Parke County, Indiana Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Parke County, IN Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
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C
Health Below averageLess healthy than 78% of counties in Indiana
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D
Income Well below averageLess wealthy than 93% of counties in Indiana
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F
Education Well below averageLess educated than 81% of counties in Indiana
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Parke County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 16,406 | 6,845,048 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 36.5 | 188.1 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.48% | 0.47% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 43.5 | 35.9 | 37.3 |
| Households | 6,147 | 2,713,821 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Parke County declined by 4.2% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 16,406 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Parke County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 21.8% of residents. That is 5.0 points above Indiana as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 3,085 18.8% -3.4 pts
- Millennials 29–44 3,140 19.1% -2.0 pts
- Gen X 45–60 3,490 21.3% +1.8 pts
- Boomers 61–79 3,569 21.8% +5.0 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Indiana, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 52.0% of the people living in Parke County and men 48.0%.
- Women 52.0% Indiana 50.4%
- Men 48.0% Indiana 49.6%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Parke County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Parke County has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Parke County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $67,694 | $71,967 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.99% | 4.54% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 4.4% | 4.3% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Parke County is about 6% lower than in Indiana.
Housing
| Metric | Parke County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $54,111 | $142,738 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $704 | $1,062 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 82.4% | 70.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Parke County is about 6.4 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $704 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Parke County spend about 53 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 219 hours, about 9.1 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Parke County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 26.3 | 21.1 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 52.7 | 42.2 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 219 | 176 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $6,804 | $5,455 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 11.7% | 10.7% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 5,094 | 8,333 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 834 | 1,308 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Indiana:
Knox County (15.8 min), Howard County (15.9 min), Daviess County (16.3 min).
Slowest:
Crawford County (33.6 min), Brown County (32.6 min), Franklin County (31.9 min).
The average commute time in Parke County is 26 minutes, longer than the 21 minutes in Indiana.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Parke County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Parke County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 14.0% | 26.0% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.51 | 2.45 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Indiana:
Hamilton County (0.4), Boone County (0.4), Monroe County (0.3).
Lowest:
LaGrange County (0.1), Crawford County (0.2), Switzerland County (0.2).
Health
Parke County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Parke County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 78.4 | 77.4 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 18.4% | 17.1% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 24.2% | 22.4% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Indiana:
Hamilton County (0.8), Monroe County (0.8), Boone County (0.8).
Lowest:
LaGrange County (0.8), Daviess County (0.8), Switzerland County (0.8).
Parke County, IN Compared With Nearby Counties
Parke County, IN is the smallest of the 4 counties compared here, 16,406 residents against a local median of 37,280. Parke County, IN's median home price, at $54,111, runs 74% below the $204,327 typical of the counties around it.
Commute tells the same story from another angle: 26.3 min against a local median of 22.5 min, 17% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is commute, and at 17% above the local median it puts Parke County, IN at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread $142,324 on median home price, so Parke County, IN sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Parke County, IN has the 4th highest median home price of the 4 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parke County, IN | 16,406 | $67,694 #3/4 | $54,111 #4/4 | 26.3 min #3/4 |
| Putnam County, IN | 37,280 | $77,280 | $204,327 | 22.5 min |
| Vigo County, IN | 106,109 | $52,462 | $64,620 | 16.9 min |
| Clay County, IN | 26,409 | $70,786 | $206,944 | 27.4 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Parke County, Indiana.
What is the population of Parke County, Indiana?
About 16,406 people live in Parke County, Indiana, in 6,147 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 43.5, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.
Is Parke County, Indiana mostly urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Parke County, Indiana has 36 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 42% of the U.S. average of 86.
Is Parke County, Indiana an affordable place to live?
The median home costs 0.8 times the median household income ($54,111 against $67,694), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $704 a month takes about 12% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How educated are people in Parke County, Indiana?
14.0% of adults in Parke County, Indiana hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 7), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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