• county
  • FIPS 31031
  • Largest town: Valentine

Cherry County, Nebraska

Cherry County had 5,558 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 5,960.1 square miles of land. It is the largest by land of Nebraska's 93 county-equivalents.

Population
5,558
#49 of 93 in Nebraska · #2,773 in US
Area
5,960.1 sq mi
#1 of 93 in Nebraska · #60 in US
Density
0.9 / sq mi
#86 of 93 in Nebraska · #3,081 in US
Median household income
$55,132
#85 of 93 in Nebraska · #2,312 in US

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

Cherry County within Nebraska. Pin: Lincoln.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Cherry County

Cherry County population, land area and income

Cherry County had 5,558 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 5,960.1 square miles of land. It is the largest by land of Nebraska's 93 county-equivalents. That works out to 0.9 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and in the bottom quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in Nebraska has 6,103 residents, about the same as Cherry County.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $55,132 is below the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

5,558

3144th1st

2773rd of 3,144 (US)

Land area

5,960 sq mi

3144th1st

60th of 3,144 (US)

Density

0.9 / sq mi

3144th1st

3081st of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$55,132

3143rd1st

2312th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Nebraska (93)

Population

5,558

93rd1st

49th of 93 (NE)

Land area

5,960 sq mi

93rd1st

1st of 93 (NE)

Density

0.9 / sq mi

93rd1st

86th of 93 (NE)

Median household income

$55,132

93rd1st

85th of 93 (NE)

How Cherry County's population changed since 2020

Cherry County gained 101 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 1.9%. That ranks 18th of 93 in Nebraska for growth. The median Nebraska county changed by -0.6%, and the state as a whole by +2.1%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Cherry County recorded 325 births and 261 deaths, a natural change of +64. Net international migration added +36 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +2. The largest single component was natural change, which added 64 people.

5,45720205,45320215,49520225,52720235,5582024
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
325
Deaths
261
Net international migration
+36
Net domestic migration
+2
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+31

Where Cherry County is

The Census internal point of Cherry County is at 42.571300, -101.047700. It sits in UTM zone 14N. The map shades Nebraska's 93 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Cherry County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

York County: +1.9%Boone County: -0.1%Grant County: -7.0%Saline County: +0.2%Adams County: +0.1%Clay County: -0.1%Logan County: -3.3%Hamilton County: +1.7%Thomas County: -5.9%Lancaster County: +3.0%Sherman County: -0.1%Lincoln County: -3.5%Stanton County: -1.1%Dawes County: -1.9%Madison County: +0.1%Perkins County: -2.9%Arthur County: -2.1%Deuel County: +3.2%Banner County: -1.9%Dundy County: -4.2%Garfield County: -5.4%Wheeler County: +4.3%Seward County: +0.9%Johnson County: -1.4%Wayne County: +1.7%Hayes County: -0.4%Gosper County: -4.6%Blaine County: +6.1%Valley County: -0.6%Keith County: -2.1%Antelope County: +1.3%Hooker County: -1.3%Hitchcock County: -6.1%Box Butte County: -1.1%Morrill County: -1.6%Chase County: -3.2%Howard County: +1.3%Holt County: +0.1%Phelps County: +0.7%Cuming County: -0.7%Jefferson County: -1.7%Garden County: -4.5%Dodge County: +2.1%Buffalo County: +1.9%Butler County: +1.0%Fillmore County: -1.0%Boyd County: -5.7%Nuckolls County: +0.1%Loup County: -3.8%Sioux County: -3.7%Thayer County: -3.1%Cheyenne County: +1.2%Rock County: -1.9%Nance County: -3.9%Greeley County: +0.8%Hall County: +0.1%Brown County: -0.9%Dakota County: -1.0%Kearney County: +0.9%Webster County: -1.9%Nemaha County: -0.6%Franklin County: -2.5%Furnas County: -3.5%Sarpy County: +7.1%Platte County: +3.5%Kimball County: -3.0%Polk County: +1.0%Dixon County: -1.1%Knox County: -1.0%Thurston County: -1.8%Douglas County: +2.7%Scotts Bluff County: -0.9%Pierce County: -0.1%Burt County: +0.0%Merrick County: +2.3%Sheridan County: -3.5%Washington County: +1.6%Frontier County: +1.3%Colfax County: +2.6%Cass County: +3.3%Pawnee County: -0.8%Richardson County: -2.5%Cedar County: -1.3%Gage County: +0.2%Dawson County: +2.0%Keya Paha County: +7.8%Cherry County: +1.9%McPherson County: -5.1%Otoe County: +4.3%Red Willow County: -2.6%Custer County: -0.0%Harlan County: -1.2%Saunders County: +4.6%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -3.0%
  2. < -1.1%
  3. < +0.1%
  4. < +1.7%
  5. ≥ +1.7%
no data

Orange pin: Cherry County internal point. Dark pin: Lincoln.

Internal point

Decimal
42.571300, -101.047700
DMS
42°34'16.68"N 101°02'51.72"W
UTM
14N 331936.6E 4715242.3N
Geohash
9z84htg7c
Plus code
85JWHXC2+GW

Towns in Cherry County

One incorporated place of 1,000+ people has residents in Cherry County, 2,642 people together, or 48% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Cherry County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Valentine with 2,642.

  1. 01Valentine2,642
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Cherry County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 11 neighbors for Cherry County, including 4 across a state line. The most populous is Oglala Lakota County, SD, with 13,360 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Lincoln and the nearest big city

Lincoln is 255.2 miles ESE of Cherry County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Sioux Falls, SD (population 209,289), 227.9 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is North Platte, NE (population 22,549), 101.1 miles away.

Cherry County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Cherry County is 31031: state code 31 for Nebraska plus county code 031. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $55,132.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Cherry County, Nebraska?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 5,558. That is up 101 people (1.9%) from the July 2020 estimate of 5,457.

What is the FIPS code of Cherry County?

31031. The first two digits (31) are Nebraska; the last three (031) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Cherry County?

Valentine, with 2,642 residents inside Cherry County in 2024.

Which counties border Cherry County?

11 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Oglala Lakota County, SD; Todd County, SD; Tripp County, SD; Sheridan County, NE; Bennett County, SD; Brown County, NE; Keya Paha County, NE; Hooker County, NE; Thomas County, NE; Grant County, NE; Blaine County, NE.

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.