King And Queen County

Key demographics — King and Queen County, Virginia

Population size

• 6,608 residents (2020 Decennial Census)

Age

• Median age: ~46 years (ACS 2018–2022)
• Under 18: ~20%
• 18 to 64: ~60%
• 65 and over: ~20%

Gender

• Male: ~51%
• Female: ~49% (ACS 2018–2022)

Racial/ethnic composition (2020 Census)

• White (non-Hispanic): ~69–72%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic): ~21–22%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~3–4%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic): ~3–4%
• Asian, American Indian/Alaska Native, and other races: each <1%

Household data (ACS 2018–2022)

• Total households: ~2,650–2,700
• Average household size: ~2.4–2.5 persons
• Family households: ~69% of households; married-couple families ~50%+
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~80–84%
• Housing units: 3,200–3,300; rural density (20 per sq. mi.)

Insights

• Small, rural county with a relatively older age profile.
• Majority White with a sizable Black population and small but growing Hispanic presence.
• High owner-occupancy and predominantly family households with modest household sizes.

King and Queen County, VA — email usage snapshot (2025)

• Estimated email users (age 13+): 5,300 of ~6,800 residents (78%).
• By age (users):
  • 13–17: ~350 (85% adoption)
  • 18–34: ~1,300 (96%)
  • 35–54: ~1,730 (94%)
  • 55–64: ~860 (90%)
  • 65+: ~1,090 (80%)
• Gender split among users: 51% female (2,720) / 49% male (~2,580); usage rates are effectively parity.

Digital access and trends

• Households with any internet subscription: ~82%; fixed broadband (cable/DSL/fiber) ~67%; cellular-only ~12–15%; no subscription ~18%.
• Coverage: 100 Mbps+ fixed service available to roughly 70% of households; fiber availability ~25–35% but expanding via regional projects (e.g., Firefly/REC/APB and VATI-backed builds), narrowing gaps through 2025.
• Device access: smartphone is the primary internet device for ~1 in 7 households, reinforcing high email use via mobile.
• Rural density: ~21 people per square mile across ~315 sq mi; among Virginia’s least dense counties. Low density has historically constrained wireline buildouts, but recent middle‑mile and last‑mile investments are improving reliability and speeds.

Overall: Email is near-universal among working-age adults and strong among seniors, with growth tied to ongoing fiber and fixed‑wireless expansion.

King And Queen County, Virginia — mobile phone usage summary (2024, modeled from the 2020 Census baseline, ACS patterns for rural Virginia, Pew Research Center device-adoption rates, and CTIA mobile-subscription intensity)

Topline user estimates

• Population baseline: 6,608 residents; approximate households: 2,700.
• Estimated active cellular subscriptions: ~8,500 (about 129 connections per 100 residents, consistent with CTIA’s statewide/national intensity).
• People using a mobile phone (any type): ~5,350–5,550.
• Smartphone users: ~4,850 (age-weighted estimate; see demographic breakdown).
• Households relying on cellular data as their primary home internet: ~450 (≈17% of households, higher than Virginia’s average).
• Households with no home internet at all: ~275–300 (≈10–11%, above the statewide share).

Demographic breakdown (how local composition affects usage)

• Age structure drives the biggest deviation from Virginia overall.
  • The county is older than the state average (median age is several years higher; seniors comprise a larger share than Virginia overall). Using Pew’s 2023 smartphone adoption by age and a typical rural age mix for King And Queen:
    • 13–17: ~430 people; ~95% use smartphones → ~410 users
    • 18–29: ~790 people; ~97% → ~770
    • 30–49: ~1,520 people; ~95% → ~1,440
    • 50–64: ~1,590 people; ~83% → ~1,320
    • 65+: ~1,520 people; ~61% → ~930
    • Total smartphone users ≈ 4,850, implying adult smartphone penetration in the low-80% range, about 4–6 percentage points below Virginia’s adult average.
• Income and education
  • Household income and bachelor’s attainment are lower than the Virginia average, which correlates with higher “mobile-only” internet reliance. Modeled share of mobile-only households is ~17% in the county versus low-to-mid teens statewide.
• Race/ethnicity
  • The county has a somewhat higher share of Black residents than the state average and a small Hispanic population. Nationally and in Virginia, Black and Hispanic adults are more likely to be smartphone-dependent for internet access. This composition modestly increases the local rate of mobile-only households versus the state.

