County_statistics_of_the_United_States

County statistics of the United States

County statistics of the United States

Add article description

In 45 of the 50 states of the United States, the county is used for the level of local government immediately below the state itself. Louisiana uses parishes, and Alaska uses boroughs. In Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, some or all counties within states have no governments of their own; the counties continue to exist as legal entities, however, and are used by states for some administrative functions and by the United States Census bureau for statistical analysis. There are 3,242 counties and county equivalent administrative units in total, including the District of Columbia and 100 county-equivalents in the U.S. territories.

There are 41 independent cities in the United States. In Virginia, any municipality that is incorporated as a city legally becomes independent of any county. Where indicated, the statistics below do not include Virginia's 38 independent cities.

In Alaska, most of the land area of the state has no county-level government. Those parts of the state are divided by the United States Census Bureau into census areas, which are not the same as boroughs. The state's largest statistical division by area is the Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, which is larger than any of the state's boroughs. Although Anchorage is called a municipality, it is considered a consolidated city and borough.

There are 100 county-equivalents in the territories of the United States: they are the 3 districts and 2 atolls of American Samoa, all of Guam (Guam as one single county-equivalent), the 4 municipalities in the Northern Mariana Islands, the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico, the 3 main islands of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the 9 islands in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.[1][2][3] All of these territorial county-equivalents are defined by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Count

This is the number of counties and county-equivalents for each state, the District of Columbia, the 5 inhabited territories of the United States, and the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.

Texas has 254 counties, the most of any state
Delaware has three counties, the fewest of any state

Lists of counties and county equivalents by number per political division:

More information Count, State, federal district or territory ...
  • Total (50 states and District of Columbia): 3,143 (3,007 counties and 136 county equivalents)
  • Total (50 states, District of Columbia and territories): 3,243 (3,007 counties and 236 county equivalents)
  • Average number of counties per state (not including D.C. and the territories): 62.84[note 1]
  • Average number of counties per state (including D.C. and the territories): 56.8947368421[note 2]

Population

Nationwide population extremes

Main article: List of United States counties and county equivalents

These rankings include county equivalents.

More information Rank, Population ...

The following is a list of the least populous counties and county-equivalents in all U.S. territory. Note that the only entity on this list with a permanent human population is Swains Island, American Samoa. The first 8 counties (county-equivalents) are uninhabited, while the 10th on the list (Palmyra Atoll) has a small non-permanent human population whose maximum capacity is 20 people.[6]

More information Rank, Population ...


Population per state or territory

See also: List of the most populous counties by U.S. state
More information State, federal district or territory, Least populous ...

Area

Nationwide land area extremes

See also: List of the largest counties in the United States by area

The largest counties and county-equivalents are organized boroughs and the census areas of Alaska with the top two being Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area (145,504.79 sq mi or 376,855.7 km2) and North Slope Borough (88,695.41 sq mi or 229,720.1 km2). The smallest counties and county equivalents (in the 50 states) are the independent cities of Virginia with the extreme being Falls Church at 2.05 sq mi (5.3 km2; 1,310 acres).[8] If the U.S. territories are included, the smallest county-equivalent is Kingman Reef, with a land area of 0.012 square miles (3.1 ha; 7.7 acres).[9]

The following two tables exclude county-equivalents:

More information Rank, Land area (sq mi) ...
More information Rank, Land area (sq mi) ...

The following two tables include county-equivalents: [note 8]

More information Rank, Land area (sq mi) ...
More information Rank, Land area (sq mi) ...


Smallest, largest, and average area per state and territory

See also: List of U.S. states by area

The following is a list of counties and county-equivalents showing the average size of each state/territory's counties, the smallest county (or equivalent) in each state/territory, and the largest county (or equivalent) in each state/territory. States/territories on the list are arranged by the average land area of their counties. Though not on the list, the North Slope Borough is the largest independently incorporated county equivalent. The Unorganized Borough is substantially larger, but is an extension of the State of Alaska government and not independently incorporated.[A]

Also note that the smallest land area with county-level governance in the U.S. is Falls Church, Virginia, but it is an independent city and not a county or part of one. Kingman Reef is the smallest county-equivalent in all U.S. territory (though it has no government). Kalawao County, Hawaii is the smallest true county by land area.

More information State federal district or territory, Avg. county land area, sq. mi. (km2) ...

Population density

New York County, New York (Manhattan), the most densely populated county in the United States. At the top and top-left (beyond the East River) is Kings County (Brooklyn), the second-most densely populated county in the United States.

Most densely populated

See also: List of United States cities by population density

Data presented below is based on U.S. Census department data from 2010.[10] Calculations are made by dividing the population by the land area. All county equivalents are included. This list includes the 50 most densely-populated counties and county-equivalents in the 50 states and District of Columbia, plus the 9 highest-density municipalities (county-equivalents) of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is the only U.S. territory with population densities (of county-equivalents) high enough to be on this list. Note that many of these high-density counties are coterminous with large cities (for example San Francisco and Philadelphia) or are independent cities in Virginia (as well as Baltimore and St. Louis) which are considered county-equivalents.

