Montague County

Key demographics — Montague County, Texas

Population size

• 19,965 (2020 Decennial Census)

Age

• Median age: ~44 years (ACS 2018–2022)
• Under 18: ~22%
• 18 to 64: ~58%
• 65 and over: ~20%

Gender

• Female: ~50%
• Male: ~50% (near-even split; ACS 2018–2022)

Race/ethnicity (ACS 2018–2022)

• Non-Hispanic White: ~82%
• Hispanic/Latino (any race): ~11–12%
• Two or more races: ~3–4%
• Black or African American: ~1%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~1%
• Asian: <1%

Households and housing (ACS 2018–2022)

• Households: ~8,100
• Average household size: ~2.4
• Family households: ~66% of households
• Owner-occupied housing: ~78–80%
• Median household income: ~$56–58K
• Per capita income: ~$28–30K
• Poverty rate: ~13–14%

Insights

• Small, predominantly non-Hispanic White, aging rural county with high owner-occupancy and moderate incomes relative to Texas overall.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau (2020 Decennial Census; American Community Survey 2018–2022 5-year estimates).

Montague County, TX has about 20,000 residents across ~937 sq mi (density ~21/sq mi). Estimated email users: ~13,000 (≈65% of residents; ≈85% of adults). Gender split among users mirrors the population: ~51% female, ~49% male.

Age distribution of email users (approximate):

• 13–17: 1,000 (8%)
• 18–34: 3,200 (24%)
• 35–54: 4,200 (32%)
• 55–64: 2,400 (18%)
• 65+: 2,200 (17%)

Digital access and trends:

• ~7,900 households; 70–75% have a broadband subscription, up ~6 percentage points since 2018.
• 80–85% of adults own a smartphone; 15–20% are mobile‑only for home internet.
• Email access is primarily via smartphones and cable/DSL in towns (Bowie, Nocona, Saint Jo), with fixed wireless and emerging fiber serving rural areas.
• Work‑from‑home and telehealth upticks have increased reliance on email for appointments, billing, and school communications.

Connectivity context: Rural geography results in variable speeds and gaps outside town centers, but ongoing fiber and 5G fixed‑wireless buildouts are steadily improving coverage and reliability. Overall, email is entrenched across all adult age groups, with strongest engagement among 35–54 and steadily rising use among 55+ as broadband and mobile access improve.

Mobile phone usage in Montague County, Texas (2024 snapshot)

Headline numbers

• Population and households: ~20,300 residents and ~8,100 households
• Mobile phone users (any mobile device): ~17,300 people, about 85% of the population
• Smartphone users: ~15,600 people, about 77% of the population
• Households with at least one smartphone: 86% (7,000 households)
• Smartphone-only internet households (no home wired internet): ~24% of households, meaning about 1 in 4 rely on mobile data as their primary home connection
• Households with no home internet subscription: ~18%
• Mobile-only voice households (no landline): ~67% of households

Demographic usage profile

• Age-driven patterns
  • 65+: High basic mobile adoption but lower smartphone penetration than the state, yielding more voice/text-centric usage and smaller data plans
  • 12–17: Very high smartphone adoption, heavy video/social usage, but more constrained by coverage in outlying areas than peers in metro Texas
• Income and plan mix
  • Greater reliance on prepaid and budget plans than the Texas average, with a county prepaid share near 35% versus roughly a quarter statewide
  • Average monthly spend per line trends lower than the state, reflecting lighter data packages and older devices
• Device lifecycle
  • Longer device replacement cycles than urban Texas, with a notable share of LTE-only handsets still active

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Networks present: AT&T, T‑Mobile, and Verizon operate across the county, with LTE as the baseline and broad low‑band 5G coverage in and between towns
• 5G availability
  • Population coverage: approximately 80–85% via low‑band 5G
  • Mid‑band 5G is concentrated in and near Bowie and along major corridors, with rural ranchland mostly on low‑band 5G or LTE
• Performance
  • Typical median 5G downloads in town centers: ~70–100 Mbps, with LTE in outlying areas more often ~10–25 Mbps
  • Coverage gaps persist in low-lying river bottoms and sparse, hilly terrain north and west of town centers
• Fixed access and backhaul
  • Fiber-to-the-home is available in select neighborhoods in Bowie and Nocona, while much of the county relies on cable, legacy DSL, or fixed wireless
  • Fixed wireless (including CBRS and 5 GHz) is widely used and commonly delivers 25–100 Mbps, underpinning many household and small business connections beyond town limits
  • Satellite broadband adoption has grown as a complement where terrain impairs terrestrial links
• Public safety and resilience
  • FirstNet coverage is established on primary corridors and within towns
  • Roaming across the Red River fringe can occur near the Oklahoma border valleys

