Bolivar County, Mississippi Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Bolivar County, MS 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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D
Health Well below averageLess healthy than 84% of counties in Mississippi
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F
Income Well below averageLess wealthy than 84% of counties in Mississippi
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D
Education Well below averageBetter educated than 81% of counties in Mississippi
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Bolivar County | Mississippi Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 29,520 | 2,946,497 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 32.5 | 60.8 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -1.61% | -0.18% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 35.2 | 36.7 | 37.3 |
| Households | 11,909 | 1,145,227 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Bolivar County declined by 20.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 29,520 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Bolivar County is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 23.7% of residents. That is 1.6 points above Mississippi as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 7,006 23.7% +1.6 pts
- Millennials 29–44 5,769 19.5% -0.8 pts
- Gen X 45–60 5,560 18.8% -0.6 pts
- Boomers 61–79 4,890 16.6% -1.2 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 Mississippi, 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 52.8% of the people living in Bolivar County and men 47.2%.
- Women 52.8% Mississippi 51.5%
- Men 47.2% Mississippi 48.5%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Bolivar County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Bolivar County has a the economy index of F, which means it scores poorly in the economy.
| Metric | Bolivar County | Mississippi Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $39,667 | $56,669 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 4.64% | 4.27% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 7.1% | 5.7% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Bolivar County is about 30% lower than in Mississippi.
Housing
| Metric | Bolivar County | Mississippi Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $343,877 | $130,069 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $684 | $954 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 62.6% | 70.0% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Bolivar County is about 41.9 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $684 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Bolivar County spend about 32 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 133 hours, about 5.5 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Bolivar County | Mississippi Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 15.9 | 21.5 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 31.8 | 43.0 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 133 | 179 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $4,111 | $5,558 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 2.4% | 5.9% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 1,969 | 6,176 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 486 | 914 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Mississippi:
Sharkey County (11.9 min), Coahoma County (13.2 min), Leflore County (15.2 min).
Slowest:
Wilkinson County (36.8 min), Tate County (32.8 min), Greene County (32.7 min).
The average commute time in Bolivar County is 16 minutes, shorter than the 22 minutes in Mississippi.
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
Bolivar County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Bolivar County | Mississippi Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 24.4% | 21.7% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.35 | 2.49 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Mississippi:
Madison County (0.4), Lafayette County (0.3), Oktibbeha County (0.3).
Lowest:
Issaquena County (0.1), Tallahatchie County (0.2), Greene County (0.2).
Health
Bolivar County has a health index of D, which means it is barely healthy.
| Metric | Bolivar County | Mississippi Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 74.7 | 74.7 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 29.4% | 23.5% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 23.5% | 22.1% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Mississippi:
Madison County (0.8), Lafayette County (0.8), Oktibbeha County (0.8).
Lowest:
Holmes County (0.7), Quitman County (0.7), Sharkey County (0.7).
Bolivar County, MS Compared With Nearby Counties
Bolivar County, MS is typical in size for this group, 29,520 residents against a local median of 25,737, so the measures below are close to a like for like comparison. Where Bolivar County, MS breaks from the counties next to it is median home price, sitting more than 9 times the local median of $36,097 at $343,877.
The counties themselves sit within $36,267 of each other on median home price, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Bolivar County, MS, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Bolivar County, MS has the highest median home price of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bolivar County, MS | 29,520 | $39,667 #3/5 | $343,877 #1/5 | 15.9 min #4/5 |
| Sunflower County, MS | 24,333 | $39,946 | $22,352 | 15.7 min |
| Coahoma County, MS | 20,540 | $37,529 | $58,620 | 13.2 min |
| Washington County, MS | 42,708 | $41,953 | $27,195 | 16.1 min |
| Leflore County, MS | 27,141 | $35,350 | $45,000 | 15.2 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Bolivar County, Mississippi.
How many people live in Bolivar County, Mississippi?
About 29,520 people live in Bolivar County, Mississippi, in 11,909 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 35.2, so residents are younger than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 2 years.
How densely populated is Bolivar County, Mississippi?
Averaged over its land area, Bolivar County, Mississippi has 33 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 38% of the U.S. average of 86.
Is Bolivar County, Mississippi an affordable place to live?
The median home costs 8.7 times the median household income ($343,877 against $39,667), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $684 a month takes about 21% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How strong is the job market in Bolivar County, Mississippi?
Unemployment in Bolivar County, Mississippi is 7.1%, well above the U.S. rate of 5.2%, so job seekers may face more competition than elsewhere.
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