Kennebec County

Kennebec County, Maine — key demographics

Population

• 123,642 (2020 Census)
• ~124,500 (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate; rounded)

Age

• Median age: ~45 years
• Under 18: ~19–20%
• 65 and over: ~21–22%

Gender

• Female: ~51%
• Male: ~49%

Race and ethnicity (ACS; rounded)

• White, non-Hispanic: ~92–93%
• Black or African American, non-Hispanic: ~1–2%
• American Indian/Alaska Native, non-Hispanic: ~0.7–0.8%
• Asian, non-Hispanic: ~1%
• Two or more races, non-Hispanic: ~3%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~2%

Households

• Households: ~53,000–55,000
• Average household size: ~2.3 persons
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~73–75%
• Family households: ~60–63% of households
• Households with children under 18: ~25–27%
• One-person households: ~29–31%

Insights

• Stable population with gradual growth since 2020.
• Older age profile (median age ~45; about 1 in 5 residents are 65+).
• Predominantly non-Hispanic White with modest but growing diversity.
• Small household sizes and high owner-occupancy typical of Maine counties.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census; 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-year estimates; Vintage 2023 population estimates.

Kennebec County, ME snapshot

• Population and density: ~125,000 residents; ~140 people per square mile, concentrated along the Augusta–Waterville corridor.
• Connectivity: ~92% of households have a computer; ~86% subscribe to fixed broadband. 5G and LTE blanket population centers; cable/fiber are common in Augusta/Waterville, while northern and western townships rely more on DSL or mobile hotspots. Public/library Wi‑Fi is widely available. Broadband adoption and speeds have been steadily rising.
• Estimated email users (adults 18+): ~86,000, reflecting ~86% adult adoption (email remains near-universal among internet users).
• Gender split among email users: ~51% female, ~49% male, mirroring population mix.
• Age distribution of email users:
  • 18–34: ~24%
  • 35–49: ~26%
  • 50–64: ~28%
  • 65+: ~22%
• Digital access trends: Household broadband and smartphone ownership continue to climb; a small but notable share (~10–15%) are smartphone-only at home. Most addresses in and around Augusta/Waterville can access 100+ Mbps fixed service, while rural pockets face fewer wireline options and higher reliance on mobile data.

Implication: Email reach is broad across demographics, with especially high penetration among working-age adults and strong coverage in the county’s denser corridor.

Mobile phone usage snapshot for Kennebec County, Maine (latest ACS 2018–2022 5‑year estimates and statewide benchmarks)

Key usage levels and user estimates

• Households with a smartphone: about 86% in Kennebec vs about 84% statewide.
• Households with a cellular data plan (for a smartphone or other mobile device): about 73% in Kennebec vs about 70% statewide.
• Smartphone‑only households (rely on cellular data without a fixed broadband subscription): about 10% in Kennebec vs about 8% statewide.
• Households with no internet subscription: roughly 9–10% in Kennebec vs roughly 11–12% statewide.
• Users (estimates derived from ACS counts and average household size):
  • Adult smartphone users: approximately 75,000 (assumes ~51,600 households, ~86% with smartphones, and ~1.7 adults per household).
  • Residents relying primarily on mobile data: approximately 11,000–12,000 (smartphone‑only households ~10% of ~51,600 ≈ 5,100–5,200 households × ~2.2 persons per household).

How Kennebec differs from the Maine average

• Uptake is higher: Kennebec outperforms the state by a few points on both “household has a smartphone” and “has a cellular data plan,” reflecting its more urbanized core (Augusta–Waterville) and denser service footprint.
• More mobile‑only reliance: Smartphone‑only households are more common in Kennebec than statewide, signaling a slightly greater reliance on cellular data as a primary home internet option.
• Less unconnected: The share of households with no internet subscription is modestly lower than the state average, indicating fewer total disconnects than in more rural Maine counties.

Demographic breakdown and patterns

• Age: Adoption among older adults follows the statewide pattern (lower than for working‑age households) but is buffered by better coverage and service choice in the Augusta–Waterville area, yielding slightly higher cellular data‑plan take‑up among 65+ households than in more rural counties.
• Income: Smartphone‑only reliance is concentrated among lower‑income households; the county’s income mix produces a higher mobile‑only share than the state overall, consistent with price‑sensitive substitution of mobile for fixed broadband.
• Tenure: Renters in the Augusta–Waterville tracts show markedly higher smartphone‑only rates than homeowners, mirroring statewide dynamics but at a somewhat higher level in the county’s urban tracts.
• Geography within the county: Urban and suburban tracts (Augusta, Waterville, Hallowell) show higher 5G availability and higher cellular data plan adoption; rural lake and forested townships at the county edges show more LTE‑only coverage and higher shares of households with limited or no subscription.

