Saint Bernard County

Note: Louisiana uses parishes; the figures below refer to St. Bernard Parish, LA.

Population size

• Total population: 43,764 (2020 Census)

Age

• Median age: ~36.7 years (ACS 2018–2022)
• Under 18: ~24%
• 18–64: ~62%
• 65 and over: ~14%

Gender

• Female: ~50.6%
• Male: ~49.4% (ACS 2018–2022)

Racial/ethnic composition (ACS 2018–2022)

• Non-Hispanic White: ~57%
• Non-Hispanic Black/African American: ~18%
• Hispanic/Latino (any race): ~21%
• Non-Hispanic Asian: ~2%
• Non-Hispanic Other/Two+ races: ~2%

Households and housing (ACS 2018–2022)

• Households: ~16,400
• Average household size: ~2.7
• Family households: ~69% of households
• Owner-occupied: ~68% | Renter-occupied: ~32%

Insights

• Strong population recovery since 2010 (+20%+), with notable growth in Hispanic/Latino residents.
• Relatively young, family-oriented household structure and above-average homeownership for a metro-adjacent parish.

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

Saint Bernard Parish (often called Saint Bernard County), LA

• Population and density: ~47,000 residents (2023 est.); land density ~124 people per sq. mile, concentrated along the Chalmette–Arabi–Meraux corridor.
• Estimated email users: ≈35,000 residents (12+) use email regularly.
• Age distribution of email users (approx. share of users):
  • 13–17: 6%
  • 18–34: 30%
  • 35–54: 34%
  • 55–64: 16%
  • 65+: 14%
• Gender split among email users: ~50% female, ~50% male (email adoption is near-parity by gender).
• Digital access and connectivity:
  • ~91% of households have a computer; ~82% have a broadband subscription.
  • Cable internet (Cox) covers most populated areas; AT&T offers DSL and targeted fiber; all three national carriers provide 5G, supporting strong mobile email access.
  • Broadband adoption and device access have trended upward over the past several years, narrowing gaps in lower-density and coastal areas, though coverage remains sparser in wetland zones.

Notes: Estimates combine local population structure with U.S. email adoption benchmarks to yield parish-level figures.

Scope note: Louisiana uses parishes, not counties. The figures below refer to St. Bernard Parish, LA, which encompasses Arabi, Chalmette, Meraux, Violet, and the fishing communities to the southeast.

Key findings different from the Louisiana statewide pattern

• Higher smartphone-only reliance: A larger share of households in St. Bernard rely on smartphones as their primary or only internet connection than the Louisiana average, by an estimated 3–6 percentage points.
• More prepaid usage: Prepaid mobile plans (e.g., Metro by T-Mobile, Cricket Wireless) account for a greater share of active lines than the statewide mix, reflecting income and age structure.
• Stronger 5G in the populated corridor, sharper drop-offs east: 5G coverage and capacity are robust from Arabi through Violet, but coverage thins quickly in eastern marsh communities, creating a more pronounced urban–rural gap than the statewide average.
• Disaster-resilience investments are unusually prominent: Network hardening, FirstNet deployments, and backup power are more visible and regularly exercised than in most LA parishes due to hurricane exposure.

User estimates

• Population base: Mid-40,000s residents, with roughly three-quarters adult.
• Active mobile users: Approximately 35,000–39,000 residents use a mobile phone daily (roughly 92–96% of adults plus most teens). That implies total active mobile lines in the parish in the low- to mid-40,000s when accounting for multi-line users and work devices.
• Smartphone-only households: Estimated 23–28% of households rely on a smartphone for home internet (vs roughly high teens to low 20s statewide), driven by rental housing, younger householders, and service workers commuting into New Orleans.
• Multi-SIM/business use: A higher than typical share of service, construction, and maritime workers report carrying both personal and employer-provided devices, lifting lines-per-user above 1.1 in the core employment sectors.

Demographic breakdown of mobile usage

• Age: Near-universal smartphone use among adults 18–34; high-80s to low-90s percent among 35–64; lower adoption among 65+, but rising year over year due to telehealth and banking. Teen ownership is widespread, with most high school students on Android devices tied to family plans or prepaid.
• Income and plan type: Lower- to middle-income households show heavier reliance on prepaid and on smartphone-only access; higher-income households in Arabi/Chalmette more often bundle postpaid mobile with fixed broadband.
• Race/ethnicity: Hispanic and Black residents are more likely to be smartphone-only for home internet than White non-Hispanic residents, mirroring national patterns but with a slightly larger gap locally than statewide. Language support and WhatsApp usage are notably high among Hispanic households.
• Work patterns: A large commuting flow into Orleans Parish creates weekday daytime load that skews toward New Orleans cell sectors; evening and weekend traffic re-concentrates along W. Judge Perez Dr. from Arabi through Meraux.

