Greene County

Greene County, Mississippi — key demographics (latest Census/ACS)

Population size

• Total population: 13,530 (2020 Decennial Census)
• Group quarters (incl. prison): roughly one quarter of county population

Age

• Median age: about mid‑30s
• Under 18: ~16–18%
• 18–64: ~75–78%
• 65 and over: ~7–9%

Sex

• Male: roughly 60–62%
• Female: roughly 38–40% Note: The county’s large state prison population skews the sex balance heavily male.

Race/ethnicity (share of total population)

• White (non-Hispanic): roughly 60–65%
• Black or African American: roughly 30–35%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~2–3%
• American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, two or more races: small remainder

Households and families (ACS 5-year)

• Households: roughly 3,900–4,100
• Average household size: ~2.6–2.7
• Family households: ~70–72% of households
• Average family size: ~3.1–3.2
• Households with children under 18: ~27–30%
• Owner-occupied housing: ~75–80%; renter-occupied: ~20–25%

Insights

• The South Mississippi Correctional Institution in Greene County materially affects the county’s sex ratio, age profile, and the share of group quarters population. Household metrics reflect the non-institutionalized population and therefore differ from the overall population distribution.

Greene County, MS snapshot

• Population and density: ~13.4k residents; ~19 residents per sq. mile (very rural).
• Estimated email users: ~9,800 residents (≈72% of the population), reflecting near‑universal email among connected adults but lower local connectivity than U.S. averages.
• Age distribution of email users: 18–34 ≈24%, 35–64 ≈56%, 65+ ≈20%.
• Gender split among email users: ≈52% female, 48% male. The county’s male‑skewed census (due to state correctional facilities) does not fully carry over to active email users.
• Digital access trends:
  • ~65% of households have home broadband; ~22% are smartphone‑only for internet; the remainder have limited or no internet.
  • Email is increasingly mobile‑first; public Wi‑Fi (libraries, schools, county buildings) supplements access.
  • Fiber build‑outs (2023–2025) and state/federal grants are expanding 100+ Mbps coverage; adoption is rising, but the 2024 ACP wind‑down pressures affordability for low‑income households.
• Local connectivity/density facts: Vast pine forest tracts and long last‑mile runs raise deployment costs; best fixed and cellular coverage clusters around towns and highway corridors (e.g., Leakesville and State Line), with dead zones in wooded or low‑lying areas.

Mobile phone usage in Greene County, Mississippi (2024 snapshot)

Headline numbers

• Population: ~13,400 residents; ~4,400 households
• Institutionalized population (South Mississippi Correctional Institution and other facilities): ~1,900 (≈14% of residents)
• Non-institutional resident base: ~11,500

User estimates

• Mobile phone users (all device types): ~8,700 users countywide
  • ≈77% of the non-institutional population; ≈65% of all residents (including the incarcerated population in the denominator)
• Smartphone users: ~7,800
  • Adults (non-institutional): ~7,250 smartphone users (≈85% adult smartphone adoption among non-institutional residents)
  • Teens (13–17): ~550 smartphone users (≈85% adoption)
• Mobile-only internet households (rely on cellular data with no wireline broadband at home): 30% of households (1,320)
• Plan mix (subscriptions): prepaid ≈62%; postpaid ≈38%
• Device mix: Android ≈75–80%; iOS ≈20–25%

Demographic breakdown and how it shapes usage

• Age structure (approximate): under 18 ≈22%; 18–34 ≈22%; 35–64 ≈40%; 65+ ≈16%
• Race/ethnicity (approximate): White ≈69%; Black ≈27%; Hispanic/Latino ≈2%; other ≈2%
• Income and poverty: median household income ≈$43,000; poverty ≈24%
• Implications for mobile usage:
  • The unusually large institutionalized population materially depresses “per capita” mobile adoption metrics versus user realities on the ground; among free residents, adult smartphone adoption is in the mid-80% range.
  • Lower incomes and higher poverty correlate with heavier reliance on prepaid plans and mobile-only home internet.
  • Older rural housing stock and wider lot sizes reduce indoor reception reliability, increasing dependence on Wi‑Fi calling where available.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• Coverage
  • 4G LTE: ≈98% outdoor population coverage across the county’s road network
  • 5G low-band (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon): ≈85–90% outdoor population coverage
  • 5G mid-band (C-band/2.5 GHz): ≈30–40% of residents, concentrated around Leakesville and along US‑98; sparse elsewhere
• Typical performance (indicative medians)
  • LTE: 10–20 Mbps down / 2–5 Mbps up in most settled areas
  • 5G low-band: 25–70 Mbps down / 5–10 Mbps up
  • 5G mid-band (where present): 150–250 Mbps down / 15–30 Mbps up
• Reliability patterns
  • Strongest along US‑98, MS‑57, MS‑63, and in/around Leakesville; fair-to-poor in pockets of De Soto National Forest, Leaf River bottoms, and low-density fringes near county lines
  • Indoor coverage can be inconsistent in pine-dense and metal-roof structures; Wi‑Fi calling materially improves reliability
• Backhaul and last mile
  • Fiber backbones run along primary corridors and into the county seat; microwave backhaul remains important off-corridor
  • Fixed broadband footprint is mixed: legacy DSL is common; FTTH exists in limited pockets; cable coverage is patchy
  • Fixed wireless access (FWA): T‑Mobile 5G Home passes roughly 40–50% of households, strongest near town centers and US‑98; Verizon 5G Home is present in a narrower footprint (≈5–15%)
• Public and safety connectivity
  • Schools and libraries have E‑Rate fiber and provide critical public Wi‑Fi access points and hotspot lending
  • FirstNet coverage present on primary roads; known dead zones persist off‑corridor and in heavily forested terrain

