Terry County

Key demographics – Terry County, Texas

Population

• Total population (2023 estimate, U.S. Census Bureau PEP): ~11.9k

Age (ACS 2019–2023 5-year)

• Median age: ~34 years
• Under 18: ~29%
• 18–64: ~57%
• 65 and over: ~14%

Sex (ACS 2019–2023)

• Female: ~49%
• Male: ~51%

Race and ethnicity (ACS 2019–2023; Hispanic is of any race)

• Hispanic or Latino: ~63%
• White, non-Hispanic: ~29%
• Black or African American: ~3%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~1%
• Asian: ~0–1%
• Two or more races/other: ~3–4%

Households and housing (ACS 2019–2023)

• Households: ~4.1k
• Average household size: ~2.9
• Family households: ~70% of households
• Owner-occupied housing: ~65–70%
• Housing units: ~4.6–4.8k

Insights

• Hispanic-majority, with a relatively young median age.
• Household sizes are larger than the U.S. average, and homeownership is typical of rural Texas counties.

Terry County, TX email usage (estimates based on latest ACS/Census and Pew adoption rates)

• Population and density: 12,600 residents over ~889 sq mi (14 people/sq mi), indicating sparse, rural connectivity conditions.
• Estimated email users: ~8,400 adults (18+) use email regularly.
• Age distribution of email users (share of adult users):
  • 18–34: ~33%
  • 35–54: ~35%
  • 55–64: ~15%
  • 65+: ~16%
• Gender split: Near-even; email adoption is similar by gender, so users are ~50% female and ~50% male, mirroring the adult population.
• Digital access and devices:
  • Households with a broadband subscription: ~80%
  • Households with a computer or smartphone: ~92%
  • Mobile-only internet households: ~16% (indicative of smartphone-first behavior)
  • Households with no home internet: ~18–20%
• Trends and local connectivity facts:
  • Fixed broadband availability is patchy outside Brownfield and other towns; many rural addresses rely on fixed wireless or satellite.
  • Broadband subscription and speeds have risen since 2019, but coverage gaps persist because of low density and long loop distances.
  • Email use remains a default communication tool across all working-age groups, with slower uptake among 65+ primarily tied to access and device gaps.

Summary of mobile phone usage in Terry County, Texas (latest available data, circa 2023–2024)

Scale and user estimates

• Population: approximately 12,300 residents; about 4,200 households.
• Estimated unique mobile phone users: roughly 9,300–9,700 residents (about 76–79% of the total population), driven by high adult penetration and near-universal teen adoption.
• Estimated smartphone users: about 8,600–9,000 residents, reflecting high smartphone uptake among adults and teens.

Household device and internet profile (ACS-based county estimates)

• Households with a smartphone: about 88–92% (Texas: ~93–95%).
• Households with any internet subscription: about 77–80% (Texas: ~88–90%).
• Fixed broadband (cable, fiber, or DSL) subscription: about 55–60% of households (Texas: ~75–80%).
• Cellular data plan in the household: about 68–72% (Texas: ~70–75%).
• Smartphone-/cellular-only internet households (cellular data but no fixed broadband): about 24–28% (Texas: ~15–18%).
• Households with no internet at home: about 20–23% (Texas: ~10–12%).

Demographic context and usage implications

• Age: a relatively young profile by share of children and working-age adults (roughly 29% under 18; ~13% 65+). Youth-heavy segments drive high smartphone and messaging/social media intensity; older adults contribute to a larger-than-average “no internet at home” segment.
• Race/ethnicity: majority Hispanic/Latino (roughly 60%+), non-Hispanic White roughly one-third, with small Black and other groups. Bilingual usage and value sensitivity favor Android and prepaid plans more than the state urban average; smartphone-only connectivity is correspondingly higher.
• Income and affordability: median household income materially below the Texas median and a higher poverty rate (roughly low $50Ks and low-20% respectively). Affordability shapes plan selection (prepaid, MVNOs), heavier reliance on Lifeline/ACP replacements, and cellular-only home internet.

Mobile network and digital infrastructure

• Coverage and technologies: countywide reliance on low-band LTE/5G for reach; mid-band 5G capacity (C-band/2.5 GHz) is limited outside Brownfield and highway corridors (US‑62/82, SH‑137/214). mmWave is not a factor. Service quality drops in agricultural areas away from highways.
• Performance: typical rural low-band 5G download speeds ~40–120 Mbps in/near Brownfield, falling to LTE‑like 10–40 Mbps in outlying zones; uplink commonly 3–15 Mbps. This is substantially below Texas urban medians.
• Site density and backhaul: sparse macro-site grid with fiber backbones hugging main roads; microwave backhaul remains present on outlying sites, constraining capacity during peak hours.
• Fixed broadband footprint: fixed cable/fiber is concentrated in Brownfield; large portions of the county remain unserved or underserved on the FCC Broadband Data Collection map. Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) from national carriers now covers most addresses in and around town and is expanding along arterials; uptake is growing as a substitute for legacy DSL.
• Emergency and farm/ranch coverage: roaming and low-band 5G/LTE provide basic voice/SMS reliability, but data throughput and in-building coverage can be inconsistent in metal-roofed structures and field operations without external antennas.

