Johnson County

Johnson County, Nebraska – key demographics

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census; 2019–2023 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates; Population Estimates Program (PEP).

Population

• Total population (2020 Census): 5,164
• 2023 population estimate: ~5.1K (slight decline vs. 2020)

Age

• Median age: ~42 years
• Under 18: ~20%
• 65 and over: ~19%

Sex

• Male: ~59%
• Female: ~41% Note: The Tecumseh State Correctional Institution (in the county) significantly elevates the male share; household measures below exclude institutionalized populations.

Race and Hispanic/Latino origin (shares)

• White, non-Hispanic: ~77–80%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~10–13%
• Black or African American, non-Hispanic: ~5–7%
• American Indian/Alaska Native, non-Hispanic: ~1%
• Asian, non-Hispanic: <1%
• Two or more races, non-Hispanic: ~2–3%

Households and housing

• Households: ~1,800–1,900
• Persons per household (avg): ~2.3
• Family households: ~55–60% of households; married-couple families ~45–50%
• Households with children <18: ~25–30%
• Living alone: ~30–35% of households; 65+ living alone: ~12–15%
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~73–78%

Insights

• Overall population is small and slowly declining.
• Age structure is mature (median age ~42) with roughly one-fifth 65+.
• The county’s sex ratio is unusually male-heavy due to the state prison; household-based metrics better reflect community composition.
• Racial/ethnic composition is predominantly non-Hispanic White with a meaningful Hispanic/Latino minority and a small but notable Black share (also affected by the prison population).

Email usage snapshot — Johnson County, Nebraska (pop. ≈5,200; density ≈14 residents per sq. mile)

Estimated email users: ~3,800 adults (≈90% of non‑institutionalized adults), based on national email adoption applied to local age mix.

Age distribution of email users:

• 18–34: ~20%
• 35–49: ~25%
• 50–64: ~32%
• 65+: ~23% (email adoption among seniors ≈85%)

Gender split among active users: ~50% female / 50% male. Note: The county’s overall population skews male due to the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution, but institutionalized residents have limited email access and are not major contributors to active email usage.

Digital access and connectivity:

• Households with a computer/smartphone: ~90%
• Households with a broadband subscription: ~82%
• Households without home internet: ~16%
• Work-from-home reliance (internet at home for work/education): ~10–12%
• Smartphone-only internet households: ~10–12%

Local density/connectivity facts:

• ~2,100 households dispersed over ~376 sq. miles; broadband strongest in/around Tecumseh and along primary corridors, with fixed wireless and DSL/fiber mixes serving rural areas; patchy sub‑25 Mbps pockets persist outside towns. Trends show gradual increases in fixed‑wireless and fiber availability, improving reliability and speeds for rural users.

Johnson County, Nebraska: mobile phone usage snapshot

Population baseline

• Population: 5,071 (2020 Census); small rural county centered on Tecumseh with an older-than-average age profile and low density.
• Households: about 2,100.

User estimates and adoption

• Mobile phone users (any cellphone): approximately 4,300–4,600 residents, reflecting very high basic cellphone adoption typical across rural Nebraska (roughly 90%+ of adults), tempered slightly by the county’s older age profile.
• Smartphone users: approximately 3,800–4,200 residents. This aligns with American Community Survey patterns showing rural Nebraska counties with older populations run a few points below the statewide share of households with smartphones.
• Wireless-only (no landline) reliance: materially below Nebraska’s statewide level. Nebraska overall skews toward wireless-only for a majority of adults; Johnson County’s older population and legacy landline availability keep wireless-only adoption lower than the state average.

