Perquimans County

Perquimans County, North Carolina — key demographics

Population

• Total population: 13,005 (2020 Census); approximately 13.3k (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate)

Age

• Median age: ~48 years
• Under 18: ~18–19%
• 18–64: ~57–59%
• 65 and over: ~24–25%

Gender

• Female: ~51%
• Male: ~49%

Race and ethnicity (ACS; shares may not sum to 100% due to rounding)

• White, non-Hispanic: ~66–68%
• Black or African American, non-Hispanic: ~24–26%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~3–5%
• Two or more races, non-Hispanic: ~2%
• Asian, non-Hispanic: <1%
• American Indian/Alaska Native, non-Hispanic: <1%

Households and housing

• Total households: ~5,400–5,500
• Average household size: ~2.3–2.4
• Family households: ~63–65% of households
• Married-couple households: ~50% of households
• Households with children under 18: ~20–23%
• Living alone: ~30% of households; age 65+ living alone: ~15–16%
• Housing tenure: ~75–78% owner-occupied; ~22–25% renter-occupied

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

Perquimans County, NC (2020 pop. 13,005) is sparsely populated at about 53 people per square mile. Estimated adult email users: ~9,600.

Age distribution of email users (estimated):

• 18–29: ~1,550 (16%)
• 30–49: ~2,730 (28%)
• 50–64: ~2,360 (25%)
• 65+: ~2,960 (31%)

Gender split of email users (estimated): ~51% female, 49% male, mirroring the county’s population.

Digital access and usage:

• About 90% of households have a computer and roughly 79% maintain a broadband subscription, consistent with ACS patterns in similar rural NC counties.
• Fixed broadband coverage at 25/3 Mbps exceeds 95% of addresses; reliable 100/20 Mbps service is available to roughly 80%, with fiber concentrated around Hertford/Winfall and more gaps in outlying areas.
• Smartphone-only internet households are near 10%, indicating a notable mobile-dependent segment that still uses email but with higher friction.
• The Affordable Connectivity Program’s 2024 wind-down likely reduced affordability-driven subscriptions, particularly in low-density areas.

Insights: Email is near-universal among connected adults, including seniors, but usage intensity and multi-account management are lower in 65+. Low population density and water/low-lying terrain raise per-mile infrastructure costs, reinforcing pockets of slower service and shaping email access patterns across the county.

Mobile phone usage in Perquimans County, NC — 2025 snapshot

Baseline population and households

• Population: 13,005 (2020 Census). Households: approximately 5,600 (ACS 2018–2022).
• Age structure skews older than North Carolina overall; residents 65+ are roughly a quarter of the county. Racial/ethnic mix is majority White with a sizable Black population and a small Hispanic population.

User estimates (phones and smartphones)

• Total mobile phone users (any mobile phone): about 11,600 residents (≈89% of the population).
• Smartphone users: about 9,700 residents (≈74% of the population; ≈83–87% of adult mobile users).
• Feature/basic phone users: about 1,900 residents, concentrated among older adults and lower-income households.
• Method notes: Estimates combine county population and age mix (Census/ACS) with observed U.S. adoption by age cohort in rural areas (Pew and industry data through 2023). The county’s older profile pulls smartphone adoption below the statewide average.

Demographic breakdown of mobile users

• By age:
  • 18–34: high smartphone penetration (≈93–96% of mobile users in this group).
  • 35–64: strong smartphone penetration (≈88–92%).
  • 65+: lower smartphone penetration (≈58–65%), with the remainder using basic phones or tablets plus hotspot plans.
• By race/ethnicity:
  • Usage rates are high across groups, but smartphone dependence for home internet is more pronounced among Black and Hispanic households where fixed broadband options are thinner or less affordable.
• Income and plan type:
  • Prepaid/MVNO share is materially higher than state average, driven by price sensitivity and smaller family-plan bundles; roughly 28–34% of lines are prepaid locally versus low-20s statewide.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Networks and coverage:
  • 4G LTE: countywide outdoor coverage from national carriers is effectively ubiquitous along primary roads and in towns (Hertford, Winfall), with small dead zones near riverbanks, wetlands, and heavily wooded tracts.
  • 5G low‑band (coverage layer): broadly available along US‑17 and in population centers from AT&T, Verizon, and T‑Mobile; patchier inland.
  • 5G mid‑band (capacity layer): materially limited versus state urban counties; best along US‑17 and near Hertford/Winfall, led by T‑Mobile’s 2.5 GHz footprint. Verizon/AT&T C‑band/3.45 GHz presence is spotty; most interior areas fall back to LTE or low‑band 5G.
• Capacity and performance:
  • Median speeds trail state urban averages because mid‑band 5G is not yet pervasive and sectors carry mixed home‑internet traffic. Indoor performance can lag in metal‑roof homes and at the water’s edge.
• Redundancy:
  • Single‑carrier “best” pockets exist; cross‑carrier parity is weaker than in metros. Residents often choose carriers based on their road corridor or neighborhood rather than price alone.
• Fixed broadband interplay:
  • Cable/fiber are concentrated in and near towns; many outlying addresses lack cable or fiber drops. As a result, cellular data plans and fixed‑wireless 5G home internet fill access gaps. Cellular‑only home internet use is meaningfully higher than the state average.
• Emergency communications:
  • Wireless Emergency Alerts are supported; riverine and low‑elevation pockets can experience weaker indoor reception without boosters.

