Decatur County, Kansas Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Decatur County, Kansas, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Decatur County, Kansas. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Decatur County, Kansas. The estimated population of Decatur County, Kansas is 2,792 people, with a median age of 50.2.

We can look at the total population in Decatur County over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
2,792
-1.2% -3.42%
2020
2,826
-1.19% -
2019
2,860
-0.73% -
2018
2,881
-0.35% -
2017
2,891
- -

Population of Decatur County, Kansas by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
93.4%
94.7%
-1.37%
Black/African American
0.8%
0.2%
+300.00%
Native
0.8%
0.9%
-11.11%
Hispanic
3.3%
2.6%
+26.92%
Asian
0.3%
0.5%
-40.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
0.00%
Two Or More Races
1.4%
1.1%
+27.27%
Other
0%
0%
0.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Decatur County, Kansas by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 50.2 -0.79% 49.1 0% 52.2 -0.57%
2020 50.6 0% 49.1 -0.2% 52.5 +1.16%
2019 50.6 +2.22% 49.2 -1.99% 51.9 +6.35%
2018 49.5 -3.51% 50.2 -1.57% 48.8 -5.61%
2017 51.3 - 51 - 51.7 -

The median age of Decatur County, Kansas gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 196 -13.97% 146 +9.32% 169 160
10 to 19 88 +56.25% 153 -6.18% 144 139
20 to 29 147 -11.07% 148 -15.28% 131 126
30 to 39 142 +11.36% 94 +34.39% 155 124
40 to 49 130 -14.36% 157 -7.14% 111 132
50 to 59 277 -58.36% 224 -19.41% 146 166
60 to 69 174 +68.93% 215 +15.66% 326 250
70+ 290 -27.24% 310 -4.57% 218 295

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Decatur County, Kansas is $46,733.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Decatur County.

  • Under 25
    $52,750.00
  • 25 to 44
    $55,000.00
  • 45 to 64
    $53,571.00
  • 65 and over
    $45,128.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Decatur County, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Decatur County, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Decatur County, Kansas is currently $62,916.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

2.68% of households in Decatur County are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Decatur County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    23.70%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    29.45%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    19.10%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    10.58%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    10.58%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    3.91%
  • $200,000 or more
    2.68%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Decatur County is $32,177.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Decatur County by the total population of Decatur County.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Decatur County, Kansas, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Decatur County to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    3.30%
  • Bachelor's degree
    30.97%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    14.45%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    49.05%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.23%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Decatur County that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Decatur County over the age of 16 is 2,274.

Of those people, a total of 62.20% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Decatur County is 59.50%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 94 61.70% 19.00%
20 to 24 years 154 90.30% 0.00%
25 to 29 years 103 76.70% 34.20%
30 to 34 years 147 94.60% 0.70%
35 to 44 years 260 93.50% 8.20%
45 to 54 years 271 81.90% 0.50%
55 to 59 years 156 83.30% 0.00%
60 to 64 years 319 71.50% 0.40%
65 to 74 years 387 35.90% 0.00%
75 years and over 383 9.70% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Decatur County. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 2,195 63.10% 4.20%
Black or African American 22 45.50% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 22 0.00% 0.00%
Asian 9 55.60% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 0 0.00% 0.00%
Two or more races 26 57.70% 20.00%
Hispanic or Latino 44 79.50% 22.90%
Not Hispanic or Latino 2,161 62.80% 3.90%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Decatur County as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Decatur County is 1,353, with median earnings of $34,239.00.

Women in Decatur County, Kansas earning approximately 63.10% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 1,353 $34,239.00
Male 769 $44,191.00
Female 584 $27,900.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 199 $53,750.00
Business and Financial 16 $8,333.00
Computer and Mathematical 3 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 3 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 0 $0.00
Community and Social Service 9 $30,938.00
Legal 0 $0.00
Educational and Library 99 $48,125.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 78 $46,250.00
Healthcare Support 50 $31,591.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 35 $6,339.00
Law Enforcement 13 $33,594.00
Food Preparation and Serving 119 $5,855.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 39 $20,625.00
Personal Care and Service 30 $33,529.00
Sales 107 $21,750.00
Office and Administrative Support 144 $21,500.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 91 $32,500.00
Construction and Extraction 71 $57,557.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 50 $44,667.00
Production 45 $54,792.00
Transportation and Material Moving 118 $88,929.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 175 $51,964.00 24 $69,000.00
Business and Financial 10 $0.00 6 $0.00
Computer and Mathematical 3 $0.00 0 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 3 $0.00 0 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 0 $0.00 0 $0.00
Community and Social Service 3 $0.00 6 $0.00
Legal 0 $0.00 0 $0.00
Educational and Library 4 $0.00 95 $47,625.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 0 $0.00 4 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 15 $76,354.00 63 $44,350.00
Healthcare Support 2 $0.00 48 $31,477.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 35 $6,339.00 0 $0.00
Law Enforcement 8 $33,333.00 5 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 45 $5,592.00 74 $7,955.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 5 $0.00 34 $16,250.00
Personal Care and Service 8 $0.00 22 $0.00
Sales 37 $17,386.00 70 $26,250.00
Office and Administrative Support 44 $97,609.00 100 $19,250.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 85 $35,536.00 6 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 70 $57,614.00 1 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 50 $44,667.00 0 $0.00
Production 42 $62,500.00 3 $0.00
Transportation and Material Moving 118 $88,929.00 0 $0.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 1,304 households in Decatur County, with an average household size of 2.1 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 719 families in Decatur County with an average family size of 2.86 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 628 29 62 585
Average Household Size 2.91 2.76 3.42 1.07
Total Families 628 29 62 0
Average Household Size 2.84 2.66 3.18 0

Poverty

Of the 719 families in Decatur County, 9.70% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Decatur County:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 1,664 housing units in Decatur County, Kansas.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 1,304 78.37%
Vacant 360 21.63%

15.63% of the total 1,664 housing units in Decatur County are rental units. This is approximately 260 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 1,012 are occupied by the owner - or 60.82% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Decatur County is $706.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Decatur County that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    32
  • Less than $500
    106
  • $500 to $999
    115
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    39
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    0
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in Decatur County is $66,100.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Decatur County that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    357
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    376
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    89
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    95
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    75
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    19
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    1
  • $1,000,000 or more
    0

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Decatur County. The chart below shows the number of properties in Decatur County that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    581
  • 1940 to 1949
    175
  • 1950 to 1959
    231
  • 1960 to 1969
    199
  • 1970 to 1979
    174
  • 1980 to 1989
    157
  • 1990 to 1999
    52
  • 2000 to 2009
    77
  • 2010 to 2013
    18
  • 2014 or later
    0

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Decatur County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    44
  • 1 vehicle available
    401
  • 2 vehicles available
    430
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    429

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Decatur County get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Decatur County that commute to work in a particular way.

17.7 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Decatur County.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    317
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    287
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    94
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    41
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    118
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    25
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    114
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    22
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    51
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    28
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    22
  • 90 or more minutes
    26

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Decatur County, Kansas in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Places in Decatur County, Kansas

We have data for 27 places in Decatur County, Kansas. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.