Dallas County

Dallas County, Texas – key demographics (latest available)

Population size

• ~2.64 million (2023)

Age

• Median age: ~34.6 years
• Under 18: ~24.8%
• 18–64: ~64.0%
• 65 and over: ~11.2%

Gender

• Female: ~50.6%
• Male: ~49.4%

Race/ethnicity (mutually exclusive; Hispanic is of any race)

• Hispanic or Latino: ~41.5%
• White, non-Hispanic: ~28.4%
• Black or African American, non-Hispanic: ~22.4%
• Asian, non-Hispanic: ~5.6%
• Two or more races, non-Hispanic: ~1.6%
• Other non-Hispanic groups (AIAN, NHPI, some other race combined): ~0.5%

Households

• Total households: ~0.96 million
• Persons per household: ~2.74
• Family households: ~62% of households
• Nonfamily households: ~38%
• Households with children under 18: ~33%
• Average family size: ~3.39

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 American Community Survey 1-year (DP05, DP02) and 2023 Population Estimates Program. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

Dallas County, TX — email usage snapshot

• Estimated users: 1.8–1.9 million adult email users. Basis: ~2.0M adults in the county and ~90%+ U.S. adult email adoption (Pew Research).
• Age adoption (approx., U.S. benchmarks applied locally):
  • 18–29: ~98%
  • 30–49: ~97%
  • 50–64: ~93%
  • 65+: ~75–85%
• Gender split: Roughly even (county population is ~51% female, 49% male); email use shows minimal gender gap nationally.
• Digital access trends (ACS/Pew-style indicators applied to Dallas County):
  • Home broadband subscription: ~88–90% of households.
  • Households with a computer: ~93–95%.
  • Smartphone-only internet at home: ~12–16% of households.
  • Email remains the most universal online activity among adults; younger adults use it alongside messaging apps, older adults rely on it heavily.
• Local density/connectivity facts:
  • Population density 2,850 per sq mi (2.6M residents across ~909 sq mi).
  • Gigabit fiber (AT&T) and cable DOCSIS 3.1 (Spectrum) cover most urbanized areas.
  • DFW is a major U.S. interconnection/data-center hub (e.g., DE-CIX Dallas IX), supporting strong local network performance and redundancy.

Figures are estimates combining Dallas County demographics with national usage rates.

Below is a concise, county-focused view that blends the latest public datasets (ACS Computer & Internet Use, FCC maps), national mobile benchmarks (Pew, Ookla), and Dallas County demographics. Figures are rounded and, where necessary, presented as ranges to reflect data variability and to avoid overstating precision.

Headline user estimates (Dallas County)

• Total population: ~2.64 million; adults (18+): ~2.0 million.
• Smartphone users: roughly 1.9–2.1 million people (combining ~90–92% adult smartphone ownership typical of large metros plus very high teen adoption).
• Mobile phone users (any phone): ~2.1–2.3 million.
• Households with a smartphone: about 92–95% of ~1.0 million households.
• Smartphone-only internet households (cellular data plan but no fixed broadband): about 24–27% of households, higher than Texas overall.

Demographic patterns that shape mobile use

• Age: Younger profile than Texas average (more 18–49). Near-universal smartphone adoption among 18–49 drives higher per-capita device counts and data use. Seniors (65+) are a smaller share than statewide and more likely to own smartphones here than in rural Texas.
• Race/ethnicity: Dallas County’s higher shares of Hispanic/Latino (40%+) and Black (20%+) residents correlate with above-average “mobile-only” internet reliance compared with non-Hispanic White and statewide averages.
• Income: A larger low-to-moderate income segment than the state average contributes to:
  • Higher smartphone-only internet substitution (to avoid wireline costs).
  • Greater prepaid and value-plan uptake (Metro by T-Mobile, Cricket, etc.), compared with much of suburban and rural Texas.
• Language/household composition: More multilingual and larger households raise device counts per household and hotspot sharing; school-age users add to total device penetration.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• Coverage: 5G is effectively countywide across AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon; mid-band 5G (n41, C-band) is extensive, with dense small-cell deployment in central Dallas corridors (downtown/uptown/medical district), Love Field, American Airlines Center area, SMU area, Fair Park, and along major highways. Millimeter-wave nodes are concentrated in high-traffic zones/venues—rarer statewide outside major metros.
• Capacity and speeds: Dallas regularly posts higher median mobile and 5G speeds than the Texas median due to dense mid-band spectrum use and small cells; typical 5G medians are well into the 200+ Mbps range in core areas, versus materially lower statewide where rural low-band dominates.
• Fixed wireless access (FWA): Strong T-Mobile and Verizon 5G FWA adoption in Dallas County; it substitutes for cable/DSL in cost-sensitive areas and pushes the county’s “cellular-only” household share above the Texas average.
• Investment and priority market status: As a top-5 U.S. metro and AT&T’s home market, Dallas receives early rollouts (e.g., 5G SA features, NR-DC), denser spectrum utilization, and ongoing small-cell builds—much denser than most Texas counties.
• Public connectivity: Libraries, schools, and city facilities provide Wi‑Fi and hotspot programs that complement mobile access; these supports are more concentrated than the state average given urban density.

