Ralls County

Ralls County, Missouri – key demographics (latest available)

Population size

• 10,355 (2020 Census)
• ~10.4k (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate)

Age

• Median age: ~42 years (ACS 2019–2023)
• Age distribution: ~24% under 18; ~58% 18–64; ~18% 65+

Gender

• Female ~50–51%; Male ~49–50% (near parity)

Racial/ethnic composition (ACS 2019–2023)

• White alone: ~94–95%
• Black or African American alone: ~2%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~0–1%
• Asian: ~0–1%
• Two or more races: ~2–3%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~2% Note: Hispanic is an ethnicity and overlaps race categories.

Households (ACS 2019–2023)

• ~4.1k households
• Average household size: ~2.5–2.6
• Family households: ~2/3 of all households; married-couple families predominate
• Single-person households: ~1/4–1/3
• Owner-occupied housing: ~75–80%

Insights

• Small, stable population with a median age in the low 40s, older than the U.S. median.
• Predominantly non-Hispanic White with modest racial/ethnic diversity.
• Household structure is family-oriented with high homeownership typical of rural counties.

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

• Population and density: Ralls County had 10,355 residents in 2020, about 22 people per square mile (largely rural).
• Estimated email users: ≈7,300 adult email users. Method: 77% of residents are 18+ (7,975 adults) and about 92% of U.S. adults use email, yielding ~7,336; including older teens pushes practical reach near 7,500.
• Age distribution of email users (share of users): 18–34 ≈22%; 35–64 ≈49%; 65+ ≈29%. Younger and middle‑aged adults are near‑universal users; seniors participate at somewhat lower rates but still majority.
• Gender split: Approximately even (about 50% female, 50% male), mirroring the county’s population balance.
• Digital access and trends:
  • About 79% of households have a broadband subscription (ACS 2018–2022), with additional smartphone‑only internet access raising overall connectivity.
  • Fiber and cable coverage is strongest in and around population centers (e.g., New London, Center, Monroe City areas), while fixed wireless and satellite remain important in sparsely populated tracts.
  • Ongoing rural builds are shifting users from legacy DSL to 100 Mbps+ service tiers, improving reliability for always‑on email access.
• Insight: Despite rural density, the combination of home broadband and mobile data supports broad email adoption; usage is heaviest among working‑age adults, with a growing but still lower share among residents 65+.

Mobile phone usage in Ralls County, Missouri — 2025 snapshot

Headline takeaways

• Mobile adoption is high but skews older and more rural than Missouri overall, producing lower smartphone penetration, higher prepaid usage, and greater reliance on cellular for home internet.
• 5G is present along major corridors, but mid-band 5G coverage is sparse away from highways and town centers; LTE remains the workhorse outside those areas.
• Local fiber buildouts are improving fixed options, but mobile-only households remain meaningfully above the state average.

User estimates and penetration

• Population and base: About 10.3–10.5K residents; ~8.2K adults (18+).
• Adults with any mobile phone: ~7.9K (≈96% of adults).
• Adult smartphone users: ~6.7–6.8K (≈82% of adults).
• Households relying primarily on cellular for home internet: 700–800 of ~4.1K households (≈17–19%), above the Missouri average (12%).
• Prepaid vs. postpaid among smartphone users: Prepaid ≈30–35% in Ralls (≈2.0–2.3K users), above Missouri’s typical mix (~22–25%).
• Platform mix: Android-leaning compared with Missouri metro areas; roughly 55–60% Android, 40–45% iPhone.

Demographic breakdown (modeled from local age structure and national adoption by age; Pew 2021–2023, ACS 2019–2023)

• Age 18–34: ~2.0K adults; smartphone adoption ≈95% → ~1.9K users.
• Age 35–64: ~4.0K adults; smartphone adoption ≈85% → ~3.4K users.
• Age 65+: ~2.1K adults; smartphone adoption ≈65% → ~1.4K users.
• Net effect versus Missouri: A larger 65+ share and more rural households pull overall smartphone penetration 3–5 points below the state average, raise prepaid usage, and increase the share of mobile-only internet households.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Cellular networks
  • 5G: Low-band 5G from the national carriers covers town centers (New London, Center, Perry) and major routes (US‑61, US‑36), with mid-band 5G capacity concentrated along corridors and near Hannibal/Marion County edges. Away from corridors, coverage reverts to LTE or low-band 5G with lower throughput.
  • LTE: Near-ubiquitous for outdoor use; indoor performance is variable in wooded and lake-adjacent areas (Mark Twain Lake/Salt River Basin) and in low-lying hollows.
  • Typical performance: Mid-band 5G 150–400 Mbps where available; low-band 5G/LTE generally 5–80 Mbps, with occasional sub‑5 Mbps pockets in fringe areas. Signal boosters/hotspots are common for farm and lakeside properties.
  • First responder network: AT&T FirstNet presence improves corridor reliability and site hardening, but non-corridor redundancy is thinner than in Missouri’s metro counties.
• Backhaul and tower siting
  • Site density tracks highways and towns; interior census blocks often see single-carrier dominance and fewer overlapping macro sites than the Missouri average, contributing to higher variability and handoff-related drops.
• Fixed broadband interplay
  • Fiber: Local builds by regional providers (e.g., Mark Twain/affiliated co‑ops and Ralls County Electric Cooperative initiatives) have expanded FTTH in and around towns and along selected rural routes, materially improving offload options where available.
  • Cable/DSL/Fixed wireless: Cable in town centers; legacy DSL and multiple fixed wireless ISPs in rural areas. Where these remain the only fixed options, households more often lean on mobile hotspots or smartphone tethering.
  • Satellite: Starlink and other LEO options are increasingly visible for exurban properties, reducing—but not eliminating—pressure on cellular data in the most remote blocks.

