Preston County

Here are key, current demographics for Preston County, West Virginia (latest U.S. Census Bureau data: 2020 Census; American Community Survey 2018–2022 5-year estimates):

Population size

• 34,216 (2020 Census)

Age

• Median age: ~43 years (ACS 2018–2022)
• Under 18: ~20%
• 18–64: ~61%
• 65 and over: ~19%

Gender

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

Racial/ethnic composition (ACS 2018–2022)

• White alone: ~95%
• Black or African American alone: ~1%
• American Indian/Alaska Native alone: ~0.3%
• Asian alone: ~0.4–0.5%
• Two or more races: ~2–3%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~1.5–2%
• White alone, not Hispanic or Latino: ~94%

Household data (ACS 2018–2022)

• Total households: ~13,000
• Average household size: ~2.5 persons
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~80%

Insights

• Predominantly White, with small minority and Hispanic populations.
• Aging population profile (roughly one in five residents is 65+).
• High homeownership and modest household size typical of rural Appalachian counties.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census; American Community Survey (ACS) 2018–2022 5-year estimates. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding and because Hispanic origin is measured across all races.

Preston County, WV snapshot (population ≈34,216; land area ≈649 sq mi; density ≈52 people/sq mi)

Estimated email users: ≈25,000 residents (≈73% of the population), derived from local internet-access rates and nationally observed email adoption among internet users.

Age distribution of email users (approximate counts):

• 13–17: ~1.3k
• 18–29: ~5.5k
• 30–49: ~8.2k
• 50–64: ~6.0k
• 65+: ~4.0k

Gender split among email users: roughly even, reflecting the county’s near 50/50 population balance; usage differences by gender are minimal.

Digital access and trends:

• Households with a computer: ≈89%
• Households with an internet subscription (any): ≈80%
• Smartphone-only internet households: ~10–12% and gradually rising
• Fixed broadband availability at 100/20 Mbps: ≈85–90% of locations; subscription lags availability, especially in lower-density areas
• Email adoption is near-universal among connected adults; the main limiter is connectivity, not preference

Local density/connectivity notes:

• Rural dispersion (≈52 people/sq mi) and mountainous terrain create last‑mile gaps, elevating reliance on mobile data in some hollows
• Ongoing buildouts are improving reach, but affordability (post-ACP) and terrain remain the key constraints on universal email access

Summary of mobile phone usage in Preston County, West Virginia

Overall scale and users

• Population baseline: ~34,000 residents (2020 Census). Adults (18+): ~26,000–27,000.
• Adult smartphone users: approximately 22,000–24,000 adults (roughly 82–88% of adults), slightly above the typical rural-county rate and roughly on par with or a touch higher than the West Virginia average.
• Active mobile lines: roughly 40,000–45,000 total subscriptions in use by residents (reflecting national-level penetration above 100% of population due to multi-line users, IoT, and work phones).
• Wireless-only telephony: about 55–65% of adults live in wireless-only households (no landline), close to the state average but lower than the national average; younger and commuter households in the northwest of the county skew higher.

Demographic patterns

• Age:
  • 18–34: very high smartphone take-up (~95%+), heavy app-based messaging and streaming; above the state average due to proximity to the Morgantown job/education market.
  • 35–64: high ownership (~88–92%), with above-average use of navigation and productivity apps tied to commuting.
  • 65+: moderate-to-high ownership (~68–75%), similar to the state average; reliance on larger-screen devices and voice/text remains higher than in younger cohorts.
• Income and education:
  • Lower-income and rural-hollow households show higher rates of prepaid/MVNO plans and “cellular-data-only” home internet substitution.
  • Households closer to I-68 and the Monongalia border (Bruceton Mills, western/northwestern precincts) show higher 5G device penetration and multi-line family plans than the state average for rural counties.
• Work and commuting:
  • A notable share of residents commutes into Monongalia County (Morgantown), which correlates with higher weekday data use, persistent coverage expectations along US-219/WV-7/I-68 corridors, and above-average adoption of navigation and productivity apps compared with rural counties elsewhere in the state.

