Thayer County, Nebraska Demographics

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

Thayer 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
  • B
    Income Around average
    Wealthier than 73% of counties in Nebraska
  • D
    Education Well below average
    Less educated than 70% of counties in Nebraska

Source: Map AI Methodology

Thayer County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Thayer County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Population 4,901 1,978,686 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 8.5 25.6 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.65% 0.63% 0.59%
Median age 46.5 38.3 37.3
Households 2,087 797,835 130,235,071

Population in Thayer County declined by 4.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 4,901 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Thayer County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Thayer County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 22.9% of residents. That is 6.6 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 50.4% of the people living in Thayer County and men 49.6%.

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4,901

100% of everyone living in Thayer County

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Economy

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

Metric Thayer County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $67,657 $76,615 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 4.96% 4.27% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 2.0% 3.0% 5.2%

The median household income in Thayer County is about 12% lower than in Nebraska.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Thayer County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $25,312 $175,282 $248,835
Median rent $765 $1,071 $1,407
Homeownership rate 77.5% 66.5% 65.2%

The median home price in Thayer County is about 2.8 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $765 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Thayer County spend about 25 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 104 hours, about 4.3 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Thayer County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 12.4 17.0 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 24.9 34.0 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 104 142 187
Estimated yearly cost $3,215 $4,390 $5,790
Work from home 5.2% 11.1% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) 1,163 5,179 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 246 691 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 Thayer County is 12 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

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

Metric Thayer County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 22.7% 30.8% 31.6%
Average household size 2.29 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

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

Metric Thayer County Nebraska Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 78.8 79.5 78.3
Self-rated poor health 13.2% 12.9% 16.3%
Smokers 15.7% 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 Thayer County, Nebraska.

How many people live in Thayer County, Nebraska?

About 4,901 people live in Thayer County, Nebraska, in 2,087 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 46.5, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 9 years.

Is Thayer County, Nebraska urban or rural?

Averaged over its land area, Thayer County, Nebraska has 9 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 10% of the U.S. average of 86.

How affordable is housing in Thayer County, Nebraska?

The median home costs 0.4 times the median household income ($25,312 against $67,657), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $765 a month takes about 14% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

Is unemployment high in Thayer County, Nebraska?

Unemployment in Thayer County, Nebraska is only 2.0%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.

How educated are people in Thayer County, Nebraska?

22.7% of adults in Thayer 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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