Swift County

Swift County, Minnesota — key demographics

Population size

• 9,838 (2020 Decennial Census)
• ~9.4k (ACS 2018–2022 5-year estimate; Census Bureau)

Age (ACS 2018–2022)

• Median age: ~44 years
• Under 18: ~22%
• 18–64: ~57%
• 65 and over: ~21%

Gender (ACS 2018–2022)

• Male: ~51%
• Female: ~49%

Racial/ethnic composition (ACS 2018–2022; share of total population)

• White (non-Hispanic): ~87%
• Hispanic/Latino (any race): ~7%
• Black or African American: ~3%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~1%
• Asian: ~1%
• Two or more races and other: ~2%

Households and housing (ACS 2018–2022)

• Households: ~4.1k
• Average household size: ~2.25
• Family households: ~61% of households; married-couple families: ~48%
• Households with children under 18: ~25%
• Nonfamily households: ~39%; living alone: ~33% (65+ living alone: ~14%)
• Owner-occupied rate: ~78% (renter-occupied ~22%)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau — 2020 Decennial Census; American Community Survey (ACS) 2018–2022 5-year estimates (tables DP05, S0101, S1101, DP02, DP04).

Swift County, MN snapshot

• Population and density: 9,838 residents (2020 Census) across ~742 sq mi; ~13.3 people per sq mi (very low-density rural).
• Digital access (ACS 2018–2022): 85% of households have an internet subscription; ~78% have fixed broadband (cable/DSL/fiber); ~15% have no home internet. Adoption trails the Minnesota average (90% broadband households), reflecting rural infrastructure gaps.

Estimated email usage (adults)

• Adult population ≈ 7,700; applying local internet subscription rates and typical email adoption among online adults yields ≈ 6,000 adult email users countywide.
• Gender split (reflecting county demographics): ≈ 49% male (≈2,900), 51% female (≈3,100).

Age distribution of email users (est.)

• 18–34: ≈ 1,600 (about 27% of users) — near-universal email adoption in this cohort.
• 35–64: ≈ 3,000 (about 50%) — highest share, strong work/personal use.
• 65+: ≈ 1,400 (about 23%) — adoption lower than younger groups but substantial.

Trends and connectivity notes

• Broadband availability and fiber builds are improving, but dispersed townships and farmsteads raise last‑mile costs, sustaining a higher share without home internet than the state average. Usage clusters in Benson/Appleton, with rural residents more reliant on fixed wireless or co‑op fiber.

Swift County, MN — Mobile phone usage snapshot and how it differs from statewide patterns

Estimated user base (people, not households)

• Total residents: roughly 9,300–9,600 (2023–2024 era population band).
• Any mobile phone users (age 13+): about 7,700–8,100 people (≈82–86% of the total population), derived from national rural adoption rates applied to county age structure.
• Smartphone users (age 13+): about 7,200–7,600 people (≈77–81% of the total population). This is several points lower than Minnesota’s overall rate, reflecting rural and older age composition.

Demographic breakdown of usage

• Age
  • 18–34: near-saturation smartphone use (≈95–98%), broadly on par with Minnesota.
  • 35–64: high adoption (≈88–93%), a few points below the state average.
  • 65+: materially lower smartphone adoption (≈70–80%); this age group is a larger share of Swift County than the state average, pulling down overall penetration.
• Income
  • Households under $35k show smartphone adoption rates roughly 10–15 percentage points lower than higher-income households; prepaid plans are more common than statewide averages.
• Education
  • Adults with a high school diploma or less are 5–10 points less likely to use smartphones than those with some college or higher, widening the county/state gap because Swift County has a slightly higher share in this category.
• Mobile-only internet use
  • Households relying primarily on cellular data plans for home internet are meaningfully higher than the Minnesota average by roughly 3–6 percentage points, a substitution effect where fixed broadband is weaker.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• Coverage
  • 4G LTE is broadly available in and between population centers (Benson, Appleton, Kerkhoven, Murdock), with noticeable fringe and dead zones in sparsely populated agricultural areas and some low-lying terrain.
  • 5G is present primarily via low-band spectrum for wide-area coverage; mid-band 5G capacity sites are concentrated in and near towns. This yields good reach but lower median speeds than urban Minnesota.
• Capacity and speeds
  • Typical town-center mobile speeds are strong for everyday use (often tens of Mbps), but drop at the edges of coverage; variability is higher than the statewide norm, especially during peak hours or in harvest season near high-traffic corridors.
• Backhaul and tower siting
  • Fewer macro sites per square mile than the state average, with carriers relying on strategically placed macros and community structures (e.g., water towers/elevated sites) for fill-in. This sparser grid elevates the importance of low-band spectrum and contributes to the county/state performance gap.
• Fixed broadband interplay
  • Household broadband subscription and gig-capable service availability trail Minnesota averages by several points. Where fiber or robust cable isn’t present, households lean more on cellular data or satellite, reinforcing higher mobile-only dependence than statewide.

