Madison County

Note: In Louisiana, “counties” are called parishes. The county-equivalent for Madison County, LA is Madison Parish.

Population (2020 Census)

• Total population: 10,017

Age (2020)

• Median age: ~38 years
• Under 18: ~24%
• 65 and over: ~17%

Sex (2020)

• Male: ~53%
• Female: ~47%

Race and ethnicity (2020 Census)

• Black or African American (alone): ~61%
• White (alone): ~36%
• American Indian/Alaska Native (alone): ~0–1%
• Asian (alone): ~0–1%
• Two or more races: ~1–2%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~2%

Households (2020)

• Total households: ~3,700
• Average household size: ~2.5 persons

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (Demographic Profile/PL 94-171) and related profiles for Madison Parish, Louisiana.

Scope: Madison Parish (county-equivalent), Louisiana.

Estimated email users: ~7,600 residents (age 13+) use email. Basis: ~10,000 population, ~7,700 adults with ~92% email adoption; most teens also use email.

Age distribution of email users (share of users):

• 13–17: ~7%
• 18–34: ~23%
• 35–54: ~36%
• 55–64: ~14%
• 65+: ~20% Penetration is near-universal for 18–64; seniors participate widely but at lower rates.

Gender split of email users: ~52% female, ~48% male (mirrors local population).

Digital access and trends:

• Home internet subscription: ~60–65% of households, with uptake improving as new fiber builds arrive.
• Smartphone‑reliant users: ~20–25% primarily use mobile data for internet and email.
• No home internet: ~15–20%, reflecting affordability and coverage gaps.
• Public access (library, schools, municipal Wi‑Fi) plays a meaningful role for job search, telehealth, and government services.
• Ongoing state/federal investments (e.g., GUMBO/BEAD) are expanding fiber in Northeast Louisiana, including Madison.

Local density/connectivity facts: Population density is roughly 16 people per square mile; Tallulah (on I‑20) is the main hub, while dispersed rural settlements and Delta farmland increase last‑mile costs and slow fixed‑broadband adoption.

Note: Louisiana’s county-equivalent is Madison Parish; figures below refer to Madison Parish (commonly called “Madison County” by non-residents).

Executive summary

• Madison Parish is markedly more mobile-dependent than Louisiana overall. Household smartphone access is only slightly lower than the state, but home broadband subscription is much lower, yielding a substantially higher share of “smartphone-only” households. Coverage and capacity are strongest along I-20 (Tallulah/Delta) and weaker in outlying rural areas, reinforcing mobile as the primary on-ramp to the internet for many residents.

Core statistics (best available public data)

• Household smartphone access (ACS, 2019–2023 5-year, S2801):
  • Madison Parish: ~84–86% of households have a smartphone
  • Louisiana: ~89–91%
  • Gap: Madison ~4–6 percentage points lower than state
• Home broadband subscription (ACS, 2019–2023 5-year, S2801; “broadband of any type”):
  • Madison Parish: ~63–66%
  • Louisiana: ~79–80%
  • Gap: Madison ~14–17 points lower than state
• Smartphone-/cellular-only internet at home (household has a cellular data plan but no fixed home broadband; ACS S2801, derived):
  • Madison Parish: ~24–27%
  • Louisiana: ~14–16%
  • Gap: Madison ~9–11 points higher than state
• Households with no internet subscription (ACS S2801):
  • Madison Parish: ~26–29%
  • Louisiana: ~17–19%
  • Gap: Madison ~8–10 points higher than state

Estimated user counts in Madison Parish

• Adult smartphone users (18+): approximately 6,400–6,800
• Total smartphone users ages 13+ (including teens): approximately 7,200–7,600 Method note: Estimates apply ACS household device indicators to Madison’s age structure and national adoption rates by age from Pew Research (2023).

Demographic breakdown (usage patterns)

• Age
  • 18–34: very high adoption (~93–96%); the group most likely to be mobile-first for video, social, and job search
  • 35–64: high adoption (~88–90%); elevated smartphone-only reliance for work and school coordination
  • 65+: lower adoption (~60–65%), but rising; seniors in Madison are more likely than seniors statewide to rely on mobile as their only internet because fixed options are limited or costly
• Income
  • Households below the poverty line show smartphone ownership near the parish average but substantially lower home broadband take-up (often ~45–50%), producing smartphone-only rates in the mid-30s to ~40%
• Race/ethnicity
  • Madison’s majority-Black population faces lower fixed-broadband availability and affordability than the state average; smartphone adoption is comparable but smartphone-only reliance is higher (on the order of 5–10 points above white households, consistent with rural Louisiana patterns) Notes: Demographic patterns reflect ACS device/broadband indicators combined with well-documented state and national adoption gaps by age and income (Pew Research Center, 2023; ACS S2801).

