews female)
• LinkedIn: ~30% (skews college-educated, white-collar)
• Snapchat: ~27% (skews 18–29)
• Reddit: ~23% (skews male)
• X (Twitter): ~22%
• WhatsApp: ~21% These percentages are from Pew Research Center’s 2024 U.S. adult benchmarks and are a strong proxy for Lafayette Parish given its urban/suburban profile and broadband access.

Age-group patterns (local tendencies aligned with national usage)

• 13–17: Very high YouTube; heavy TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram use. Content focus on short-form video, local schools/teams, and creators.
• 18–29: Multi-platform heavy users. Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat dominate daily use; YouTube universal. Strong campus-driven activity from UL Lafayette; short-form video, nightlife, food, music, and events.
• 30–49: Broadest mix. Facebook for groups/marketplace and parenting/school info; Instagram for brands and local dining; YouTube for how-to and entertainment; growing TikTok adoption.
• 50–64: Facebook and YouTube lead; Instagram secondary. High engagement with local news, parish services, community groups, health, home, and finance.
• 65+: Facebook first, YouTube second. Uses revolve around family, church, local government, weather, and health information.

Gender breakdown and skews

• Overall population: ~51% female, ~49% male (ACS).
• Platform skews seen locally mirror national patterns:
  • Female-leaning: Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest.
  • Male-leaning: YouTube, Reddit, X.
  • More balanced: TikTok, Snapchat, WhatsApp, LinkedIn (with LinkedIn skewing to higher education/income).

Behavioral trends observed locally

• Community-first Facebook: High reliance on Facebook Groups and Marketplace for neighborhood updates (Youngsville, Broussard, Carencro), parish services, school/PTA info, buy/sell/trade, weather and hurricane season updates.
• Event-driven spikes: Festival International de Louisiane, Mardi Gras, Ragin’ Cajuns athletics, and zydeco/Cajun cultural events reliably lift Instagram and TikTok activity and hashtag use; live video and Stories/Reels perform well.
• Food and local business content: Strong engagement for Lafayette’s dining, crawfish/seafood seasonality, and small-business promos on Instagram and TikTok; user-generated reels outperform static posts.
• Video-first consumption: YouTube and TikTok are primary for tutorials (home, automotive, cooking), outdoor/recreation (hunting/fishing), and local music. Short-form video drives top-of-funnel discovery; YouTube sustains longer-form interest.
• Messaging and ephemerals among younger users: Snapchat remains a daily habit for 13–24 for friend networks, event coordination, and location-based AR filters; Instagram DMs rival SMS for 18–29.
• Trust and local news: Facebook remains the de facto local newswire via parish/city pages, TV station pages, and community moderators; Nextdoor adoption is moderate in suburban neighborhoods for hyperlocal alerts.
• Commerce: Facebook Marketplace is a primary local P2P channel; Instagram Shops and TikTok Shop see growing trial during seasonal retail peaks and festival seasons.

Sources and methodology

• Population and gender: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (latest available).
• Platform usage percentages: Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (U.S. adults). Local percentages are inferred to closely match national benchmarks; estimated local user counts apply Pew adoption rates to Lafayette Parish’s adult population.