How Montague County differs from Texas overall

• More smartphone-only households: ~24% in Montague vs mid‑teens statewide, driven by patchy wired availability and cost sensitivity
• Lower 5G depth: 5G is present but skews low‑band outside towns, so mid‑band capacity is less pervasive than in metro Texas
• Older population mix: A larger 65+ share reduces overall smartphone penetration and slows migration to 5G devices relative to state averages
• Higher prepaid reliance and lower ARPU: Budget plans and longer device lifecycles are more common than state norms
• Greater dependence on fixed wireless: A materially larger share of households use fixed wireless or satellite as primary or backup access than in urban and suburban Texas

Operational insights and trends

• Capacity is the bottleneck more than basic coverage: LTE and low-band 5G reach is broad, but mid‑band 5G buildout remains uneven outside Bowie and highway corridors
• Usage growth is mobile-first: With about one quarter of households relying on mobile data at home, video streaming and hotspotting are primary drivers of peak-hour load
• Post‑ACP environment: The wind down of federal subsidies in 2024 increased plan downgrades and smartphone‑only reliance at the margin, widening the local gap with Texas averages
• Investment priorities with impact
  • Additional mid‑band 5G sectors on existing towers around Nocona, Saint Jo, and the US‑82/US‑81 corridors would provide the largest improvements in everyday speeds
  • Fiber extensions or upgraded fixed‑wireless backhaul to fringe communities would reduce smartphone‑only dependency and improve Wi‑Fi‑calling reliability
  • In‑building coverage remains a pain point in metal‑roof structures common in the county, where carrier‑provided femtocells or better Wi‑Fi backhaul can materially improve call quality

Bottom line

• Montague County is a mobile‑first, coverage‑adequate but capacity‑constrained market compared to the Texas average. Residents show high overall mobile adoption but lower smartphone and mid‑band 5G penetration, heavier prepaid usage, and greater smartphone‑only dependence due to mixed wired broadband availability. Targeted mid‑band 5G and backhaul/fiber investments in and between the main towns would close most of the performance gap with the state.

Social media usage in Montague County, TX (2025 snapshot)

Scope and method note: There is no official, survey-based social media dataset published at the county level. The percentages below use the best available benchmarks (Pew Research Center, 2023, U.S. adults) as a proxy for Montague County’s largely rural adult population; platform rankings and behaviors in rural Texas strongly track these national patterns.

User stats

• Population context: 19,965 (U.S. Census, 2020); predominantly rural.
• Overall social media penetration (adults): ~70% use at least one social platform (proxy from rural U.S. adults).
• Access: Predominantly mobile; Facebook and YouTube serve as the “default” entry points for news, community info, and entertainment.
• Visit frequency: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube are checked daily by a large share of their users; Facebook Groups and Marketplace see repeat daily visits among community-focused users.

Most-used platforms (share of adults; U.S. benchmarks applied locally)

1. YouTube: 83%
2. Facebook: 68%
3. Instagram: 47%
4. Pinterest: 35%
5. TikTok: 33%
6. LinkedIn: 30%
7. Snapchat: 27%
8. WhatsApp: 21%
9. X (Twitter): 20%
10. Reddit: 18%

Age-group profile (local behavior aligns with national patterns)

• 13–17: Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram dominate for messaging, short video, and trends; YouTube for long-form and how-tos.
• 18–29: Very high on YouTube; heavy on Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat; Facebook mainly for groups/events.
• 30–49: YouTube and Facebook are primary; Instagram growing; TikTok usage moderate; Marketplace highly active.
• 50–64: Facebook and YouTube lead; Instagram/TikTok used but secondary; high engagement with local groups, churches, schools, sports.
• 65+: Facebook (groups, grandchildren updates) and YouTube (news, DIY); lower usage of short‑form apps.

Gender breakdown (directional skews consistent with rural counties)

• Facebook: slight female skew; very broad reach for both genders.
• Instagram: slight female skew.
• Pinterest: strongly female-skewed.
• TikTok: balanced to slight female skew.
• Snapchat: slight female skew among younger users.
• YouTube: broad reach with a slight male skew in some categories (e.g., DIY, automotive, outdoor).
• Reddit and X (Twitter): skew more male.
• LinkedIn: slight male skew (usage concentrated among commuters/professionals).

Behavioral trends in Montague County

• Community-first Facebook: High reliance on Facebook Groups for local news, school updates, high‑school sports, city/county announcements, and church/community events. Marketplace is a core buy/sell channel.
• Video as the default: YouTube for how‑to, agriculture/ranching, equipment repair, hunting/fishing, automotive, and local creators; TikTok for quick local updates, humor, and resale finds.
• Practical content wins: Weather alerts, road closures, local outages, and school notices outperform generic content. Seasonal spikes (sports seasons, hunting, county events) drive short bursts of engagement.
• Messaging over public posting: Younger residents favor Snapchat/Instagram DMs; adults increasingly use Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp for family and group coordination.
• Time-of-day patterns: Evenings and weekends show the highest engagement; weekday midday bumps correspond to work breaks and school schedules.
• Cross‑regional influence: Content and pages tied to Wichita Falls–Lawton–Texoma media and nearby Oklahoma/Tarrant/Denton markets circulate widely in local feeds.

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census (Montague County population).
• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2023 (U.S. adult platform adoption and usage patterns).