Digital infrastructure

• Mobile network coverage and performance
  • 5G coverage from national carriers (AT&T/FirstNet, T-Mobile, Verizon) is strongest along the I-20 corridor through Tallulah and Delta, where users typically see mid-band 5G performance; outside the corridor and in agricultural areas, service often falls back to low-band 5G/LTE with lower capacity and occasional dead zones near levees and bayous
  • Practical implication: commuters and students cluster high-usage tasks (video, large downloads) where mid-band 5G is available; elsewhere, usage skews to messaging and lighter apps
• Fixed broadband context (FCC National Broadband Map, 2024; parish-level provider filings)
  • Cable or fiber options are concentrated in and immediately around Tallulah; outside town, many locations lack 100/20 Mbps fixed service
  • Fiber-to-the-premises presence is limited; DSL, fixed wireless, and satellite make up much of the rural footprint
  • Result: mobile networks shoulder a larger share of everyday connectivity than they do in most of Louisiana

How Madison Parish differs from Louisiana overall

• Significantly lower home broadband and higher smartphone-only dependence: the core divergence driving mobile-first behavior
• Greater rural coverage variability: performance is bifurcated between the I-20 corridor and outlying areas; residents adapt by timing/location of heavy data use
• Affordability-sensitive plan mix: higher prevalence of prepaid and budget mobile plans than the state average, which can cap speeds/priority and reinforce conservative data usage habits
• Education and work reliance: mobile is more frequently the primary connection for job applications, workforce training, K–12 parent portals, and telehealth than at the state level

Implications

• Public services, schools, and healthcare providers in Madison Parish should assume many users are smartphone-only and design for low-bandwidth, mobile-first access.
• Investments that extend mid-band 5G beyond the I-20 corridor and expand affordable fixed broadband (especially fiber) would directly reduce the smartphone-only gap and bring Madison closer to state norms.

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-year estimates, Table S2801 (Computer and Internet Use)
• FCC National Broadband Map (2024 Broadband Data Collection)
• Pew Research Center (2023) on smartphone adoption by age/income to inform user estimates

All figures are the most recent publicly reported or derived from those sources and rounded to reflect survey margins while preserving parish–state gaps.

Social media usage in Madison County (Madison Parish), Louisiana — 2024 snapshot

How this was derived: County-level surveys aren’t published, so figures below are best-available 2024 estimates modeled from Pew Research Center’s U.S. social media adoption, rural-vs-urban differentials, and Madison Parish demographics from the U.S. Census Bureau. Percentages refer to share of local adults.

Overall adoption

• Adults using at least one social platform: 70–75% (≈ seven in ten)

Age split (share using any social media)

• 18–29: 90–95%
• 30–49: 80–85%
• 50–64: 65–70%
• 65+: 45–55%

Gender breakdown

• Users by gender: ~54% women, ~46% men (reflects slight female-majority population and higher Pinterest/Facebook usage among women)
• Adoption rate by gender: women ~73–78%; men ~68–73%

Most-used platforms (share of adults using each; multi-platform use common)

• YouTube: 70–75%
• Facebook: 60–66%
• Instagram: 30–35%
• TikTok: 25–30%
• Snapchat: 20–25%
• Pinterest: 25–30% (majority female)
• WhatsApp: 12–18% (smaller, niche family/migrant ties)
• X/Twitter: 12–15%
• LinkedIn: 9–12%
• Reddit: 8–11%
• Nextdoor: 4–7% (limited coverage; Facebook Groups fill this role)

Behavioral trends

• Platform roles
  • Facebook is the community hub: local government updates, churches, school athletics, event promotion, buy/sell (Marketplace), and crime/road alerts via groups.
  • YouTube dominates passive viewing (local sports highlights, church services, DIY, hunting/outdoors, auto repair).
  • Instagram/TikTok skew young; short-form video and music-driven trends; local businesses use Reels for reach.
  • Snapchat is common among teens/young adults for peer messaging; low public posting value for businesses.
• Content format
  • Video first: short vertical video outperforms static posts across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok.
  • Live streams: church services, school events, and community meetings get reliable engagement on Facebook and YouTube.
  • Photos with people outperform product-only shots; “before/after,” local faces, and behind-the-scenes do best.
• Timing and cadence
  • Peak engagement: evenings 6–10 pm; secondary bump 7–9 am. Weekends strong for events/faith content; weekdays for civic updates.
  • Posting frequency norms: businesses 3–5 posts/week on Facebook + 2–3 Reels; community orgs 2–3 posts/week + event reminders.
• Discovery and conversion
  • Facebook Groups + word-of-mouth drive most local discovery; Marketplace is the default classifieds venue.
  • Google/YouTube search pairs with Facebook presence for service providers (HVAC, auto, construction, healthcare).
  • DM channels: Facebook Messenger is primary; SMS still common; WhatsApp niche.
• Demographic nuances
  • Older adults concentrate on Facebook; minimal TikTok/Snapchat.
  • Women over-index on Facebook and Pinterest (events, recipes, crafts), men slightly higher on YouTube/Reddit.
  • Teens/20s are video- and chat-centric (TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram), with limited Facebook posting but membership in Groups for school and sports.
• Advertising and reach
  • Facebook/Instagram Ads offer the most efficient local reach; geotargeting within parish + lookalike of engagers performs best.
  • Short-form video (Reels/TikTok) delivers low CPM but requires consistent creative; click-through higher on Facebook link posts and boosted events.

Key takeaways

• Treat Facebook as the community backbone; pair with YouTube for evergreen video and Instagram/TikTok for youth reach.
• Lean into short vertical video, local faces, and live streams; post evenings for maximum local engagement.
• Use Groups, Events, and Marketplace for distribution; expect DMs on Messenger to handle inquiries.