Harrison County

Harrison County, Mississippi — key demographics (latest available)

Population

• Total: 208,600 (2020 Census). Approx. 209,000 (ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimate)

Age

• Median age: ~37
• Under 18: ~22–23%
• 18–64: ~62%
• 65 and over: ~16%

Gender

• Female: ~50.8%
• Male: ~49.2%

Race and ethnicity (shares of total population)

• White (non-Hispanic): ~60–61%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic): ~25%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~7–8%
• Asian (non-Hispanic): ~3–4%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic): ~2–3%
• American Indian/Alaska Native (non-Hispanic): ~0.5–0.7%
• Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic): ~0.2–0.3%

Households

• Number of households: ~80,000
• Average household size: ~2.55–2.60
• Family households: ~60–62% of households
• Married-couple families: ~40–42% of households
• Households with children under 18: ~30%
• Single-person households: ~28–29%
• Tenure: ~59–60% owner-occupied; ~40–41% renter-occupied

Insights

• Population is roughly flat since 2020, with a balanced age profile and a sizable Black population alongside growing Hispanic and Asian communities.
• Household structure skews toward families, but a large renter share reflects the area’s military/tourism-driven economy.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census; 2019–2023 American Community Survey (5-year). Figures rounded; ACS estimates carry margins of error.

Harrison County, MS email usage snapshot (2025):

• Estimated email users: ≈158,000–162,000 residents use email regularly.
• Age distribution of email users (share of users):
  • 13–17: ~8%
  • 18–29: ~20%
  • 30–49: ~33%
  • 50–64: ~22%
  • 65+: ~16%
• Gender split among users: ~51% female, ~49% male (mirroring county demographics).

Digital access and trends:

• Home broadband adoption: ~83–86% of households; an additional ~10–12% rely primarily on smartphones for internet access.
• Network availability: Fixed broadband (cable/fiber/DSL) reaches the vast majority of inhabited addresses; 5G coverage is strong along the Gulfport–Biloxi corridor.
• Typical urban download speeds exceed 100 Mbps where cable or fiber is present; libraries and schools provide free public access that supplements connectivity for lower-income households.
• Adoption trend: steady growth since 2019, driven by cable/fiber upgrades and mobile network improvements; affordability programs temporarily accelerated take-up before leveling in 2024.

Local density/connectivity context:

• Population ~208,000 with ~360 people per square mile (dense for Mississippi), concentrated in Gulfport and Biloxi along I‑10, supporting robust infrastructure and above-state-average digital engagement.

Mobile phone usage in Harrison County, Mississippi: key findings and how they differ from statewide patterns

Overall penetration and user estimates

• Population baseline: 208,621 (2020 Census).
• Adult smartphone users: approximately 150,000 (derived from adult population and county-level smartphone adoption typical of urban Mississippi counties).
• Household smartphone access: about 92–95% of households have at least one smartphone; smartphone‑only internet households are roughly 15–17% of households; households with no home internet are about 10–12%.
• Compared with Mississippi overall, Harrison County’s smartphone access is slightly higher, its share of smartphone‑only households is lower, and its “no‑internet” share is lower (statewide benchmarks: smartphone‑only ≈18%, no‑internet ≈14–16%).

Demographic breakdown

• Age: Near‑saturation among ages 18–34 (≈97–99% with smartphones). Among residents 65+, smartphone adoption is materially higher than the statewide senior rate (≈75–82% in Harrison vs ≈70–76% statewide), reflecting better device access and support in the Gulfport–Biloxi urban corridor.
• Income: Mobile‑only reliance is concentrated among lower‑income households (<$25k), but at a lower rate than statewide due to greater availability of cable and fiber; higher‑income households in Harrison are more likely to bundle mobile with fixed broadband than the state average.
• Race/ethnicity: Smartphone adoption rates are high across groups; mobile‑only access is more common among Black and Hispanic households than white households, but the gap is narrower than statewide because fixed broadband availability and public Wi‑Fi are better in urban parts of the county.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• 5G coverage: All four operators (AT&T, Verizon, T‑Mobile, and regional carrier C Spire) provide 5G across the populated Gulfport–Biloxi–D’Iberville/Keesler AFB area, with countywide population coverage exceeding 90%. This is higher and more contiguous than many rural Mississippi counties.
• Speeds: Typical median mobile download speeds in the Gulfport–Biloxi market are in the 90–110 Mbps range, outpacing the statewide mobile median. Mid‑band 5G (especially on T‑Mobile) materially boosts capacity along I‑10, US‑49, and the coastal US‑90 corridor.
• Capacity and sites: Dense macro‑site grids along interstate and coastal corridors, plus small‑cell deployments around casinos, commercial districts, and the base, give Harrison County above‑average capacity for Mississippi.
• Backhaul and redundancy: Multiple fiber backhaul providers (including AT&T and regional fiber) and substantial hurricane‑resiliency investments (backup power, COWs/COLTs staging) lead to faster restoration and more robust mobile service than the state average during outages.
• Public safety: AT&T FirstNet coverage and prioritized capacity are prominent due to coastal emergency‑response needs, improving reliability for first responders and indirectly benefiting public network resilience.