Digital infrastructure points

• Coverage and technology: All three national carriers (AT&T/FirstNet, T‑Mobile, Verizon) provide 4G LTE countywide with broad 5G coverage along the I‑95/ME‑3/US‑202 corridors and in Augusta–Waterville. Mid‑band 5G (Verizon C‑band, T‑Mobile n41) is prevalent in and around population centers, supporting strong mobile broadband performance relative to much of rural Maine.
• Capacity drivers: State offices, major healthcare facilities, colleges, and retail corridors in Augusta–Waterville anchor higher site density and capacity upgrades than typical Maine counties of similar size.
• Gaps: Western and northern townships and lake regions have sparser tower density, more terrain shadowing, and pockets of LTE‑only service; these areas show higher dependence on fixed wireless, satellite, or legacy DSL for home connectivity compared with the county’s core.
• Investment context: Maine Connectivity Authority programs and federal funding (including BEAD) are targeting remaining unserved/underserved locations; Kennebec’s needs skew toward edge‑area coverage and in‑building capacity rather than the wholesale greenfield builds still required in Maine’s most rural counties.

Implications

• Mobile is an essential access path: With roughly one in ten households mobile‑only and above‑state cellular data plan adoption, Kennebec residents use mobile networks not just as a supplement but as a primary on‑ramp to the internet more often than Maine overall.
• Urban core leads usage: Strong 5G availability and device penetration in Augusta–Waterville push up overall adoption metrics; policy and investment to close remaining rural gaps within the county will likely yield outsized gains in digital equity compared with statewide averages that are more constrained by extreme rurality.

Social media usage in Kennebec County, ME (2025 snapshot)

How many people use social media

• Estimated adult population (18+): ≈99,000 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023 1-year; rounded)
• Adults using at least one social platform: ≈82,000 (≈83% of adults), applying Pew Research Center’s 2024 U.S. adoption rate to the county’s adult population

Most‑used platforms among adults (percent of adults; modeled local estimates using Pew 2024)

• YouTube: 83% (≈82k)
• Facebook: 68% (≈67k)
• Instagram: 47% (≈47k)
• Pinterest: 35% (≈35k)
• TikTok: 33% (≈33k)
• Snapchat: 30% (≈30k)
• LinkedIn: 30% (≈30k)
• WhatsApp: 29% (≈29k)
• X (Twitter): 22% (≈22k)
• Reddit: 22% (≈22k)
• Nextdoor: 18% (≈18k)

Age profile (adoption by age, applied locally; Pew 2024)

• 18–29: YouTube 93%; Instagram 78%; Snapchat 65%; TikTok 62%; Facebook 67%
• 30–49: YouTube 92%; Facebook 78%; Instagram 54%; TikTok 39%; Snapchat 31%; LinkedIn ~40%
• 50–64: YouTube 83%; Facebook 73%; Instagram 35%; TikTok 21%; Snapchat 12%; LinkedIn ~28%
• 65+: YouTube 60%; Facebook 62%; Instagram 15%; TikTok 10%; Snapchat 4%; LinkedIn ~11%

Gender breakdown of social media users

• Overall users: ≈53% women, ≈47% men (women adopt slightly more platforms on average; Pew 2024). In platform terms, Pinterest and Instagram skew female; Reddit and X skew male; Facebook and YouTube are broadly balanced.

Behavioral trends in Kennebec County

• Facebook is the local “hub”: high engagement with town, school, recreation, and storm/closure updates; Marketplace and neighborhood Groups drive daily repeat use.
• Video-first consumption: short, vertical video performs best on Facebook, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and TikTok; links without visuals underperform.
• Daypart patterns: mobile-heavy usage peaks before work (≈6–8 a.m.) and evenings (≈5–9 p.m.), with strong weekend mid‑morning activity; government/education workforce in Augusta amplifies weekday daytime reach for news and civic content.
• Local trust signals: posts from municipal pages, hospitals, schools, and local media earn higher click‑through and share rates than national sources; weather and public-safety alerts get outsized engagement.
• Youth/young adults: Snapchat and TikTok dominate 13–24 for messaging and entertainment; Instagram is the primary “public” network for 18–34.
• Professionals: LinkedIn engagement clusters in government, healthcare, and education; effective for hiring and policy/program announcements.
• Messaging layer: Facebook Messenger reach approximates Facebook adoption, useful for customer service and resident inquiries.
• Seasonality: winter storm coverage and utilities/road updates spike; summer recreation, camps, fairs, and lake content trend; back‑to‑school and fiscal/calendar-year transitions boost civic and school posts.

Notes on method and sources

• Population base: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 2023 1‑year, Kennebec County (rounded).
• Platform adoption rates: Pew Research Center, “Social Media Use in 2024” (applied to the county’s adult population to produce modeled local estimates).