Jones County

Jones County, North Carolina — Key Demographics

Population size

• Total population: 9,172 (2020 Census)
• Trend: Down from 10,381 in 2010 (-11.7%)

Age

• Median age: ~45 years (ACS 2019–2023)
• Under 18: ~19%
• 18–64: ~59%
• 65 and over: ~22%

Gender

• Male: ~51%
• Female: ~49%

Racial/ethnic composition (2020 Census; Hispanic is an ethnicity)

• White alone: ~63%
• Black or African American alone: ~29%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~6–7%
• Two or more races and other groups: ~2–3% combined

Household and housing

• Households: ~3,800 (ACS 2019–2023)
• Average household size: ~2.3–2.4
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~75%
• Housing units: ~4,700; vacancy rate ~15–16%
• Median household income: ~$45–48k
• Persons in poverty: ~18–20%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (population count, race/ethnicity); American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-year estimates (age, gender, household, housing, income, poverty). Notes: ACS figures are official estimates and may differ slightly from decennial counts.

• Population and density: Jones County, NC had 9,172 residents in the 2020 Census across roughly 473 sq mi (about 19 people per square mile), indicating very low density that raises last‑mile broadband costs.
• Estimated email users: ~6,300 residents use email at least monthly (≈69% of the population), derived from rural NC internet adoption and email-use rates applied to local demographics.
• Age distribution of email users (counts, share of users): 13–17: 500 (8%); 18–34: 1,260 (20%); 35–54: 2,080 (33%); 55–64: 1,070 (17%); 65+: 1,390 (22%).
• Gender split of email users: Women ≈51% (3,210); Men ≈49% (3,090), mirroring the county’s population mix.
• Digital access and trends:
  • Household broadband subscription: ≈74% subscribe to a fixed broadband plan; roughly one in five households lacks home internet, with a notable smartphone‑only segment (~13%).
  • Device access: About mid‑80s percent of households have a computer, aligning with rural NC averages.
  • Connectivity pattern: Fixed broadband coverage and speeds are strongest in and near towns (e.g., Trenton/Maysville) and thin out in sparsely populated areas; mobile coverage is common and increasingly used to fill gaps.
• Insight: The county’s low density and dispersed housing correlate with slightly lower broadband subscription and higher mobile‑first behavior, which skews email usage toward adults 35–74 while remaining strong among working‑age residents.

Jones County, North Carolina: Mobile phone usage summary (latest available public data and modeled county-level estimates as of 2022–2023)

Context

• Rural county with a small, aging population base; limited fixed broadband outside town centers increases reliance on mobile networks for everyday connectivity.

User estimates

• Adult smartphone users: approximately 6,000–6,400 residents (about 83–90% of adults).
• Households with at least one smartphone: about 3,100–3,300 households (roughly 86–91% of households).
• Smartphone-only internet at home (no fixed broadband, relies on cellular data plans): about 850–1,050 households (approximately 24–29%).
• Households with no home internet subscription of any kind: about 520–680 households (approximately 15–19%).
• Directional trend since 2018: smartphone-only households up roughly 5–8 percentage points; fixed broadband adoption largely flat to slightly up, constrained by infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas.

Demographic breakdown (usage patterns)

• Age: A larger-than-average share of residents are 65+. This group has lower smartphone adoption and higher incidence of basic/voice-first plans, which pulls down countywide penetration compared with the 18–44 cohort. Younger households are the core of smartphone-only internet use for school/work streaming and hotspotting.
• Income: Lower household incomes correlate with higher smartphone-only dependence and lower fixed broadband take-up. Affordability programs (e.g., Lifeline; while the ACP ramped down in 2024) have been material in sustaining mobile access.
• Race/ethnicity: Black and Hispanic households in the county are more likely than White households to be smartphone-only for home internet. This mirrors statewide patterns but is more pronounced locally because fixed options are scarcer outside town centers.
• Geography: Households in dispersed, low-lying and timber/forest areas show higher mobile dependence due to limited cable/fiber availability and long copper loops that degrade DSL.

Digital infrastructure

• Cellular coverage: 4G LTE is broadly available along primary corridors and in towns (Trenton, Pollocksville, Maysville), with patchier indoor performance in low-lying floodplain and heavily wooded areas. 5G low-band coverage from national carriers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon) reaches the main corridors and town centers; mid-band 5G capacity remains limited outside those areas.
• Capacity/performance: Where only a few macro sites serve large rural sectors, peak-hour speeds can drop notably compared with statewide medians. Capacity is better near highways and towns; performance degrades across distance, vegetation, and during weather events.
• Fixed broadband interplay: Cable and fiber are present in and around town centers; many outlying areas rely on legacy DSL or fixed wireless ISPs. This uneven fixed footprint is the primary driver of higher smartphone-only dependency and mobile hotspot usage.
• Resilience: The county is hurricane- and flood-exposed. Power and backhaul disruptions periodically affect cell sites; carriers harden key sites, but localized outages can still push residents to multi-carrier device strategies.

