• county
  • FIPS 20035
  • Largest town: Arkansas City

Cowley County, Kansas

Cowley County had 34,186 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 1,125.7 square miles of land. It ranks 15th of 105 in Kansas by population and 7th by land area.

Population
34,186
#15 of 105 in Kansas · #1,331 in US
Area
1,125.7 sq mi
#7 of 105 in Kansas · #558 in US
Density
30 / sq mi
#27 of 105 in Kansas · #1,917 in US
Median household income
$57,549
#76 of 105 in Kansas · #2,084 in US

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

Cowley County within Kansas. Pin: Topeka.

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Cowley County population, land area and income

Cowley County had 34,186 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 1,125.7 square miles of land. It ranks 15th of 105 in Kansas by population and 7th by land area. That works out to 30.4 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and below the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Kansas has 6,946 residents, so Cowley County is 4.9 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $57,549 is below the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

34,186

3144th1st

1331st of 3,144 (US)

Land area

1,126 sq mi

3144th1st

558th of 3,144 (US)

Density

30.4 / sq mi

3144th1st

1917th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$57,549

3143rd1st

2084th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Kansas (105)

Population

34,186

105th1st

15th of 105 (KS)

Land area

1,126 sq mi

105th1st

7th of 105 (KS)

Density

30.4 / sq mi

105th1st

27th of 105 (KS)

Median household income

$57,549

105th1st

76th of 105 (KS)

How Cowley County's population changed since 2020

Cowley County lost 349 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 1.0%. That ranks 51st of 105 in Kansas for growth. The median Kansas county changed by -1.0%, and the state as a whole by +1.1%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Cowley County recorded 1,690 births and 2,085 deaths, a natural change of -395. Net international migration added +187 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -180. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 395 people.

34.5k202034.6k202134.5k202234.2k202334.2k2024
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
1,690
Deaths
2,085
Net international migration
+187
Net domestic migration
-180
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
-59

Where Cowley County is

The Census internal point of Cowley County is at 37.234500, -96.837200. It sits in UTM zone 14N. The map shades Kansas's 105 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Cowley County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Harper County: -1.0%Phillips County: -4.6%Seward County: -2.7%Grant County: -3.1%Pawnee County: -3.8%Haskell County: -4.5%Ness County: -2.3%Logan County: -1.8%Wichita County: -3.6%Greenwood County: -1.7%Stanton County: -0.7%Edwards County: -5.3%Gray County: +1.6%Franklin County: +1.0%Saline County: -1.5%Allen County: -0.9%Lyon County: +1.3%Cloud County: -3.3%Brown County: -3.6%Rice County: -1.1%Lincoln County: -0.6%Osborne County: -4.0%Rooks County: -2.8%Russell County: -0.8%Jefferson County: +0.0%Jewell County: -1.0%Lane County: -5.6%Sheridan County: -1.9%Gove County: -2.1%Trego County: -1.1%Montgomery County: -3.0%Sumner County: +0.1%Graham County: -1.5%Marion County: -1.0%Washington County: +0.8%Stevens County: -4.0%Kiowa County: -0.7%Mitchell County: +0.4%Cheyenne County: +1.3%Ellis County: +0.2%Rush County: -4.6%Scott County: -4.3%Comanche County: +0.7%Wallace County: -2.6%Nemaha County: -2.0%Linn County: +2.6%Ford County: -0.4%Dickinson County: +1.4%Ellsworth County: -0.9%Labette County: -2.3%Cowley County: -1.0%Neosho County: -2.2%Wilson County: -2.2%Thomas County: -1.7%Greeley County: -9.6%Osage County: -0.0%Finney County: +0.1%Kearny County: -3.8%Kingman County: -6.4%Republic County: -1.3%Ottawa County: +2.1%Smith County: -0.5%Crawford County: -0.1%Elk County: -1.5%Miami County: +4.4%Hodgeman County: -3.7%Morris County: -1.7%Morton County: -8.1%Harvey County: -1.0%Meade County: -4.2%Sedgwick County: +2.1%Geary County: -3.6%Woodson County: +0.4%Bourbon County: +0.6%Chase County: -2.6%Pratt County: -0.0%Reno County: -0.8%Chautauqua County: -1.2%Norton County: -2.1%Marshall County: -0.7%Doniphan County: +1.4%Cherokee County: -0.9%Barton County: -2.3%Riley County: +0.8%Butler County: +2.6%Stafford County: -3.7%Anderson County: +0.9%Sherman County: -1.8%Rawlins County: -5.5%Pottawatomie County: +5.7%McPherson County: +0.5%Coffey County: -0.7%Hamilton County: +0.0%Atchison County: -0.5%Shawnee County: -0.4%Leavenworth County: +3.3%Jackson County: +2.2%Clark County: -5.3%Douglas County: +2.7%Clay County: -1.9%Barber County: -3.2%Johnson County: +3.5%Wabaunsee County: +3.2%Decatur County: -1.1%Wyandotte County: +0.3%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -3.6%
  2. < -1.7%
  3. < -0.7%
  4. < +0.6%
  5. ≥ +0.6%
no data

Orange pin: Cowley County internal point. Dark pin: Topeka.

Internal point

Decimal
37.234500, -96.837200
DMS
37°14'4.20"N 96°50'13.92"W
UTM
14N 691857.2E 4123078.4N
Geohash
9ye5u6m69
Plus code
869565M7+R4

Towns in Cowley County

2 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Cowley County, 23,439 people together, or 69% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Cowley County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Arkansas City with 11,761.

  1. 01Arkansas City11,761
  2. 02Winfield11,678
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Cowley County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 7 neighbors for Cowley County, including 2 across a state line. The most populous is Sedgwick County, KS, with 536,081 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Topeka and the nearest big city

Topeka is 140.2 miles NNE of Cowley County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Wichita, KS (population 400,991), 42.1 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Winfield, KS (population 11,678), 7.8 miles away.

Cowley County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Cowley County is 20035: state code 20 for Kansas plus county code 035. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $57,549.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Cowley County, Kansas?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 34,186. That is down 349 people (1.0%) from the July 2020 estimate of 34,535.

What is the FIPS code of Cowley County?

20035. The first two digits (20) are Kansas; the last three (035) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Cowley County?

Arkansas City, with 11,761 residents inside Cowley County in 2024.

Which counties border Cowley County?

7 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Sedgwick County, KS; Butler County, KS; Osage County, OK; Kay County, OK; Sumner County, KS; Chautauqua County, KS; Elk County, KS.

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.