Perkins County, Nebraska Demographics

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

Perkins County, NE 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 94% of counties in Nebraska
  • B
    Income Around average
    Wealthier than 95% of counties in Nebraska
  • D
    Education Well below average

Source: Map AI Methodology

Perkins County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Perkins County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Population 2,821 1,978,686 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 3.2 25.6 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.39% 0.63% 0.59%
Median age 41.1 38.3 37.3
Households 1,192 797,835 130,235,071

Population in Perkins County grew by 1.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 2,821 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Perkins County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Perkins County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 20.2% of residents. That is 3.9 points above Nebraska 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 Nebraska, 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 48.8% of the people living in Perkins County and men 51.2%.

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2,821

100% of everyone living in Perkins County

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Economy

Perkins County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.

Metric Perkins County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $71,390 $76,615 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 3.11% 4.27% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 1.5% 3.0% 5.2%

The median household income in Perkins County is about 7% lower than in Nebraska.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Perkins County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $100,000 $175,282 $248,835
Median rent $922 $1,071 $1,407
Homeownership rate 78.7% 66.5% 65.2%

The median home price in Perkins County is about 9.0 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $922 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Perkins County spend about 18 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 74 hours, about 3.1 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Perkins County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 8.8 17.0 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 17.7 34.0 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 74 142 187
Estimated yearly cost $2,284 $4,390 $5,790
Work from home 6.6% 11.1% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) 5,347 5,179 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 288 691 1,355

Fastest commutes among counties in Nebraska: Hooker County (7.4 min), Cherry County (8.0 min), Box Butte County (8.0 min).
Slowest: Cass County (28.0 min), Banner County (27.2 min), Saunders County (26.9 min).

The average commute time in Perkins County is 9 minutes, shorter than the 17 minutes in Nebraska.

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

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

Metric Perkins County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 23.8% 30.8% 31.6%
Average household size 2.34 2.42 2.53

Highest education index among counties in Nebraska: Sarpy County (0.3), Lancaster County (0.3), Douglas County (0.3).
Lowest: Dakota County (0.2), Colfax County (0.2), Dawson County (0.2).

Health

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

Metric Perkins County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 82.9 79.5 78.3
Self-rated poor health 11.5% 12.9% 16.3%
Smokers 14.3% 16.6% 19.0%

Highest health index among counties in Nebraska: Wayne County (0.8), Sarpy County (0.8), Lancaster County (0.8).
Lowest: Thurston County (0.8), Pawnee County (0.8), Dundy County (0.8).

Full health data →

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Perkins County, Nebraska.

How many people live in Perkins County, Nebraska?

About 2,821 people live in Perkins County, Nebraska, in 1,192 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 41.1, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 4 years.

Is Perkins County, Nebraska urban or rural?

Averaged over its land area, Perkins County, Nebraska has 3 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 4% of the U.S. average of 86.

Is Perkins County, Nebraska an affordable place to live?

The median home costs 1.4 times the median household income ($100,000 against $71,390), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $922 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 Perkins County, Nebraska?

Unemployment in Perkins County, Nebraska is only 1.5%, 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 Perkins County, Nebraska have a college degree?

23.8% of adults in Perkins County, Nebraska hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 4), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.

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