Usage patterns and market structure

• Postpaid vs prepaid: Prepaid share is lower in Harrison County than the Mississippi average because incomes and employer‑sponsored plans are higher in the metro/coastal economy; carrier mix is more diversified, and device upgrade cycles are somewhat shorter than statewide.
• Mobile‑only vs bundled: A smaller fraction of households are smartphone‑only compared with the state overall, owing to better cable and fiber availability in the urban core. Mobile is widely used as a complement to home broadband for streaming and hotspotting rather than as the sole connection.
• Tourism and military effects: Seasonal tourism and the presence of Keesler AFB lift peak‑hour and weekend demand, while also encouraging multi‑carrier plans and hotspots for redundancy—patterns less common outside the coast.

How Harrison County differs from statewide trends

• Higher smartphone penetration and notably higher 5G population coverage.
• Lower reliance on smartphone‑only internet and fewer unconnected households because fixed broadband is more available and affordable in the urbanized coast.
• Faster median mobile speeds and denser site grids than the Mississippi average.
• More resilient mobile infrastructure due to hurricane hardening, with quicker recovery than most counties.
• Market mix tilted slightly toward postpaid/multi‑line family plans and faster device refresh cycles relative to the state as a whole.

Notes on methodology

• User estimates are derived from the 2020 population baseline, typical adult share, and recent ACS/NTIA patterns for device ownership and internet subscription at the county vs state level, combined with Gulfport–Biloxi market performance observations and carrier deployments current through 2024.

Harrison County, MS social media snapshot (2024-aligned)

Population baseline

• Total population: 208,621 (U.S. Census, 2020)
• Adults (18+): ~158,600 (≈76% of population)
• Gender: ≈51% female, 49% male (Census)

Estimated social media users

• Adult social media users: ~132,000 (≈83% of adults; using Pew Research Center 2024 adoption as proxy)
• Including teens (13–17), total local social media users likely exceeds 150,000 (Pew 2023 shows near-universal teen use of at least one platform, led by YouTube)

Most-used platforms among adults (share of adults; estimated local counts)

• YouTube: 83% (~132k adults)
• Facebook: 68% (~108k)
• Instagram: 47% (~75k)
• Pinterest: 35% (~56k)
• TikTok: 33% (~52k)
• LinkedIn: 30% (48k)
• WhatsApp: 29% (~46k)
• Snapchat: 27% (~43k)
• X (Twitter): 22% (~35k)
• Reddit: 22% (~35k) Note: Percentages are Pew Research Center national adult usage (2024) applied to Harrison County’s adult population to yield local estimates. Users often maintain multiple platforms.

Age patterns (local implications from national usage)

• 13–17: Very high engagement on YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram; minimal Facebook posting.
• 18–29: Heavy daily use of YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat; Facebook used but less central for discovery.
• 30–49: Active across YouTube, Facebook, Instagram; fastest-growing TikTok cohort for local discovery and product research.
• 50–64: Strong on Facebook (groups, Marketplace) and YouTube (how‑to, news, church services).
• 65+: Concentrated on Facebook and YouTube; lower adoption elsewhere.

Gender breakdown and skews

• Overall social audience in-county is roughly 51% female, 49% male (mirrors population).
• Women over-index on Facebook and Pinterest; men over-index on YouTube, Reddit, and X.
• Instagram and TikTok are near gender-balanced but skew younger.

Behavioral trends observed in similar Gulf Coast counties (and expected locally)

• Facebook is the community hub: neighborhood groups, school/utility/hurricane updates, local news, civic info, Marketplace. High comment and share rates on hyperlocal topics.
• Short-form video leads discovery: Instagram Reels and TikTok drive awareness for restaurants, events, casinos/entertainment, and coast attractions; YouTube remains the “how-to” and long-form anchor.
• Event-driven spikes: severe weather, festivals, and tourism events produce surges in group activity and local hashtag usage.
• Messaging-first interactions: Many conversations move to Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram DMs for customer service and scheduling (not always visible in public metrics).
• Reviews and recommendations: Facebook groups and Google/YouTube reviews strongly influence purchase decisions in hospitality, home services, and auto.
• Time-of-day engagement: Evenings and weekends outperform for consumer content; weekday mornings/late afternoons favor civic and service updates.

How to read the numbers

• Platform percentages are from Pew Research Center’s 2024 Social Media Use report (and Pew’s 2023 Teen tech/soc‑med report) applied to Harrison County’s adult base from the U.S. Census. Counts are estimates, but the platform ranking and relative shares are robust.

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (Harrison County, MS)
• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (U.S. adults)
• Pew Research Center, Teens, Social Media and Technology 2023 (U.S. teens)