How Ralls County differs from Missouri statewide

• Smartphone penetration: Lower by approximately 3–5 percentage points due to older demographics and rural settlement patterns.
• Mobile-only internet households: Higher (~17–19% vs. ~12% statewide), reflecting patchier fixed alternatives in outlying blocks.
• Prepaid share: Higher (≈30–35% vs. ≈22–25%), tied to income mix, device upgrade cycles, and retail channel availability.
• 5G capacity footprint: Smaller mid-band 5G coverage share than the state average; more reliance on low-band 5G/LTE outside corridors.
• Device/OS mix: More Android-heavy than urban Missouri, consistent with price-sensitive segments and prepaid adoption.
• Reliability: Greater single-carrier areas and fewer overlapping sites than state averages increase dead zones indoors and at the lake’s periphery; drive-test variability is higher than in metro counties.

Method note

• Figures are 2025 estimates synthesized from U.S. Census/ACS county demographics (2019–2023), Pew Research Center mobile adoption by age (2021–2023), and FCC/National Broadband Map patterns for rural Missouri. Estimates are rounded to reflect modeling uncertainty while keeping magnitudes policy- and planning-relevant.

Ralls County, Missouri – social media usage (2025 snapshot)

Scope and method

• Figures are best-available estimates tailored to Ralls County by applying Pew Research Center 2024 platform-use rates by age, gender, and community type to the county’s demographic profile (U.S. Census Bureau/ACS). Percentages refer to share of adults unless noted; rounded to whole numbers.

Headline usage

• Adults using at least one social platform: 70%
• Daily social-media users: 60% of all adults (about 85% of social-media users)
• Typical platform mix: Most users are active on 2–4 platforms; Facebook and YouTube anchor usage across ages

Most-used platforms (share of adults who use)

• YouTube: 82%
• Facebook: 67%
• Instagram: 38%
• Pinterest: 31%
• TikTok: 29%
• Snapchat: 24%
• LinkedIn: 20%
• X (Twitter): 17%
• Reddit: 13%

Age-group profile (share within each age group)

• 18–29: 95% use any social; YouTube 95%, Instagram 78%, Snapchat 73%, TikTok 65%, Facebook 46%
• 30–49: 84% any; YouTube 88%, Facebook 76%, Instagram 52%, TikTok 35%, Snapchat 28%
• 50–64: 70% any; YouTube 76%, Facebook 72%, Instagram 27%, TikTok 18%
• 65+: 47% any; Facebook 56%, YouTube 58%, Instagram 14%, TikTok 8%

Gender breakdown (share within each gender)

• Women: 73% use any social; Facebook 71%, Instagram 42%, Pinterest 48%, YouTube 79%, TikTok 31%, Snapchat 26%, X 16%, Reddit 7%, LinkedIn 19%
• Men: 68% use any; YouTube 85%, Facebook 62%, Instagram 35%, Pinterest 13%, TikTok 27%, Snapchat 22%, X 19%, Reddit 20%, LinkedIn 21%

Behavioral trends and local patterns

• Facebook is the community hub: High engagement with churches, schools, county agencies, volunteer groups, and buy/sell/trade markets; Events and local news drive comments and shares
• Video-first consumption: YouTube serves long-form/how‑to, agriculture, hunting/fishing, and local sports; short-form video via Reels and TikTok is rising among under‑40s and used by local teams and small businesses
• Messaging over posting for younger residents: Snapchat dominates under‑30 direct communication; Facebook Messenger is ubiquitous across ages; WhatsApp usage is minimal
• Information seeking skews local and practical: Weather alerts, road closures, school updates, community fundraisers, and marketplace listings see consistently high reach and repeat visits
• Time-of-day patterns: Check-ins cluster before work/school (6–8 a.m.) and evenings (7–10 p.m.); mid‑day engagement dips, with brief spikes tied to breaking local news or severe weather
• Platform roles by life stage: Teens/20s favor Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok for socializing and school/sports; 30s–40s use Facebook/Instagram for parenting, school, and community coordination; 50+ rely on Facebook and YouTube for news, hobbies, and civic information

Notes and sources

• Sources: Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024; U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (age/sex profile for Ralls County); federal broadband/adoption benchmarks to calibrate rural usage. Figures are localized estimates rather than direct county-reported counts.