How Terry County differs from Texas overall

• Higher smartphone-/cellular-only reliance: roughly a quarter of households depend on cellular data without a fixed line, well above the statewide share. This shifts more activity to mobile networks (hotspotting, video, social, messaging) and increases sensitivity to congestion.
• Lower fixed broadband adoption: fixed subscriptions trail the state by 15–20 percentage points, concentrating digital access on mobile plans and FWA.
• More coverage variability: service quality is strongly location-dependent (town vs. fields), unlike metro Texas where mid-band 5G is widespread.
• Affordability-driven usage: lower incomes and higher poverty translate to more prepaid, MVNO, and shared/family plans, with careful data management and device longevity exceeding the state urban norm.

Practical implications

• Network planning: capacity upgrades on low-band and selective mid-band infill near Brownfield and along US‑62/82 would produce outsized benefits; external antennas/boosters materially improve edge coverage for farms and oilfield operations.
• Public services and education: mobile-first service delivery (bilingual portals, low-data apps, SMS workflows) performs better than fixed-only approaches; programs that offset device/plan costs meaningfully lift adoption.
• Business and outreach: SMS/WhatsApp, Spanish-language support, and lightweight mobile web outperform desktop-heavy or Wi‑Fi‑dependent tactics; evening/weekend peaks should guide content and campaign timing.

Terry County, TX — Social media usage snapshot (2025)

Scope and method

• County-specific social media figures are not directly published. The percentages below reflect the best available benchmarks for rural U.S./Texas users (Pew Research Center 2023–2024) and align with observed behavior in South Plains counties of similar size and demographics. Use them as realistic planning figures for Terry County.

Most-used platforms (adults; estimated share)

• YouTube: 80–85%
• Facebook: 65–72%
• Instagram: 35–45%
• TikTok: 30–36%
• Snapchat: 24–30%
• Pinterest: 30–36% (skews female)
• WhatsApp: 20–28% (higher among Hispanic households)
• X (Twitter): 15–20%
• Reddit: 12–18%
• Nextdoor: 2–6% (limited rural penetration; Facebook Groups fill the “neighborhood” role)

User stats

• Adults using at least one social platform: ~80–85%
• Daily social media users (any platform): ~65–70%
• Teen usage (national benchmark, commonly mirrored in rural TX): YouTube 90%+, TikTok ~60%+, Instagram/Snapchat ~60% each; Facebook low among teens

Age-group patterns

• 13–17: Heavy daily use; YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram dominate; school sports and trends drive engagement
• 18–29: Nearly universal YouTube; Instagram/TikTok 60–70%; Snapchat common; Facebook for family/events
• 30–49: Facebook 70–80% and YouTube 80%+; Instagram ~45–55%; TikTok ~30–40%; strong use of Groups and Marketplace
• 50–64: Facebook ~60–70%; YouTube ~60–70%; Instagram ~25–35%; TikTok ~20–30%
• 65+: Facebook ~45–55%; YouTube ~40–50%; other platforms lower but growing slowly

Gender breakdown (directional)

• Women: Over-index on Facebook (especially Groups/Marketplace), Instagram, Pinterest; active in school, church, and community groups; strong role in household purchase decisions
• Men: Over-index on YouTube, X, Reddit; engaged with ag, trades, sports, auto/outdoors content; frequent how-to/video consumption

Behavioral trends in Terry County–like markets

• Facebook as community hub: City/county pages, school districts, churches, youth sports, local businesses, buy/sell and swap groups
• Local commerce: Facebook Marketplace and local ag/classifieds groups drive peer-to-peer sales and service discovery
• Video-first habits: Short vertical video (Reels/TikTok) for discovery; YouTube for how-to, farm/ranch, repair, and product research
• Messaging: Facebook Messenger is ubiquitous; WhatsApp notable in Spanish-speaking households and extended-family networks
• News/alerts: Local outlets (Lubbock DMA), weather/emergency updates, school closings, and high school sports
• Engagement timing: Evenings (7–10 p.m. CT) and weekends lead; secondary midday (12–1 p.m.) spike; event-driven surges during football/harvest seasons
• Trust dynamics: Posts from recognizable local people/organizations outperform generic brand posts; word-of-mouth via Groups is a key amplifier
• Ad responsiveness: Best performance from time-bound offers, local sponsorships (school sports/FFA/church events), and clear value messaging; creative should be mobile-first, captioned, and 15–30 seconds

Notes

• Figures are based on Pew Research Center Social Media Use (2024), Pew Teens and Tech (2023), and rural Texas usage patterns; they provide a reliable planning baseline for Terry County’s rural, majority-mobile audience.