Fayette County

Key demographics — Fayette County, Ohio (latest available)

• Population

  • Total: about 28.9k (2020 Census count 28,951; 2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate ≈28.7k)

• Age

  • Median age: ~41 years
  • Under 18: ~22%
  • 18–64: ~59%
  • 65 and over: ~19%

• Sex

  • Female: ~50–51%
  • Male: ~49–50%

• Race/ethnicity (ACS, alone or in combination unless noted; Hispanic is any race)

  • White: ≈90%
  • Black or African American: ≈5%
  • Two or more races: ≈3–4%
  • Asian: ≈0.3%
  • American Indian/Alaska Native: ≈0.2–0.3%
  • Hispanic/Latino (any race): ≈1–2%

• Households

  • Total households: ≈11.3k
  • Average household size: ~2.5
  • Family households: ~65% of households (≈7.3k)
  • Households with children under 18: ~27–28%
  • Owner-occupied housing rate: ~65–70%

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

Fayette County, Ohio (pop. ~28–29k) — estimated email usage

• Estimated users: ~20–22k residents use email. Method: apply typical U.S./Ohio adoption to local age mix (roughly 85–90% of adults, plus most teens).
• Age distribution (est. adoption):
  • 18–34: ~90–95%
  • 35–54: ~90%
  • 55–64: ~80–85%
  • 65+: ~70–80% (rising yearly as smartphone use grows)
  • Teens (13–17): ~75–85% (school accounts, mobile-first)
• Gender split: Near even; women slightly outnumber men in the county, so female email users likely marginally higher, but usage rates are similar by gender.
• Digital access trends:
  • Most check email on smartphones; “mobile-only” internet households are common in rural Ohio.
  • Household broadband subscription likely around the low-to-mid 80% range, with gaps in outlying rural areas; towns see better fixed broadband options than farms.
  • Public Wi‑Fi (libraries, schools, municipal buildings) remains important for those without reliable home service.
  • Gradual build-out of fiber and improved mobile networks along major corridors; last‑mile coverage remains the constraint.
• Local density/connectivity context: Fayette is a low‑density, largely agricultural county (~70 people/sq. mi., well below the Ohio average), which raises per‑household costs for wired broadband and contributes to patchier rural connectivity.

Fayette County, OH mobile phone usage summary (2025, estimates)

Snapshot and user estimates

• Population: roughly 28–29k residents.
• Mobile phone users (any mobile, age 13+): about 22–24k.
• Smartphone users (age 13+): about 20–21k, equating to roughly 70–75% of the total population and about 86–88% of adults.
• Households that are mobile-only for internet (no fixed home broadband): roughly 22–28% in Fayette County, higher than Ohio’s statewide share (about mid‑teens to ~20%).

How Fayette County differs from Ohio statewide

• Slightly lower overall smartphone penetration driven by an older age profile and more rural households.
• Higher reliance on mobile service as the primary or only internet connection, reflecting patchier fixed broadband outside towns.
• Prepaid and MVNO usage share is notably higher than the state average; postpaid penetration is correspondingly lower.
• Greater town‑to‑rural performance gap: strong service in Washington Court House and along I‑71/US‑35, with weaker indoor coverage and lower speeds on low‑traffic rural roads.
• Median mobile speeds and 5G capacity are generally below statewide medians, particularly for uploads and indoor performance outside population centers.
• Weekend/retail traffic near the I‑71 outlets/Jeffersonville corridor produces visible congestion spikes compared with typical Ohio suburban corridors.

Demographic breakdown (usage tendencies)

• Age
  • 18–34: near‑universal smartphone adoption, in line with Ohio.
  • 35–64: high adoption but modestly below the state average.
  • 65+: materially lower adoption than Ohio’s senior average; this group pulls down the county’s overall rate.
• Income
  • Lower‑income households are more likely to be smartphone‑only for internet and to use prepaid or budget MVNO plans; this segment is larger in Fayette than in Ohio overall.
• Race/ethnicity
  • The county is predominantly White; smaller Black and Hispanic populations tend to show equal or higher smartphone reliance, but sample sizes are small locally. Countywide patterns mainly reflect rural/age/income factors rather than race.
• Education
  • A lower share of 4‑year degrees than the state average correlates with slightly lower smartphone adoption and higher mobile‑only internet reliance.