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• 4G LTE: effectively countywide along primary corridors and towns (Kingwood, Terra Alta, Reedsville, Masontown, Bruceton Mills), with signal degradation in valleys and forested hollows east and south of Kingwood and along the Cheat River basin.
• 5G:
  • Population coverage is moderate and concentrated along I-68, WV-7, and in/around larger communities; spillover from Morgantown’s 5G build yields better 5G availability in the northwest quadrant than is typical for rural WV counties.
  • Land-area coverage remains patchy; mid-band 5G is far less consistent in eastern and southern ridges and hollows.
• Carriers:
  • Verizon and AT&T provide the most consistent LTE footprint across terrain; AT&T also supports FirstNet for public safety, which is in active use across WV and present in the county.
  • T-Mobile offers competitive 5G capacity near the Monongalia line and I-68 corridor but has more gaps off-corridor than Verizon/AT&T.
  • MVNOs (Spectrum Mobile, Visible, Cricket, Metro, etc.) are widely used; prepaid share is higher than national average.
• Home internet substitution:
  • Cellular-data-only home internet is meaningfully higher than the WV statewide rate in the most rural precincts due to limited wired options; fixed wireless (including 5G home internet) is growing along the I-68/WV-7 corridors where mid-band 5G is available.

How Preston County differs from West Virginia overall

• Slightly younger and more commuter-oriented than the state average, driving:
  • Higher smartphone penetration among working-age adults.
  • More weekday mobile data usage tied to commuting into Morgantown and along I-68.
• More pronounced intracoounty divide:
  • Northwestern/western areas enjoy above-average 5G access for a rural county (thanks to spillover builds from Monongalia County).
  • Eastern/southern hollows have below-average 5G availability and rely more on LTE and, in places, voice/text fallback.
• Higher reliance on cellular for home connectivity in rural pockets than the statewide average, but better access to 5G-based fixed wireless along major corridors than most rural WV counties.
• Cross-border dynamics: proximity to Maryland and I-68 increases cross-network handoffs and roaming risk compared with interior WV counties, influencing plan selection (priority data and roaming terms matter more locally).

Key takeaways

• Estimated 22,000–24,000 adult smartphone users countywide, with overall mobile penetration around or slightly above the WV average due to commuter and corridor effects.
• 5G is accessible to a majority of the county’s population but remains corridor- and town-centric; LTE is the dependable baseline away from highways and ridgelines.
• Cellular plays an outsized role in home connectivity in the most rural parts of the county; fixed wireless is gaining ground where mid-band 5G is present.
• Compared with West Virginia overall, Preston County combines rural coverage challenges with a commuter-driven edge in device adoption and 5G use along the I-68/WV-7 spine.

Preston County, WV social media snapshot (2025)

Headline numbers

• Population: ≈34,200 (2023 ACS). Adults (18+): ≈27,000.
• Adults using at least one major social/media platform (incl. YouTube): ≈80% (~21,500 adults).

Most‑used platforms among adults (share of total adult population; modeled from Pew 2024 with rural adjustments)

• YouTube: ≈78%
• Facebook: ≈70%
• Instagram: ≈38%
• Pinterest: ≈34%
• TikTok: ≈27%
• Snapchat: ≈25%
• LinkedIn: ≈20%
• X (Twitter): ≈19%
• Reddit: ≈17%
• WhatsApp: ≈18%

Age profile of use (share within each age band using at least one platform)

• 18–29: ≈95%
• 30–49: ≈90%
• 50–64: ≈78%
• 65+: ≈58%

Gender breakdown (of county social platform users)

• Female: ≈54%
• Male: ≈46% Notes: Facebook and Pinterest skew female; Instagram slightly female; Reddit and YouTube skew male; TikTok modest female skew.

Behavioral trends in Preston County

• Facebook is the default public square: local news, school and sports updates, community groups, events, and Marketplace drive the most comments and shares, especially among 35+.
• Video first via YouTube: strong appetite for DIY, hunting/fishing, auto/small‑engine repair, home projects, and WV/outdoors content; growing smart‑TV viewing.
• Under‑30 communication revolves around Snapchat and Instagram Stories; TikTok dominates short‑form entertainment, with frequent cross‑posting to Facebook Reels to reach older audiences.
• Messaging patterns: Facebook Messenger is the primary channel for business inquiries; younger users prefer Instagram/Snapchat DMs; click‑to‑call remains common for 50+.
• Activity peaks: before work (6–8 a.m.), lunch (12–1 p.m.), and evenings (7–10 p.m.); weekend events and weather/school alerts trigger engagement spikes.
• Trust and community cues: posts featuring recognizable local people, high‑school sports, church and volunteer‑fundraiser content perform best; recommendations in local buy/sell groups carry outsized influence.
• Connectivity realities favor shorter videos and photo/text posts for mobile data users; live streams are most common for sports and public meetings when bandwidth allows.

Method and sources

• Population and age base: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 American Community Survey.
• Platform penetration: Pew Research Center, Social Media Use (2024). County percentages are modeled by applying Pew’s adult platform rates and rural/urban differentials to Preston County’s adult population; figures reflect best‑available estimates for 2025.