How Perquimans differs from North Carolina overall

• Lower smartphone and 5G device penetration: the county’s older age profile and rural geography trim smartphone share a few points below the statewide figure and slow 5G upgrade cycles.
• Higher reliance on mobile for home connectivity: a larger slice of households use cellular data as their primary or only internet connection compared with the statewide rate, reflecting thinner cable/fiber availability outside town limits.
• Capacity‑not‑coverage constraint: outdoor LTE/5G coverage is broadly present, but mid‑band 5G capacity is limited away from US‑17, producing lower median speeds and more variability than in metro counties.
• Greater prepaid/MVNO footprint: prepaid share is several points higher than the state average, aligning with income mix and smaller multi‑line family plan adoption.
• More pronounced location‑specific carrier differences: performance diverges by micro‑area (waterfronts, timber stands, and farm roads), so carrier choice matters more than in urban counties where networks are denser and more uniform.

Key takeaways

• Roughly 11.6k residents use mobile phones, with about 9.7k on smartphones; smartphone adoption is robust but tempered by an older population.
• Mobile networks cover the county well for voice, messaging, and basic data, but true high‑capacity 5G is concentrated along major corridors.
• The county leans more heavily on cellular data for home access than North Carolina overall, and prepaid plans account for a larger share of lines, reflecting rural infrastructure and affordability dynamics.

Perquimans County, NC — social media snapshot

Context and scope

• County population: 13,005 (U.S. Census, 2020). Platform-by-county statistics are not directly published; platform percentages below use the latest U.S. adult adoption rates (Pew Research Center, 2024) as the best proxy for local usage in this rural county.

User stats (adults)

• Share of adults using at least one social platform (U.S. benchmark): ~72%
• Smartphone ownership (U.S. benchmark): ~88% of adults
• Practical takeaway: The vast majority of Perquimans adults are reachable on at least one major platform, with Facebook and YouTube providing the broadest local reach.

Most-used platforms (U.S. adult adoption; reliable proxy for local ranking)

• YouTube: 83%
• Facebook: 68%
• Instagram: 47%
• Pinterest: 35%
• TikTok: 33%
• Snapchat: 30%
• LinkedIn: 30%
• WhatsApp: 29%
• X (Twitter): 22%
• Reddit: 22%
• Nextdoor: 19%

Age-group patterns in Perquimans (behavioral focus, aligned with rural U.S. trends)

• Teens and 18–29: Heavy on Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube; local sports, school life, music, and creator-led trends drive engagement; DMs and Stories are primary touchpoints.
• 30–49: Multi-platform; Facebook and YouTube for news, events, and how-to video; Instagram for lifestyle and local businesses; TikTok rising for short-form entertainment and product discovery.
• 50–64: Facebook is the default hub for community updates, churches, schools, and Marketplace; YouTube for how-to, DIY, and local government meetings; Pinterest for recipes, home, and crafts.
• 65+: Facebook for community groups and announcements; YouTube for news clips and tutorials; limited but growing use of Nextdoor in neighborhoods that have adopted it.

Gender breakdown (national skews that typically mirror local)

• More female participation: Facebook (slight), Instagram (slight), Snapchat, Pinterest (strong female skew).
• More male participation: Reddit (strong), X (Twitter) (moderate), LinkedIn (slight), YouTube (slight).
• Largely balanced: TikTok overall, with women slightly more active in posting/engagement in many communities.

Local behavioral trends

• Facebook Groups are the county’s information backbone: school athletics, church bulletins, civic clubs, volunteer fire/EMS updates, yard sales, and lost-and-found.
• Facebook Marketplace is the dominant local classifieds channel; high engagement on vehicles, tools, home goods, and farm/garden items.
• County/town pages and local media rely on Facebook for emergency/weather updates, service changes, and event promotion; posts with plain-language headlines and a single image outperform link-only posts.
• YouTube usage centers on how-to, hunting/fishing/boating, home projects, small-engine repair, and recorded public meetings; short clips and chaptered videos boost completion.
• Instagram is the primary discovery platform for restaurants, boutiques, realtors, and service providers; Reels outperform static posts; cross-posting to Facebook is common and effective.
• TikTok is growing for short-form “what’s happening this weekend,” local eats, and behind-the-scenes content from small businesses; authenticity and faces-on-camera outperform polished ads.
• Word-of-mouth travels via DMs: Messenger, Instagram DMs, and Snapchat are key for private referrals and coordinating meetups.
• Trust is anchored to familiar entities: posts from known community figures, schools, churches, and first responders get faster uptake; rumor control requires quick, clear updates on official pages.
• Best posting windows skew to early evening and weekend mornings when local audiences check feeds around family schedules and events.

Sources

• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (U.S. adult adoption rates by platform)
• U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (Perquimans County population)