Digital infrastructure notes

• Coverage
  • 4G LTE is broadly available countywide.
  • 5G mid‑band capacity is concentrated in Washington Court House and along the I‑71/US‑35 corridors; many rural areas rely on low‑band 5G or fall back to LTE, impacting speeds and indoor coverage.
• Performance
  • Typical rural tower spacing and limited small‑cell density lead to lower median speeds and higher variability than Ohio’s statewide averages, with the largest gaps in lightly populated areas and inside structures.
• Carriers and plans
  • Verizon and AT&T tend to hold stronger rural signal consistency; T‑Mobile performs well on the interstates and in town but tails off faster off‑corridor.
  • MVNOs (e.g., Cricket, Metro, TracFone and other prepaid brands) have meaningful share, higher than the statewide mix.
• Home internet interplay
  • Cable broadband is available in town; fiber is expanding but spotty outside municipal limits.
  • In many rural pockets, fixed options are limited to WISPs or DSL; 4G/5G home internet fills gaps and reinforces the county’s higher mobile‑only household rate.

Method note

• Figures are synthesized from recent national and Ohio rural adoption benchmarks (e.g., Pew) applied to Fayette County’s population size and age/rural profile; they should be treated as planning‑level estimates rather than point measurements.

Here’s a concise, planning-ready snapshot. Note: precise, county-level social-media stats aren’t published; figures below use Fayette County’s size/demographics plus Pew Research Center’s 2024 U.S. platform usage (and rural-usage patterns) to produce practical local estimates.

User base (Fayette County, OH)

• Population baseline: ~28–29k residents; adults ~21–22k.
• Adult social-media users: roughly 75–80% of adults use at least one platform ⇒ ~16–18k adult users.
• Teens (13–17): small share of population; usage is very high nationally (90%+). Expect another ~1–2k teen users.
• Gender mix: roughly even, slightly more female; women tend to be more active on Facebook/Instagram/Pinterest; men more on YouTube/Reddit/X.

Most-used platforms (use these percentages as a guide; they’re U.S. adult rates from Pew 2024, with rural adjustment notes for Fayette)

• YouTube: ~83% of U.S. adults (similar or slightly higher locally; very broad reach across ages)
• Facebook: ~68% (often a few points higher in rural counties; likely the #1 daily platform locally)
• Instagram: ~47% (slightly lower locally, concentrated among under-45s)
• Pinterest: ~35% (often near average or a bit higher among women)
• TikTok: ~33% (somewhat lower locally; strongest under 35)
• LinkedIn: ~30% (typically lower in rural labor markets)
• Snapchat: ~27% (youth-heavy; strong among teens/20s)
• WhatsApp: ~26% (community- and family-specific use)
• X (Twitter): ~22% (likely lower locally)
• Reddit: ~22% (likely lower locally) Expected local ranking by reach: Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest ≈ TikTok, Snapchat, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, X/Reddit.

Age patterns (behavioral, based on national/rural splits)

• Teens/18–29: heavy on YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok; DM-first behavior; short-form video dominates.
• 30–49: dual-homers on Facebook + YouTube; Instagram and TikTok growing; use Marketplace and Groups.
• 50–64: Facebook is primary; YouTube for how-to/news; lighter on Instagram/TikTok.
• 65+: Facebook for family/church/community updates; YouTube for news/how-to; minimal elsewhere.

Gender tendencies

• Women: more active on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest; high engagement with local events, schools, boutiques, health/wellness.
• Men: higher on YouTube, Reddit, X; interest communities (autos, sports, outdoors, farming).

Local behavioral trends to expect (rural Ohio pattern)

• Facebook as the community hub: Groups for buy/sell/trade, school updates, churches, youth sports, local government and emergency notices; Marketplace is widely used.
• Local news via social: strong reliance on Facebook pages for county/city offices, schools, and local media; rumor correction threads are common during storms, outages, road closures.
• Event-driven spikes: county fair, high-school sports, festivals, elections, severe weather.
• Messaging first: Facebook Messenger and Snapchat for coordination; many businesses close deals via Messenger.
• Video shift: Reels/Shorts perform well; older users still watch Facebook-native video; YouTube used for longer “how-to” and local coverage.
• Commerce: Facebook remains the highest-ROI channel for local SMBs; Instagram effective for visual retail/food; TikTok works for youth-facing offers; LinkedIn niche (B2B hiring, not consumer reach).

Quick planning notes

• Primary reach: Facebook + YouTube.
• Growth channels under 45: Instagram + TikTok (short-form video, authentic/local angles).
• Best content: hyper-local updates, faces of the business, behind-the-scenes, offers tied to local events; post in early morning, lunch, and early evening.

Sources/assumptions

• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (U.S. adult platform adoption).
• Rural usage tends to skew higher on Facebook, lower on TikTok/X/Reddit vs national averages.
• Population base from recent Census estimates; local counts are derived estimates, not measured user totals.