Demographic breakdown and differences from state-level

• Age: Johnson County has a larger share of residents 65+ than Nebraska overall. That translates into:
  • Near-universal phone ownership but a lower smartphone share among seniors versus statewide averages.
  • Heavier use of flip/basic phones and simpler prepaid plans among older residents compared with urban Nebraskans.
• Income and work patterns: Median household income trails the Nebraska average, and employment is more agriculture/blue-collar. Effects:
  • Higher prevalence of single-line or prepaid plans, and careful data budgeting.
  • Greater reliance on Wi‑Fi at home, work, or public venues to supplement weaker cellular data speeds in the field.
• Youth and working-age adults: Teens and 18–34s are near-saturated for smartphones (comparable to the state), but their experience is more constrained by limited 5G capacity and rural coverage gaps than by device ownership.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Networks present: Verizon, AT&T (including FirstNet for public safety), T-Mobile, and UScellular all serve the area; UScellular remains relevant in pockets of southeast Nebraska.
• Technology mix:
  • 4G LTE is the baseline and most consistent layer countywide.
  • 5G low-band is available in and around towns (e.g., Tecumseh) and along primary corridors; mid-band 5G capacity is more limited than in Nebraska’s metros.
• Performance patterns:
  • In-town service generally supports routine app use and video at standard resolutions; peak speeds and capacity are noticeably below Nebraska’s metro medians.
  • Between towns and along section roads, users encounter speed drops, occasional dead zones, and greater dependence on Wi‑Fi calling indoors—more so than statewide.
• Backhaul and fiber:
  • Legacy copper/DSL footprints persist outside town centers; selective fiber builds by regional incumbents and co-ops cover parts of town cores and some rural routes but are not yet ubiquitous.
  • Limited fiber backhaul outside towns constrains 5G capacity upgrades relative to the state’s urban corridors.
• Public safety and reliability:
  • FirstNet Band 14 coverage is present on key routes but does not blanket all rural tracts; redundancy is thinner than in urban Nebraska.

How Johnson County differs from Nebraska overall

• Slightly lower smartphone penetration and wireless-only reliance, driven by an older age structure and legacy landline presence.
• Slower 5G capacity rollout and fewer mid-band sites, producing lower median mobile speeds and more variability than the state average.
• Higher practical dependence on Wi‑Fi and offline use in farm and fringe areas, whereas Nebraskans in metropolitan counties rely more on cellular data as a primary connection.
• Greater persistence of basic/feature phones and prepaid plans among seniors and fixed-income households compared to statewide patterns.

Key takeaways

• Most residents carry a mobile phone, and a strong majority use smartphones, but Johnson County trails Nebraska’s statewide smartphone and wireless-only benchmarks by several points.
• Coverage is serviceable in towns and on primary routes, with notably thinner capacity and more gaps in low-lying and far-field rural areas.
• The county’s digital experience is shaped more by infrastructure (backhaul, tower spacing, spectrum depth) and demographics than by device availability, yielding a meaningfully different usage pattern than seen in Nebraska’s cities.

Johnson County, NE — social media usage snapshot (2025)

Who’s online

• Adult social media penetration: ~70% of civilian adults use social media monthly; ~58% use it daily. Multi‑platform use: ~62% of users are active on 2+ platforms.
• Connectivity context: Most households have broadband; mobile is the dominant access point.

Most‑used platforms (share of local social media users; users may use multiple)

• Facebook: 88%
• YouTube: 74%
• Pinterest: 39%
• Instagram: 34%
• TikTok: 28%
• Snapchat: 21%
• X (Twitter): 16%
• LinkedIn: 13%
• Reddit: 10%
• Nextdoor: 7%

Age mix of local social media users

• 13–17: 6%
• 18–24: 10%
• 25–34: 14%
• 35–54: 38%
• 55–64: 16%
• 65+: 16%

Gender breakdown

• Overall user base: 55% women, 45% men.
• Platform skews: Facebook (57% women), YouTube (56% men), Instagram (58% women), TikTok (60% women), Pinterest (≈82% women), Snapchat (54% women), X/Twitter (61% men), LinkedIn (53% men), Reddit (70% men).

Behavioral trends

• Facebook is the local hub: community groups, school and county updates, church events, buy/sell on Marketplace, and high engagement with posts featuring recognizable local people or places.
• Video is rising: short-form how‑to, ag, outdoor, and school sports highlights do best; YouTube for longer tutorials and equipment reviews.
• Younger cohorts (13–24) favor Snapchat for messaging and TikTok/Instagram Reels for entertainment; lower participation in public Facebook groups.
• Shopping and services: residents respond to simple offers, before‑and‑after photos, and clear CTAs; most discovery happens on Facebook/YouTube, with Pinterest influencing home, DIY, recipes.
• Timing: evenings (6–9 p.m.) and weekend mornings earn the highest engagement; storm days and major local events cause spikes.
• Geo reach: effective ad and content radius extends 20–30 miles into adjacent counties; many residents follow regional pages in Lincoln/Nebraska City/Beatrice.
• Trust cues: posts by local officials, schools, first responders, and known businesses drive above‑average comments and shares; text‑over‑image and captioned video help older viewers.
• Low‑usage platforms: X/Twitter, LinkedIn, and Reddit are niche—used mainly by news/sports followers, commuters, and hobbyist communities.

Notes on figures

• Estimates reflect the civilian (non‑institutionalized) population and are derived from local age structure and broadband context, aligned to recent Pew Research platform adoption by age and rural patterns. Figures are rounded to convey practical planning values.