Clay County, Kansas Demographics

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

Clay 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.

  • B
    Health Around average
    Healthier than 70% of counties in Kansas
  • C
    Income Below average
  • C
    Education Below average
    Better educated than 84% of counties in Kansas

Source: Map AI Methodology

Clay County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Clay County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Population 8,048 2,945,842 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 12.3 35.8 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.45% 0.19% 0.59%
Median age 42.1 38.7 37.3
Households 3,522 1,173,585 130,235,071

Population in Clay County declined by 7.1% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 8,048 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Clay County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Clay County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 21.6% of residents. That is 4.9 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 50.0% of the people living in Clay County and men 50.0%.

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8,048

100% of everyone living in Clay County

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Economy

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

Metric Clay County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $65,917 $74,287 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 2.81% 4.08% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 1.0% 3.8% 5.2%

The median household income in Clay County is about 11% lower than in Kansas.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Clay County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $201,390 $104,644 $248,835
Median rent $937 $1,060 $1,407
Homeownership rate 78.0% 67.1% 65.2%

The median home price in Clay County is about 17.9 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $937 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Clay County spend about 36 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 150 hours, about 6.2 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Clay County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 18.0 17.2 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 36.0 34.4 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 150 143 187
Estimated yearly cost $4,646 $4,448 $5,790
Work from home 8.2% 11.8% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) 4,610 4,500 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 327 662 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 Clay County is 18 minutes, longer 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

Clay County has a education index of C, which means it is somewhat educated.

Metric Clay County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 24.5% 31.5% 31.6%
Average household size 2.23 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

Clay County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.

Metric Clay County Kansas Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 78.2 78.6 78.3
Self-rated poor health 13.7% 15.3% 16.3%
Smokers 17.2% 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 →

Clay County, KS Compared With Nearby Counties

How Clay County, KS compares with the 1 counties closest to it.

Area Population Median household income Median home price Commute
Clay County, KS 8,048 $65,917 #1/2 $201,390 #2/2 18.0 min #2/2
Riley County, KS 71,946 $62,250 $256,250 12.3 min

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Clay County, Kansas.

How big is Clay County, Kansas by population?

About 8,048 people live in Clay County, Kansas, in 3,522 households of 2.2 people on average. The median age is 42.1, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 5 years.

How densely populated is Clay County, Kansas?

Averaged over its land area, Clay County, Kansas has 12 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 14% of the U.S. average of 86.

Is Clay County, Kansas an affordable place to live?

The median home costs 3.1 times the median household income ($201,390 against $65,917), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $937 a month takes about 17% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

Is it hard to find a job in Clay County, Kansas?

Unemployment in Clay County, Kansas is only 1.0%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.

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