Digital infrastructure and coverage conditions

• Network presence: All three national carriers operate in and around the county (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile). FirstNet (AT&T) serves public safety users.
• 4G LTE: Consistent along primary corridors (US 360, VA 14/33, and around the courthouse area) and population centers; indoor signal quality drops in low-density stretches, heavily wooded tracts, and river-adjacent lowlands.
• 5G: Low-band 5G is present along main routes; mid-band 5G capacity is limited outside corridors and neighboring-town spillover. As a result, real-world 5G performance advantages over LTE are less pronounced than in metro Virginia.
• Capacity and backhaul: Rural macro sites with wider spacing serve large footprints; peak-hour congestion and microwave backhaul segments constrain throughput more often than in urban Virginia.
• Fixed wireless/home internet via cellular: Availability exists but is patchy; take-up is higher than statewide where wireline broadband options are limited or costly. This underpins the county’s above-average mobile-only household share.

How King And Queen County differs from Virginia overall

• Lower smartphone penetration: Countywide adult smartphone adoption is estimated to be 4–6 percentage points below the state average, primarily due to the older age profile.
• Higher mobile-only reliance: About 17% of households rely on cellular data at home versus a lower statewide share, reflecting sparser wireline broadband and income/education mix.
• Slower 5G uplift: 5G mid-band coverage and capacity are materially thinner than in metro areas, so the performance gap versus LTE is smaller locally than statewide averages suggest.
• More variable indoor coverage: Wider tower spacing and terrain/foliage produce more indoor dead spots than typical in urban/suburban Virginia, even where outdoor LTE/5G maps show coverage.
• Digital divide indicators: A higher share of households have no home internet compared with the Virginia average, increasing dependence on mobile data and public Wi‑Fi for essential services.

Method note

• Figures are 2024 modeled estimates using: 2020 Census population for King And Queen County; statewide/rural ACS patterns for household internet and device access; Pew Research Center (2023) age-specific smartphone adoption; and CTIA connections-per-capita intensity. Estimates are rounded for clarity and reflect local age and rurality, which are the principal drivers of divergence from Virginia’s state-level metrics.

Social media in King and Queen County, VA (2025 snapshot, modeled from Pew Research Center 2024 platform adoption and U.S. Census/ACS demographics for a rural Virginia county)

Overall usage (adults)

• Adults using at least one social platform: 72%
• Access context: predominantly mobile-first; rural broadband availability and an older age mix temper heavy multi-platform use compared with urban Virginia

User composition

• By age (share of each age group using social media):
  • 18–29: 94%
  • 30–49: 84%
  • 50–64: 73%
  • 65+: 49%
• Share of the county’s social media user base by age (approximate):
  • 18–29: 19%
  • 30–49: 31%
  • 50–64: 30%
  • 65+: 20%
• Gender split of users: 52% women, 48% men

Most-used platforms among adults (at least monthly)

• YouTube: 70%
• Facebook: 62%
• Instagram: 31%
• TikTok: 25%
• Pinterest: 26%
• Snapchat: 19%
• X (Twitter): 16%
• LinkedIn: 12%
• Reddit: 11%
• Nextdoor: 6%

Behavioral trends and local patterns

• Facebook is the community backbone: heavy reliance on Groups and Pages for school announcements, local government, churches, volunteer fire/EMS updates, weather, and events. Facebook Marketplace and local buy/sell/trade groups are highly active.
• Video is practical and local: YouTube is used for DIY, home/auto repair, hunting/fishing, farming equipment, and church streams; short-form video (Reels/TikTok) skews to under-40s for entertainment, trends, youth sports highlights.
• Older skew reduces platform fragmentation: users 50+ concentrate on Facebook and YouTube; younger adults diversify into Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat.
• Messaging matters: Facebook Messenger is often the call-to-action for local businesses and civic groups; WhatsApp adoption is modest and more niche.
• Content that performs: locally relevant news, photos of people/places, high school sports, church/community events, and promotions from nearby businesses. Straightforward offers with phone or message-based follow-up outperform web forms.
• Timing: engagement peaks evenings (7–10 pm) and weekends; mobile usage dominates.
• Trust and verification: residents give more credence to posts from known local sources (county offices, schools, churches, volunteer organizations) than to national pages; rumor control by admins/moderators in Facebook Groups is common.
• Platform skews by gender: women over-index on Facebook and Pinterest; men over-index on YouTube, Reddit, and X, consistent with national rural patterns.

Notes on methodology

• No comprehensive county-level social media survey exists; figures are best-available modeled estimates using Pew Research Center’s 2024 social platform adoption rates, rural vs. urban differentials, and King and Queen County’s age structure from recent ACS data. Percentages reflect share of all adults unless otherwise noted.