St John The Baptist County

St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana (county-equivalent)

Population size

• 42,477 (2020 Decennial Census)
• 2023 estimate: ~42,100 (U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates)

Age

• Median age: 37.4 years
• Under 18: 24.1%
• 18–64: 61.2%
• 65 and over: 14.7%

Gender

• Female: 51.3%
• Male: 48.7%

Racial/ethnic composition (Hispanic is any race; race shares shown are non-Hispanic unless noted)

• Black or African American: 56.9%
• White: 33.8%
• Hispanic/Latino (any race): 7.8%
• Two or more races: 0.9%
• Asian: 0.6%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: 0.1%

Household data

• Households: ~15,300
• Average household size: 2.74
• Family households: 69%
• Owner-occupied housing rate: 73%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census (P.L. 94-171); American Community Survey 2018–2022 5-year estimates; Population Estimates Program (2023).

St. John the Baptist Parish (LA) snapshot

• Population and density: ~42,100 residents (2023 est.), ~200 people per sq. mile.
• Digital access: ~83% of households have a broadband subscription; ~90% have a computer/smartphone; ~10% have no home internet; an estimated 12–15% are smartphone‑only users. Connectivity is strongest along the I‑10/US‑61 corridor; state GUMBO projects are extending fiber to remaining gaps in the River Parishes.
• Adult base: ~33,000 residents aged 18+.

Email usage (estimates derived from ACS access levels and national adoption patterns)

• Total users: ~29,000 adults (≈88% of adults).
• Gender split: 51% female (14.8k), 49% male (14.2k), mirroring the local population.
• Age distribution of email users:
  • 18–29: ~6.3k (≈22%)
  • 30–49: ~10.1k (≈35%)
  • 50–64: ~7.4k (≈26%)
  • 65+: ~5.0k (≈17%)

Trends and insights

• Email is near‑universal among working‑age adults; adoption among 65+ is rising as broadband and smartphone access improve.
• Mobile access is central: a meaningful minority relies on cellular‑only service, so most email engagement occurs on smartphones.
• Household broadband rates have nudged upward since 2019, and ongoing fiber builds are improving reliability and speeds, supporting higher email use across all demographics.

Summary: Mobile phone usage in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana (St. John the Baptist County), with differences versus Louisiana overall

Population baseline

• Population: ~42,000 (2023 estimate); ~15,500–16,000 households

User estimates and adoption

• Estimated adult smartphone users: 29,000–31,000 (roughly 88–92% of adults)
• Household smartphone access (ACS-based estimate): ~92–94% of households in the parish vs ~90–92% statewide
• Households with a cellular data plan (any mobile broadband): ~74–78% in the parish vs ~68–72% statewide
• Households with any broadband subscription (fixed or mobile): ~79–82% parish vs ~78–80% statewide
• Households with no home internet subscription: ~12–15% parish vs ~14–16% statewide
• Mobile-only reliance (cellular data plan but no fixed home broadband): roughly 16–20% of parish households vs ~13–17% statewide

Key ways the parish differs from the state

• Higher mobile-plan uptake: A larger share of households maintain a cellular data plan than the state average, indicating above-average reliance on mobile connectivity for everyday internet access.
• More mobile-only households: The parish’s share of mobile-only households is a few points higher than Louisiana overall, reflecting the mix of income, housing tenure, and post-storm infrastructure choices.
• Slightly better overall connectivity: The combined rate of any internet subscription sits marginally above the state average despite pockets of fixed-service gaps, driven in part by strong mobile availability along the I‑10/US‑61 corridor.
• Post-Ida network hardening: 5G availability and resilience improved faster than in many non-metro parishes due to concentrated carrier investment along evacuation and freight routes.