How Jones County differs from the North Carolina statewide picture

• Higher smartphone-only reliance: Approximately 24–29% of households are smartphone-only versus roughly 18–20% statewide. This signals above-average dependence on mobile networks for home internet.
• More households with no home internet at all: Approximately 15–19% locally versus about 12–13% statewide, reflecting affordability and access constraints.
• Slightly lower overall household smartphone penetration: Roughly 86–91% locally versus about 90–92% statewide, driven by an older age profile and coverage/performance variability in outlying areas.
• Greater geographic disparity: The usage gap between town centers/corridors and remote areas is wider than the state average, amplifying the role of mobile connectivity as the fallback or primary service.
• Faster growth in mobile reliance: The increase in smartphone-only households since 2018 appears a few points faster than the statewide trend, indicating substitution where fixed broadband is unavailable or unaffordable.

Key implications

• Mobile networks are functioning as a primary broadband pathway for a sizable minority of households, not just a complement to fixed broadband.
• Investments that add mid-band 5G capacity and expand fiber/cable footprints would disproportionately reduce smartphone-only dependence and improve digital equity relative to the statewide average.
• Emergency preparedness and multi-carrier redundancy matter more here than in most NC counties due to weather and backhaul risks.

Notes on sources and method

• Figures synthesize the latest available American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year computer and internet use indicators (table S2801, 2018–2022), 2020 Census population/household baselines, FCC mobile coverage maps (2023/2024), and statewide trends. County-level point estimates are rounded; where ACS sample sizes are small, values are presented as ranges to reflect typical margins of error in rural counties. Statewide comparison figures reference ACS and published statewide summaries for the same period.

Jones County, NC social media snapshot (best-available estimates)

User base

• Population: ~9,200 (2020 Census). Adults (18+): ~7,200.
• Gender mix (adults): ~51% female, 49% male.
• Estimated adults using at least one social platform: ~70–75% (≈5,000–5,400).

Most-used platforms among adults (share of adults who use the platform; Pew U.S. adult rates applied locally)

• YouTube: ~83%
• Facebook: ~68%
• Instagram: ~47%
• Pinterest: ~35%
• TikTok: ~33%
• LinkedIn: ~30%
• Snapchat: ~30%
• WhatsApp: ~29%
• X (Twitter): ~27% Note: In rural counties like Jones, Facebook tends to index a few points higher and Instagram/TikTok a few points lower than national averages; YouTube remains the top reach platform across ages.

Age mix of the local social audience (estimated share of social media users)

• 18–29: ~18–20%
• 30–49: ~32–35%
• 50–64: ~26–28%
• 65+: ~18–22% Implication: The county’s older-leaning population tilts overall usage toward Facebook and YouTube; Instagram/TikTok concentration is strongest within 18–34.

Gender breakdown

• Overall social audience mirrors the county: ~51% female, 49% male.
• Platform skews: Facebook and Pinterest skew female; X (Twitter) and Reddit skew male; Instagram is near parity; TikTok slightly female-leaning; Snapchat female-leaning among younger users.

Behavioral trends in Jones County (rural NC pattern)

• Facebook-first community behavior: High engagement with local government pages, schools, churches, emergency updates, and buy/sell/trade groups. Events and fundraisers perform best via Facebook Groups and cross-posts to Pages.
• Video-led consumption: YouTube for DIY, farm/land equipment, home repair, hunting/fishing, church and school streams; short-form clips on Facebook Reels and TikTok drive awareness among younger residents.
• Messenger as a utility: Facebook Messenger and SMS dominate for inquiries to local businesses, appointment coordination, and classifieds follow-up.
• Time-of-day patterns: Peaks early morning (commute/school prep) and evening (post-work). Weekend spikes around local sports and church content.
• Lower X/Reddit footprint: Limited local conversation density; these platforms are better for statewide or niche interests than hyperlocal reach.
• Business use: Local SMBs rely on Facebook and Instagram for reach; boosted posts targeted within 15–25 miles outperform organic alone. UGC and before/after visuals outperform text-only updates.
• Trust signals: Content from recognizable local institutions (county, schools, first responders, churches) and neighbors drives the highest click-through and share rates.

Method and sources

• Population and age/gender base: U.S. Census Bureau (2020 Census/ACS).
• Platform percentages: Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in the U.S. (latest available). County-level platform splits are not published; figures above apply national adult usage rates to the Jones County adult population and reflect known rural skews.