More information Rank, Pop/sq mi ...

Least densely populated

Baker Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands — one of the 8 county-equivalents with zero people

This list was generated by dividing the population by the land area. All county equivalents are included. The list is dominated by just a few states: Alaska, Montana, and Texas together comprise about two-thirds of the entries. The Unorganized Borough is not included here as a unit, but its census areas (non-governmental entities) are. If the census areas were removed from the list, the Unorganized Borough would rank fourteenth with a density of 0.38 per square mile (0.15/km2).

The 8 uninhabited county-equivalents in the U.S. territories are listed at the top of the table — these are technically the least-densely populated counties/county-equivalents in the United States, but since they have no people, they are listed unranked.

More information Rank, Pop/sq mi ...

Population density per state and territory

Data presented below is based on U.S. Census Bureau data from 2010.[10] Calculations are made by dividing the population by the land area. All county equivalents are included.

Excluding the census areas of Alaska, Lake and Peninsula Borough is the least densely populated county equivalent with 0.069/sq mi (0.027/km2).

The District of Columbia and Guam each only have one county-equivalent, so their most/least densely-populated county is the same.

More information State federal district or territory, Least densely populated county ...

See also

Notes

^ A: The Unorganized Borough, Alaska, formed by the Borough Act of 1961, is a legal entity, run by the Alaska state government as an extension of State government,[11] it and the independently incorporated Unified, Home Rule, First Class and Second Class boroughs roughly correspond to parishes in Louisiana and to counties in the other 48 states.[12]

  1. [N 1]
    Number produced by diving 3,142 by 50 — Note it is 3,142 and not 3,143 (because the District of Columbia is not counted)
  2. [N 2]
    Number produced by dividing 3,243 by 57 (the number 57 represents the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the 5 inhabited territories, and the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands as one entity
  3. [N 3]
    Non-permanent human population
  4. [N 4]
    The District of Columbia has only one county-equivalent: itself.
  5. [N 5]
    Guam has only one county-equivalent: itself.
  6. [N 6]
    The 6 county-equivalents in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands with zero people are Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef and Navassa Island. The other 3 island territories in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands have small non-permanent human populations.
  7. [N 7]
    Wake Island’s population is non-permanent.
  8. [N 8]
    Note: the lists below rank locations by land area — the ranking would be different if they were ranked by total area.
  9. [N 9]
    If including water area, the average county size of counties and county-equivalents in the 50 states and D.C. is 1,208.38 square miles
  10. [N 10]
    North Slope Borough, Alaska is the largest independently incorporated county-equivalent.
  11. [N 11]
    If including water area, the average county size of counties and county-equivalents in all U.S. territory is 1,172.38 square miles
  12. [N 12]
    The least-densely populated inhabited county-equivalent in American Samoa is Swains Island, which has 18.1 people per square mile.
  13. [N 13]
    The least-densely populated inhabited county-equivalent in the Northern Mariana Islands is Tinian Municipality, which has 75.0 people per square mile.
  14. [N 14]
    The 6 county-equivalents in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands with zero people are Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef and Navassa Island. The least-densely populated entity with a human population is Palmyra Atoll, which has 4.3 people per square mile.

References

  1. [1]
    https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/codes/cou.doc ‘’2010 FIPS Codes for Counties and County Equivalent Entities.’’ Census.gov. Retrieved June 2019.
  2. [2]
    https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/reference/GARM/Ch4GARM.pdf ‘’States, Counties, and Statistically Equivalent Entities (Chapter 4).’’ Census.gov. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  3. [3]
    https://web.archive.org/web/20151018122108/http://www.census.gov/geo/reference/ansi_statetables.doc FIPS State Codes for the Outlying Areas of the United States and the Freely Associated States. [info about USMOI] (archived). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 2019.
  4. [4]
    "Chapter 4: States, Counties, and Statistically Equivalent Entities". Geographic Areas Reference Manual (PDF). U.S. Department of Commerce. November 1994. p. 4-2.
  5. [5]
    "2021 Population and Housing State Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  6. [6]
    CIA World Factbook — Palmyra Atoll. Retrieved June 2019.
  7. [7]
    "2020 Population and Housing State Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
  8. [8]
    "Census QuickFacts". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  9. [9]
    https://www.britannica.com/place/Kingman-Reef ‘’Kingman Reef.’’ Britannica.com. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  10. [10]
    "2010 Census Summary File 1: GEOGRAPHIC IDENTIFIERS". American Factfinder. US Census. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  11. [11]
    "Alaska Statutes Title 29 Chapter 03. The Unorganized Borough". Local Government On-Line, Division of Community and Regional Affairs, Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development. August 18, 1998. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  12. [12]
    "Local Government in Alaska" (PDF). Local Boundary Commission, Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development. February 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-07-18. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article County_statistics_of_the_United_States, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.