How Dallas County differs from Texas overall (the key trends)

• Higher smartphone-only household share: Dallas County’s ~24–27% materially exceeds the statewide rate (roughly low-20s), reflecting more cost substitution and strong 5G/FWA availability.
• Better 5G depth and speeds: Denser mid-band and small-cell deployments yield higher median speeds than the Texas aggregate, where rural coverage drags medians down.
• More diverse, younger user base: Leads to near-saturation smartphone adoption in working-age adults and teens, versus pockets of lower adoption in rural parts of Texas.
• Greater prepaid/value-plan penetration: Urban competition and demographics push a larger share of prepaid and discount plans than the statewide mix.
• Heavier mobile data usage per capita: More streaming, app-based services, and commuting/activity hubs (downtown, airports, venues) drive higher peak loads than most Texas counties.
• FWA as a viable home broadband option: Uptake is stronger than Texas overall, reinforcing mobile/cellular reliance patterns.

Method notes

• User counts derive from county population and household totals (ACS) combined with urban smartphone ownership norms (Pew) and device-access measures (ACS S2801). Smartphone-only household share reflects ACS cellular-only subscription plus carrier-reported FWA availability; ranges account for year-to-year ACS and speed-test variation.
• Infrastructure observations reflect FCC 5G coverage filings and crowd-sourced speed tests in the Dallas urban core; exact tower counts are fluid due to ongoing small-cell deployments.

Dallas County, TX — Social media snapshot (estimates for 2024–2025)

Headline user stats

• Population: ~2.64M (Dallas County). Adults 18+: ~1.95M.
• Estimated social media users
  • Adults (18+): ~1.55–1.65M (80–85% of adults).
  • Total 13+: ~1.7–1.9M users.

Age mix of users (share of all social users, 13+; est.)

• 13–17: ~9%
• 18–24: ~14%
• 25–34: ~22%
• 35–44: ~19%
• 45–54: ~15%
• 55–64: ~12%
• 65+: ~9%

Gender breakdown (users; est.)

• Female ~53%
• Male ~47% Note: Women skew higher on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest; men slightly higher on Reddit, X, YouTube. TikTok and Snapchat skew female but with strong teen/young-adult adoption for all genders.

Most-used platforms in Dallas County (adult reach; est.)

• YouTube: ~84%
• Facebook: ~68%
• Instagram: ~50%
• TikTok: ~38%
• LinkedIn: ~30%
• Pinterest: ~30%
• WhatsApp: ~30%
• Snapchat: ~28%
• X (Twitter): ~24%
• Reddit: ~20%
• Nextdoor: ~14%

Behavioral trends to know

• Video-first habits: Short-form video (Reels/TikTok/Shorts) drives discovery; YouTube for longer how-to, local food, and sports content.
• Bilingual engagement: Strong English–Spanish consumption and sharing, including WhatsApp groups; Spanish-language creators and outlets perform well.
• Community + marketplaces: Facebook Groups and Marketplace, plus Nextdoor for hyperlocal info, buy/sell, and service recommendations; high participation in neighborhood and school groups.
• Event-driven spikes: Big lifts around Cowboys/Mavs/Stars games, concerts, State Fair of Texas, and city festivals; real-time chatter on X/Reddit, highlights on Instagram/TikTok.
• Local news flows: Significant reliance on Instagram Stories, Facebook pages (local TV/newspapers), and Nextdoor for crime/safety and weather updates.
• Commerce and creators: Instagram Shops and FB Marketplace for local SMBs; creator collabs and UGC outperform traditional ads when geo-tagged (e.g., Deep Ellum, Bishop Arts, Oak Cliff, Uptown).
• Messaging/private sharing: Heavy use of Instagram DMs, Messenger, and WhatsApp for link-sharing and group coordination—expect dark social to account for a large share of referral.
• Timing: Evenings and weekends see highest engagement; weekday lunch and commute windows are solid for short-form video and Stories.
• Professional presence: Above-average LinkedIn usage tied to DFW’s corporate base; effective for recruiting and B2B thought leadership.
• Youth skew: Teens/young adults dominate TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram; they rely on TikTok search for food, events, and thrift/fashion finds.

Notes on method

• Figures are estimates derived from Pew Research Center’s latest U.S. platform adoption rates, adjusted for Dallas County’s younger, more diverse population mix, and Census population data. County-level platform shares are not directly published; treat as directional.