Harlan County, Nebraska Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Harlan County, Nebraska, 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 Harlan County, Nebraska. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Harlan County, Nebraska. The estimated population of Harlan County, Nebraska is 3,216 people, with a median age of 46.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
3,216
 -4.85% -7.29%
2020
3,380
 -1.02% -
2019
3,415
 -0.67% -
2018
3,438
 -0.89% -
2017
3,469
 - -

Population of Harlan County, Nebraska 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
94.4%
94.2%
 +0.21%
Black/African American
0.1%
0.9%
 -88.89%
Native
0.1%
0.3%
 -66.67%
Hispanic
2.6%
3.7%
 -29.73%
Asian
1%
0.3%
 +233.33%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
1.9%
0.5%
 +280.00%
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 Harlan County, Nebraska 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 46 -0.65% 45 -1.75% 47.8 +2.14%
2020 46.3 +2.21% 45.8 0% 46.8 +4.7%
2019 45.3 -5.43% 45.8 -4.78% 44.7 -6.49%
2018 47.9 -3.23% 48.1 -4.75% 47.8 -2.45%
2017 49.5 - 50.5 - 49 -

The median age of Harlan County, Nebraska 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 9 244 +19.16% 172 +4.01% 292 176
10 to 19 184 11.57% 213 +5.36% 180 219
20 to 29 140 0.57% 160 -5.77% 126 148
30 to 39 114 +31.82% 140 +16.23% 142 164
40 to 49 217 -35.93% 164 -26.24% 147 124
50 to 59 290 -26.69% 282 -31.53% 218 202
60 to 69 349 -26.31% 215 +7.09% 265 228
70+ 273 -3.08% 312 +5.29% 264 321

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Harlan County, Nebraska is $59,432.00.

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 Harlan County.

  • Under 25
    $38,500.00
  • 25 to 44
    $87,500.00
  • 45 to 64
    $64,722.00
  • 65 and over
    $35,921.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Harlan 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 Harlan County, Nebraska is currently $79,098.00.

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.

6.56% of households in Harlan 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 Harlan County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    21.07%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    20.82%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    18.77%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    11.31%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    16.15%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    5.33%
  • $200,000 or more
    6.56%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Harlan County is $32,259.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Harlan 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
    8.81%
  • Bachelor's degree
    32.53%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    12.48%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    42.36%
  • Less than high school diploma
    3.82%

Employment

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

The total population of Harlan County over the age of 16 is 2,507.

Of those people, a total of 62.70% 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 Harlan County is 61.30%.

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 158 88.00% 20.90%
20 to 24 years 123 87.00% 0.00%
25 to 29 years 151 98.70% 0.00%
30 to 34 years 110 83.60% 0.00%
35 to 44 years 325 87.40% 1.10%
45 to 54 years 336 83.00% 0.00%
55 to 59 years 226 70.40% 0.00%
60 to 64 years 294 71.10% 1.00%
65 to 74 years 395 30.10% 0.00%
75 years and over 389 8.70% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Harlan 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 2,410 62.70% 2.20%
Black or African American 2 0.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 3 100.00% 0.00%
Asian 32 18.80% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 23 82.60% 0.00%
Two or more races 37 83.80% 0.00%
Hispanic or Latino 60 73.30% 13.60%
Not Hispanic or Latino 2,392 62.80% 1.90%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Harlan 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 Harlan County is 1,537, with median earnings of $42,422.00.

Women in Harlan County, Nebraska earning approximately 68.70% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 1,537 $42,422.00
Male 843 $50,639.00
Female 694 $34,773.00

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 198 $52,589.00
Business and Financial 22 $46,667.00
Computer and Mathematical 1 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 7 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 38 $72,292.00
Community and Social Service 20 $31,042.00
Legal 6 $0.00
Educational and Library 108 $46,591.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 3 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 96 $59,821.00
Healthcare Support 53 $29,583.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 9 $0.00
Law Enforcement 7 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 69 $17,798.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 67 $5,104.00
Personal Care and Service 62 $28,750.00
Sales 173 $53,854.00
Office and Administrative Support 166 $31,607.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 54 $47,857.00
Construction and Extraction 84 $31,250.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 96 $50,938.00
Production 95 $44,792.00
Transportation and Material Moving 66 $42,500.00

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 122 $68,750.00 76 $43,250.00
Business and Financial 10 $43,750.00 12 $46,667.00
Computer and Mathematical 1 $0.00 0 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 3 $0.00 4 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 38 $72,292.00 0 $0.00
Community and Social Service 18 $30,833.00 2 $0.00
Legal 4 $0.00 2 $0.00
Educational and Library 11 $65,750.00 97 $46,402.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 3 $0.00 0 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 33 $82,750.00 63 $52,159.00
Healthcare Support 1 $0.00 52 $29,167.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 0 $0.00 9 $0.00
Law Enforcement 7 $0.00 0 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 42 $18,929.00 27 $15,673.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 16 $44,167.00 51 $3,917.00
Personal Care and Service 0 $0.00 62 $28,750.00
Sales 108 $98,750.00 65 $22,679.00
Office and Administrative Support 26 $68,333.00 140 $30,536.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 53 $48,036.00 1 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 84 $31,250.00 0 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 96 $50,938.00 0 $0.00
Production 78 $43,125.00 17 $50,375.00
Transportation and Material Moving 57 $41,250.00 9 $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 1,220 households in Harlan County, with an average household size of 2.6 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 756 families in Harlan County with an average family size of 3.47 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 662 41 53 464
Average Household Size 3.29 6.32 3.79 1.15
Total Families 662 41 53 0
Average Household Size 3.28 6.02 3.79 0

Poverty

Of the 756 families in Harlan County, 4.90% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Harlan 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 1,950 housing units in Harlan County, Nebraska.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 1,220 62.56%
Vacant 730 37.44%

8.15% of the total 1,950 housing units in Harlan County are rental units. This is approximately 159 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 1,006 are occupied by the owner - or 51.59% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Harlan County is $668.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Harlan 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
    55
  • Less than $500
    36
  • $500 to $999
    102
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    18
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    0
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    3

Property Value

The median value of a property in Harlan County is $118,400.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    215
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    218
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    218
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    95
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    151
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    78
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    31
  • $1,000,000 or more
    0

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    516
  • 1940 to 1949
    140
  • 1950 to 1959
    169
  • 1960 to 1969
    170
  • 1970 to 1979
    347
  • 1980 to 1989
    234
  • 1990 to 1999
    130
  • 2000 to 2009
    123
  • 2010 to 2013
    108
  • 2014 or later
    13

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 Harlan County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    25
  • 1 vehicle available
    246
  • 2 vehicles available
    508
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    441

Commuting to Work

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

22.5 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Harlan 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
    364
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    228
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    199
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    97
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    87
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    129
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    129
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    11
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    17
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    58
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    61
  • 90 or more minutes
    86

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Harlan County, Nebraska 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 Harlan County, Nebraska

We have data for 19 places in Harlan County, Nebraska. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.