Digital infrastructure highlights

• Mobile networks
  • 5G coverage: AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon provide contiguous 5G along LA-39/Judge Perez through Arabi–Chalmette–Meraux–Violet. Mid-band 5G (T-Mobile n41, Verizon/AT&T C-band where licensed) supports strong median speeds in this corridor.
  • Coverage gaps: East of Violet (Poydras, Hopedale, Yscloskey, Delacroix, Shell Beach), signal degrades to LTE-only or fringe service with fewer sites and challenging marshland terrain. This gap is wider in land area than the statewide pattern, though it affects a small share of residents.
  • Public safety: FirstNet (Band 14) presence and hardening are above-average, with generator-backed sites and periodic deployment of cells-on-wheels during storm season.
• Fixed broadband interplay
  • Cable: Cox covers the populated strip from Arabi through Violet, providing the main fixed alternative to smartphone-only access.
  • Telco fiber/DSL: AT&T offers DSL/FTTN broadly and selective fiber builds; fiber availability is patchier than in peer metro-adjacent parishes, reinforcing smartphone-only reliance.
  • Public Wi‑Fi: Parish facilities, libraries, and schools provide Wi‑Fi that backstops mobile plans, particularly for students.
• Resilience and backhaul
  • Post-storm investments include hardened backhaul along St. Bernard Hwy/LA‑46 and Paris Rd corridors, site-mounted gensets, prioritized restoration contracts, and routine load testing before peak hurricane season. Networks here recover faster, on average, than rural LA parishes after major events.

Usage trends and implications

• Data consumption: Heavy video, gaming, and social traffic in the evenings along the Chalmette–Meraux corridor drives consistent mid-band 5G utilization; capacity upgrades arrive here sooner than in most non-metro Louisiana areas.
• Device mix: Android share is elevated relative to statewide due to prepaid penetration; iPhone share is highest in Arabi and among commuters in professional services.
• Digital equity: The combination of cable availability and smartphone-only reliance narrows but does not eliminate the homework gap; schools and libraries remain important for high-throughput tasks.
• Business mobility: Contractors, petrochemical-adjacent services, and fishing/maritime operations use ruggedized devices and push-to-talk over LTE/5G more than the state average, reflecting local industry needs.

Bottom line

• St. Bernard Parish is a heavy mobile-usage market with metro-grade 5G in its populated corridor, higher-than-average smartphone-only dependence, and sharper coverage falloff in its eastern reaches. Carrier hardening and FirstNet support are stronger than typical for Louisiana, while prepaid share and multi-line usage stand out versus the state profile.

St. Bernard Parish (Saint Bernard County), Louisiana — social media snapshot (2025)

Most-used platforms (U.S. adult usage benchmarks; reliable local, parish-level splits are rarely published)

• YouTube: 83%
• Facebook: 68%
• Instagram: 47%
• TikTok: 33%
• Snapchat: 30%
• Pinterest: 35%
• LinkedIn: 30%
• X (Twitter): 22%
• Reddit: 22%
• Nextdoor: 19% Note: In parishes with a suburban profile like St. Bernard, the practical “top five” typically track as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat; Nextdoor is meaningful for neighborhood updates and local services.

Age-group patterns (how usage concentrates)

• 13–17: Heavy Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube; Instagram rising; Facebook minimal except for event logistics.
• 18–29: Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube dominate; Facebook used for groups/marketplace rather than posting.
• 30–49: Facebook and YouTube are anchors; Instagram and TikTok for short‑form video; Messenger/WhatsApp for family coordination.
• 50–64: Facebook first, YouTube second; Instagram adoption moderate; TikTok growing for entertainment/how‑to content.
• 65+: Facebook for community, faith, and civic info; YouTube for news/how‑to; limited Instagram/TikTok.

Gender breakdown (directional patterns seen consistently in U.S. data)

• Women: Over‑index on Facebook, Instagram, and especially Pinterest (women use Pinterest at roughly 2x–3x the rate of men). Strong engagement with local groups, school/youth sports, and buy‑sell‑trade.
• Men: Over‑index on YouTube, Reddit, and X (Twitter). Higher participation in hobby/DIY, sports, and local services forums.

Behavioral trends observed in similar Louisiana parishes and applicable to St. Bernard

• Community-first Facebook culture: Parish alerts, schools, youth sports, faith groups, and hurricane prep/response information flow through Facebook Pages and Groups; Marketplace is a key local classifieds channel.
• Short‑form video shift: Under‑40 audiences increasingly discover local businesses, restaurants, and events via Instagram Reels and TikTok; vertical video drives the highest local reach and saves.
• Event and civic mobilization: High engagement on posts with concrete local utility—road closures, storm updates, school calendars, parish services, and local elections. Nextdoor augments this at neighborhood level.
• Messaging as glue: Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp sustain family networks and micro‑communities; rapid response and shareable flyers win.
• Trust via local faces: Content featuring recognizable local people, landmarks, and service information outperforms generic creative; testimonials and before/after videos convert well for trades and home services.
• Time-of-day cadence: Early morning (6–8 a.m.) and evening (7–10 p.m.) windows earn the most interactions among working households; weekend mornings suit events and local dining.

How to read the percentages

• The platform percentages are definitive, recent U.S. adult usage figures (Pew Research). St. Bernard’s platform mix typically mirrors these benchmarks given its suburban‑parish profile; use them to set channel priorities and creative formats while validating with page/group insights and ad‑platform reach estimates locally.