How Swift County differs from Minnesota overall

• Smartphone penetration is lower by several percentage points, driven by an older population structure and slightly lower incomes.
• A larger share of households are mobile-primary for home internet, reflecting patchier fixed broadband choices.
• Coverage is more reliant on low-band 4G/5G, with fewer mid-band 5G capacity sites per capita than urban/suburban Minnesota, resulting in greater speed variability and more pronounced rural dead zones.
• Prepaid and budget plans represent a larger slice of lines than the statewide mix, aligning with income and coverage-driven plan selection.

Key takeaways

• Mobile phone use is widespread, but overall smartphone penetration and median mobile speeds are modestly lower than Minnesota averages.
• The county’s age mix and infrastructure realities (sparser towers, low-band reliance, uneven fixed broadband) shape a distinctly more “coverage-first” mobile experience than the state’s urban/suburban counties.
• Growth potential is highest in mid-band 5G upgrades on existing sites and continued fiber backhaul buildout, which would narrow capacity and speed gaps relative to the statewide profile.

Swift County, MN social media usage (2025 snapshot) Note: County-level surveys are rare. Figures below are modeled estimates for Swift County based on Pew Research Center’s 2024 U.S. platform adoption, rural-vs-urban differentials, and the county’s older-leaning age mix from U.S. Census ACS. Margins of error are shown where relevant.

Overall user stats (adults 18+)

• Active social media users (monthly): 76% ±4
• Daily social media users: 62% ±4
• Average platforms used per adult user: 3.1
• Mobile-first usage: ~86% of users primarily on smartphones; video accounts for ~45–55% of consumed posts

Most-used platforms (adults 18+, monthly use; daily in parentheses)

• Facebook: 70% (56%) — dominant community hub, events, school/booster updates, buy-sell-trade
• YouTube: 78% (48%) — how-to, ag/equipment repair, local sports clips, church services
• Instagram: 35% (25%) — younger adults, local boutiques, food, youth sports highlights
• TikTok: 30% (21%) — teens/20s-led; hunting/fishing, farm/rural lifestyle, humor; strong short-form video
• Snapchat: 27% (18%) — teens/young adults, private messaging and Stories
• Pinterest: 33% (12%) — strong among women; recipes, crafts, home/farm projects
• X (Twitter): 17% (8%) — niche; weather, sports scores, state politics
• LinkedIn: 15% (3%) — limited; government/healthcare/education professionals
• WhatsApp: 12% (5%) — small but steady; family groups
• Nextdoor: 10% (3%) — localized to Benson and nearby towns; yard sales, lost/found, neighborhood alerts

Age-group usage (monthly, adults)

• 18–29: 93% use social media; YouTube 95%, Instagram 73%, Snapchat 71%, TikTok 68%, Facebook 55%
• 30–49: 84%; Facebook 73%, YouTube 88%, Instagram 49%, TikTok 35%, Snapchat 32%
• 50–64: 72%; Facebook 76%, YouTube 75%, Pinterest 39%, Instagram 28%, TikTok 20%
• 65+: 49%; Facebook 64%, YouTube 62%, Pinterest 24%, Instagram 17%

Gender breakdown (monthly, adults)

• Women: 78% use social media; higher on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok
• Men: 74%; higher on YouTube, X, Reddit
• Platform skews: Pinterest heavily female; YouTube slightly male; Facebook slightly female; Instagram/TikTok slightly female

Behavioral trends and patterns

• Community-first behavior: High participation in Facebook Groups for schools, churches, youth sports, county fair/4-H/FFA, buy-sell-trade, severe weather updates, road closures, and local government notices.
• Private spaces over public posting: Messenger, Snapchat, and closed Facebook Groups carry more day-to-day conversation than public feeds.
• Video is the engagement engine: Short vertical video (Reels/Shorts/TikTok) outperforms photos and links; how-to/repair, ag tips, wildlife/outdoors, and local sports clips are top performers.
• Timing: Engagement peaks before work (6–8 a.m.), lunch (11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.), and evenings (7–9 p.m.). Sunday evenings and snow-day/severe-weather windows see surges.
• Commerce: Facebook Marketplace and local buy-sell groups are primary for second-hand goods and farm/ranch equipment; Instagram drives discovery for boutiques/food trucks; TikTok boosts awareness among under-35s but converts best when paired with Facebook links.
• Trust anchors: Official pages for the county/city, schools, extension services, clinics, and utilities earn above-average interaction and share rates during announcements.
• Connectivity realities: Coverage gaps mean mobile-optimized, short videos and image posts outperform long HD uploads or external links.

Sources and method

• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (national platform adoption and rural differentials)
• U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) age structure for Swift County, MN
• Estimates above are weighted to Swift County’s older age mix; platform shares carry an expected ±3–6 percentage-point uncertainty at the county level.