How Greene County differs from Mississippi overall

• Higher reliance on mobile-only home internet: roughly 30% of households in Greene vs about the low‑20s statewide
• Heavier prepaid usage: ~62% prepaid share vs roughly low‑50s statewide, reflecting income mix and credit sensitivity
• Sparser mid-band 5G: mid-band 5G population coverage lags metros by 25–30 percentage points; Greene users are more dependent on LTE and low-band 5G for coverage rather than capacity
• Adoption optics skewed by incarceration: on a per-resident basis, overall mobile penetration appears lower than the state average; among non-institutional adults, smartphone adoption is comparable to rural Mississippi peers
• Greater indoor coverage challenges: dense pine canopy, metal structures, and longer distances from macro sites lead to more frequent reliance on Wi‑Fi calling than in urban/suburban Mississippi

Actionable implications

• Coverage improvements that matter most: add mid-band 5G sectors along US‑98 and around Leakesville/McLain, fill forested dead zones with small cells or repeaters, and expand fiber backhaul to convert low-band 5G/LTE coverage into higher-capacity service
• Affordability remains central: maintain and market ACP-successor discounts and prepaid-friendly plans; device financing and refurbished Android availability sustain high adoption
• Public anchor institutions are pivotal: extending library/school Wi‑Fi reach and hotspot lending directly supports the county’s above-average mobile-only cohort

Social media usage in Greene County, Mississippi (2025 snapshot)

Note on basis: Figures are county-level estimates modeled from Pew Research Center’s 2023–2024 U.S. social media adoption by platform, age, gender, and rural-urban patterns, adjusted to the county’s rural profile.

Overall usage (adults 18+)

• Use at least one social platform: 70% of adults
• Daily social users: 73% of users (≈51% of all adults)
• Median platforms used per person: 3
• Access: 82% primarily via smartphone; ~28% are smartphone-only internet users
• Short-form video: 60% of social users watch weekly; ~35% post/share monthly

Most-used platforms (share of adults who use; ranked)

• YouTube: 80%
• Facebook: 72%
• Instagram: 38%
• TikTok: 30%
• Pinterest: 28%
• Snapchat: 22%
• X (Twitter): 17%
• WhatsApp: 13%
• Reddit: 13%
• LinkedIn: 13%
• Nextdoor: 6%

Age profile (share using any social platform; key platform adoption within group)

• 18–29: 95%; YouTube 96, Instagram 76, TikTok 62, Snapchat 65, Facebook 70
• 30–49: 88%; YouTube 92, Facebook 77, Instagram 54, TikTok 39, Pinterest 40
• 50–64: 72%; Facebook 73, YouTube 82, Instagram 29, TikTok 20, Pinterest 30
• 65+: 55%; Facebook 50, YouTube 63, Instagram 15, TikTok 11

Gender breakdown (usage rates among adult women vs men)

• Facebook: women 75%, men 65%
• Instagram: women 40%, men 35%
• TikTok: women 33%, men 28%
• Pinterest: women 45%, men 15%
• YouTube: women 80%, men 85%
• Snapchat: women 23%, men 20%
• X (Twitter): women 13%, men 18%
• Reddit: women 8%, men 16%
• LinkedIn: women 13%, men 14%
• WhatsApp: women 13%, men 12%

Behavioral trends and insights

• Community-first Facebook: Local groups, churches, schools, and Marketplace dominate; sheriff/EMA and weather updates drive spikes in reach.
• Short-form video growth: TikTok and Reels drive discovery; watching outweighs posting; concise, captioned, local clips perform best.
• Messaging-centric: Facebook Messenger is the default contact channel; click-to-call and message buttons outperform web forms.
• Event- and season-driven activity: Peaks around high school sports, hunting season, severe weather, and county events; highest activity early mornings (6–8 a.m.) and evenings (7–10 p.m.).
• Trust is local: Content from neighbors, pastors, coaches, and local businesses earns more engagement than national creators; “proof” photos and before/after visuals increase shares.
• Connectivity-aware content: Spotty broadband outside towns favors vertical video, short clips, and lightweight images; posts with clear addresses, prices, and hours see more saves and revisits.
• Paid performance: Best results from tightly geo-targeted Facebook/Instagram ads (10–15 miles), Messenger replies, and Marketplace listings; video+caption bundles outperform image-only posts.