Demographic patterns

• Age: Smartphone adoption exceeds 95% among working-age adults and dips among residents 65+, mirroring state patterns but with a smaller gap due to strong cellular-plan adoption in multigenerational and caregiver households.
• Income and tenure: Mobile-only reliance is notably higher among lower-income and renter households in LaPlace/Reserve than among homeowners on the east-bank suburbs; this gradient is steeper than the state average.
• Race/ethnicity: Given the parish’s above-state-average share of Black residents and a growing Hispanic population, mobile-only use and prepaid plan incidence are elevated relative to statewide averages, consistent with national patterns for affordability-first adoption.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Cellular networks:
  • 4G LTE: Near-universal outdoor coverage across populated areas.
  • 5G: Populated corridors (I‑10, US‑61/Airline Hwy, River Road through LaPlace–Reserve–Garyville) have broad low-/mid-band 5G from major carriers; west-bank river communities (e.g., Edgard/Wallace) experience more mid-band gaps and LTE fallback.
  • Capacity upgrades since 2022 include additional mid-band spectrum activations and hardened sites after Hurricane Ida, improving reliability and peak speeds along evacuation routes.
• Fixed broadband:
  • Fiber and cable availability is strongest in and around LaPlace and Reserve; buildouts have expanded in and east of Garyville since 2023.
  • Parts of the west bank and industrial stretches remain reliant on legacy DSL or fixed wireless, which reinforces mobile-only behavior.
  • State/federal programs (e.g., Louisiana’s GUMBO grants and related funds) have targeted un-/underserved blocks in the parish, accelerating FTTH fill-in but not fully erasing pocket gaps yet.
• Public and anchor connectivity:
  • Schools, parish facilities, and libraries function as digital anchors; post-Ida resiliency projects added backup power and redundant links at key sites, aiding community mobile offload during outages.

Usage implications

• Mobile-first behaviors (banking, social, streaming, hotspotting for homework) are more pronounced than the state average, especially among renters and service-sector workers.
• 5G availability enables higher median mobile speeds in the east-bank population centers than in many rural Louisiana parishes, supporting video-heavy usage and small-business point-of-sale over mobile.
• Fixed network gaps and affordability pressures sustain a durable mobile-only segment, which is not expected to shrink materially until fiber reaches remaining pockets and subsidy take-up increases.

Notes on sources and estimation

• Figures are synthesized from the latest American Community Survey Computer and Internet Use indicators (5-year through 2023) and FCC broadband/5G availability filings through 2024, combined with parish population and infrastructure changes since Hurricane Ida. Estimates are rounded to reflect survey margins of error at the parish level.

Social media usage in St. John the Baptist Parish (County), Louisiana — 2024 snapshot

Population baseline

• Residents: ≈42,000 (2023 estimate). Adults 18+: ≈31,500.
• Social media users (estimated from Pew national adoption applied locally):
  • Adults using any social platform: ≈22,700 (≈72% of adults).
  • Teens 13–17 using social platforms: ≈2,800 (≈95% of 13–17s).
  • Total users 13+: ≈25,500.

Age and gender profile of users

• Adult adoption by age (applied locally from Pew patterns):
  • 18–29: ≈84–90% use at least one platform.
  • 30–49: ≈80–85%.
  • 50–64: ≈70–75%.
  • 65+: ≈45–50%.
• Gender mix among users: roughly 52–53% women, 47–48% men (slightly higher usage among women, consistent with Facebook/Instagram patterns and local sex ratio).

Most-used platforms (adults 18+; estimated local reach)

• YouTube: ≈83% of adults (≈26,000 users)
• Facebook: ≈68% (≈21,400)
• Instagram: ≈47% (≈14,800)
• TikTok: ≈33% (≈10,400)
• Snapchat: ≈30% (≈9,450)
• LinkedIn: ≈30% (≈9,450)
• WhatsApp: ≈23% (≈7,250)
• Reddit: ≈22% (≈6,900)
• X (Twitter): ≈20% (≈6,300)
• Nextdoor: ≈18–20% (≈5,700–6,300)

Behavioral trends observed locally

• Community-first on Facebook: Heavy use of parish and neighborhood groups for storm preparedness/updates, school and church communications, high school sports, civic info, and Marketplace buy–sell–trade. Video and photo posts drive the most engagement.
• Video-centric consumption: YouTube for DIY, home repair, fishing/outdoors, and hurricane prep; short-form video (Reels/TikTok) for local food, events, and small-business promotion.
• Youth skew to visual/messaging apps: Teens and 18–24s concentrate on Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok for daily messaging and local culture; Facebook is used mainly for events and family.
• Real-time information: X and Facebook pages for weather alerts, traffic/incidents, and parish emergency management during hurricane season.
• Local commerce discovery: Instagram and TikTok for restaurants, boutiques, salons, and pop-ups; Facebook Groups and Marketplace for services and secondhand goods; Nextdoor for contractor referrals and neighborhood watch.
• Work and industry networking: LinkedIn usage concentrated among mid-career professionals tied to regional industry (e.g., plants/refineries along the River Parishes corridor).

Notes on methodology

• Counts and percentages are estimates derived by applying recent Pew Research Center U.S. platform adoption rates by age to the parish’s population structure (U.S. Census/ACS). Teens (13–17) figures use Pew teen social-media adoption. Local platform mixes generally mirror national patterns in similar-sized communities.