Wells County, Indiana Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Wells 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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B
Health Around averageHealthier than 89% of counties in Indiana
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B
Income Around averageWealthier than 82% of counties in Indiana
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D
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Wells County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 28,420 | 6,845,048 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 76.8 | 188.1 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 0.26% | 0.47% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 38.6 | 35.9 | 37.3 |
| Households | 11,546 | 2,713,821 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Wells County grew by 2.5% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 28,420 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Wells County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 20.4% of residents. That is 0.9 points above Indiana as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 5,624 19.8% -2.4 pts
- Millennials 29–44 5,554 19.5% -1.6 pts
- Gen X 45–60 5,797 20.4% +0.9 pts
- Boomers 61–79 4,966 17.5% +0.7 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 50.4% of the people living in Wells County and men 49.6%.
- Women 50.4% Indiana 50.4%
- Men 49.6% Indiana 49.6%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Wells County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Wells County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.
| Metric | Wells County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $70,823 | $71,967 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 3.83% | 4.54% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 2.6% | 4.3% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Wells County is about 2% lower than in Indiana.
Housing
| Metric | Wells County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $157,916 | $142,738 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $813 | $1,062 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 75.6% | 70.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Wells County is about 16.2 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $813 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Wells County spend about 41 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 170 hours, about 7.1 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Wells County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 20.4 | 21.1 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 40.8 | 42.2 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 170 | 176 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,270 | $5,455 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 5.9% | 10.7% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 5,896 | 8,333 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 820 | 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 Wells County is 20 minutes, shorter 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
Wells County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Wells County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 17.6% | 26.0% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.41 | 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
Wells County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.
| Metric | Wells County | Indiana Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 80.2 | 77.4 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 15.6% | 17.1% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 21.4% | 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).
Wells County, IN Compared With Nearby Counties
Wells County, IN is the 4th largest of the 5 counties compared here, 28,420 residents against a local median of 36,514. Wells County, IN's median home price, at $157,916, runs 168% above the $58,868 typical of the counties around it.
The counties themselves sit within $52,192 of each other on median home price, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Wells County, IN, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Wells County, IN has the highest median home price of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells County, IN | 28,420 | $70,823 #1/5 | $157,916 #1/5 | 20.4 min #5/5 |
| Adams County, IN | 36,227 | $65,374 | $37,419 | 17.3 min |
| Huntington County, IN | 36,800 | $67,617 | $41,897 | 18.4 min |
| Jay County, IN | 20,223 | $56,874 | $75,839 | 17.4 min |
| Allen County, IN | 392,386 | $70,795 | $89,611 | 20.2 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Wells County, Indiana.
How many people live in Wells County, Indiana?
About 28,420 people live in Wells County, Indiana, in 11,546 households of 2.4 people on average. The median age is 38.6, close to the U.S. median of 37.3.
How densely populated is Wells County, Indiana?
Averaged over its land area, Wells County, Indiana has 77 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is close to the U.S. average of 86.
Is Wells County, Indiana an affordable place to live?
The median home costs 2.2 times the median household income ($157,916 against $70,823), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $813 a month takes about 14% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How strong is the job market in Wells County, Indiana?
Unemployment in Wells County, Indiana is only 2.6%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.
What share of adults in Wells County, Indiana have a college degree?
17.6% of adults in Wells County, Indiana hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 6), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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