Barber County, Kansas Demographics

Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.

Barber County, KS Population Density Map and Area Scores

Area Score

Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.

  • C
    Health Below average
    Less healthy than 88% of counties in Kansas
  • C
    Income Below average
  • D
    Education Well below average

Source: Map AI Methodology

Barber County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Barber County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Population 4,069 2,945,842 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 3.6 35.8 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -2.09% 0.19% 0.59%
Median age 43.5 38.7 37.3
Households 1,828 1,173,585 130,235,071

Population in Barber County declined by 13.7% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 4,069 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Barber County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Barber County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 22.1% of residents. That is 3.4 points above Kansas as a whole.

Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Kansas, 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 48.6% of the people living in Barber County and men 51.4%.

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4,069

100% of everyone living in Barber County

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Economy

Barber County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.

Metric Barber County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $65,000 $74,287 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 3.60% 4.08% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 1.2% 3.8% 5.2%

The median household income in Barber County is about 13% lower than in Kansas.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Barber County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $32,874 $104,644 $248,835
Median rent $829 $1,060 $1,407
Homeownership rate 81.0% 67.1% 65.2%

The median home price in Barber County is about 3.3 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $829 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Barber County spend about 20 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 84 hours, about 3.5 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Barber County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 10.0 17.2 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 20.1 34.4 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 84 143 187
Estimated yearly cost $2,596 $4,448 $5,790
Work from home 3.4% 11.8% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) — 4,500 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 176 662 1,355

Fastest commutes among counties in Kansas: Wichita County (7.0 min), Scott County (7.1 min), Greeley County (7.2 min).
Slowest: Linn County (31.3 min), Miami County (30.8 min), Jefferson County (30.3 min).

The average commute time in Barber County is 10 minutes, shorter than the 17 minutes in Kansas.

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.

Commute and transport details →

Education & Households

Barber County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.

Metric Barber County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 22.0% 31.5% 31.6%
Average household size 2.20 2.44 2.53

Highest education index among counties in Kansas: Johnson County (0.4), Douglas County (0.4), Riley County (0.3).
Lowest: Seward County (0.2), Grant County (0.2), Kearny County (0.2).

Health

Barber County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.

Metric Barber County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 76.3 78.6 78.3
Self-rated poor health 16.4% 15.3% 16.3%
Smokers 19.6% 18.7% 19.0%

Highest health index among counties in Kansas: Johnson County (0.8), Riley County (0.8), Douglas County (0.8).
Lowest: Wyandotte County (0.8), Woodson County (0.8), Chautauqua County (0.8).

Full health data →

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Barber County, Kansas.

How big is Barber County, Kansas by population?

About 4,069 people live in Barber County, Kansas, in 1,828 households of 2.2 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 Barber County, Kansas mostly urban or rural?

Averaged over its land area, Barber County, Kansas has 4 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 4% of the U.S. average of 86.

Is Barber County, Kansas an affordable place to live?

The median home costs 0.5 times the median household income ($32,874 against $65,000), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $829 a month takes about 15% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

How strong is the job market in Barber County, Kansas?

Unemployment in Barber County, Kansas is only 1.2%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.

How common is a college degree in Barber County, Kansas?

22.0% of adults in Barber County, Kansas hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 5), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.

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