• county
  • FIPS 12049
  • Largest town: Wauchula

Hardee County, Florida

Hardee County had 26,068 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 637.6 square miles of land. It ranks 53rd of 67 in Florida by population and 40th by land area.

Population
26,068
#53 of 67 in Florida · #1,577 in US
Area
637.6 sq mi
#40 of 67 in Florida · #1,492 in US
Density
41 / sq mi
#55 of 67 in Florida · #1,654 in US
Median household income
$53,913
#55 of 67 in Florida · #2,416 in US

Census Vintage 2024 estimates · SAIPE 2023 income · 2024 Gazetteer land area

Hardee County within Florida. Pin: Tallahassee.

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Hardee County population, land area and income

Hardee County had 26,068 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 637.6 square miles of land. It ranks 53rd of 67 in Florida by population and 40th by land area. That works out to 40.9 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and below the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Florida has 154,693 residents, so Hardee County has 17% of the typical county's population.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $53,913 is in the bottom quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

26,068

3144th1st

1577th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

638 sq mi

3144th1st

1492nd of 3,144 (US)

Density

40.9 / sq mi

3144th1st

1654th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$53,913

3143rd1st

2416th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Florida (67)

Population

26,068

67th1st

53rd of 67 (FL)

Land area

638 sq mi

67th1st

40th of 67 (FL)

Density

40.9 / sq mi

67th1st

55th of 67 (FL)

Median household income

$53,913

67th1st

55th of 67 (FL)

How Hardee County's population changed since 2020

Hardee County gained 727 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 2.9%. That ranks 56th of 67 in Florida for growth. The median Florida county changed by +7.8%, and the state as a whole by +8.2%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Hardee County recorded 1,506 births and 1,341 deaths, a natural change of +165. Net international migration added +357 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +191. The largest single component was international migration, which added 357 people.

25.3k202025.3k202125.7k202225.9k202326.1k2024
Census Vintage 2024 county estimates for July 1 of each year. The axis starts above zero so year-to-year changes are visible.

Components of change, April 2020 to July 2024

Births
1,506
Deaths
1,341
Net international migration
+357
Net domestic migration
+191
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+124

Where Hardee County is

The Census internal point of Hardee County is at 27.492800, -81.821600. It sits in UTM zone 17N. The map shades Florida's 67 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Hardee County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Escambia County: +2.7%Okaloosa County: +4.0%St. Lucie County: +17.9%Okeechobee County: +6.8%DeSoto County: +7.8%Bradford County: -0.5%Bay County: +14.4%Holmes County: +1.6%Gilchrist County: +13.1%Manatee County: +14.1%Hardee County: +2.9%Lafayette County: +5.0%Flagler County: +17.9%Nassau County: +14.7%Pasco County: +16.4%Martin County: +4.4%Palm Beach County: +5.9%Alachua County: +4.3%Lee County: +12.5%Brevard County: +8.2%Polk County: +16.8%Pinellas County: +0.6%Highlands County: +8.3%Hamilton County: +4.4%Wakulla County: +9.5%Clay County: +8.1%Suwannee County: +9.2%Madison County: +2.9%Columbia County: +6.0%Jackson County: +6.1%Calhoun County: -3.1%Franklin County: +4.0%Gulf County: +11.3%Hernando County: +11.5%Washington County: +4.7%Levy County: +10.9%Liberty County: +1.9%Putnam County: +5.3%Volusia County: +8.5%Walton County: +18.2%Osceola County: +19.7%Leon County: +2.2%Union County: +2.0%Sarasota County: +9.2%Dixie County: +5.6%Charlotte County: +12.8%Indian River County: +7.3%Broward County: +4.8%Hendry County: +16.1%Sumter County: +18.7%Miami-Dade County: +5.3%Citrus County: +10.1%Seminole County: +4.9%Lake County: +15.0%Marion County: +13.6%St. Johns County: +20.9%Gadsden County: +1.7%Jefferson County: +10.5%Baker County: +4.3%Glades County: +8.7%Collier County: +10.3%Duval County: +5.7%Taylor County: +0.4%Monroe County: -2.3%Hillsborough County: +7.8%Santa Rosa County: +9.9%Orange County: +7.1%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < +4.0%
  2. < +5.7%
  3. < +8.7%
  4. < +13.1%
  5. ≥ +13.1%
no data

Orange pin: Hardee County internal point. Dark pin: Tallahassee.

Internal point

Decimal
27.492800, -81.821600
DMS
27°29'34.08"N 81°49'17.76"W
UTM
17N 418841.5E 3041287.9N
Geohash
dhvu6hgm4
Plus code
76VWF5VH+49

Towns in Hardee County

3 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Hardee County, 9,201 people together, or 35% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Hardee County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Wauchula with 4,984.

  1. 01Wauchula4,984
  2. 02Bowling Green2,456
  3. 03Zolfo Springs1,761
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Hardee County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 5 neighbors for Hardee County. The most populous is Hillsborough County, FL, with 1,581,426 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Tallahassee and the nearest big city

Tallahassee is 252.0 miles NW of Hardee County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Lakeland, FL (population 124,990), 39.7 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Avon Park, FL (population 10,415), 20.4 miles away.

Hardee County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Hardee County is 12049: state code 12 for Florida plus county code 049. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $53,913.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Hardee County, Florida?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 26,068. That is up 727 people (2.9%) from the July 2020 estimate of 25,341.

What is the FIPS code of Hardee County?

12049. The first two digits (12) are Florida; the last three (049) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Hardee County?

Wauchula, with 4,984 residents inside Hardee County in 2024.

Which counties border Hardee County?

5 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Hillsborough County, FL; Polk County, FL; Manatee County, FL; Highlands County, FL; DeSoto County, FL.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census Vintage 2024 county population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, counties
  3. 03Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  4. 04Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  5. 05Census 2024 county adjacency file
  6. 06Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.