• county
  • FIPS 31035
  • Largest town: Sutton

Clay County, Nebraska

Clay County had 6,103 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 572.3 square miles of land. It ranks 47th of 93 in Nebraska by population and 55th by land area.

Population
6,103
#47 of 93 in Nebraska · #2,722 in US
Area
572.3 sq mi
#55 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,753 in US
Density
11 / sq mi
#43 of 93 in Nebraska · #2,546 in US
Median household income
$67,568
#32 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,158 in US

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

Clay County within Nebraska. Pin: Lincoln.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Clay County

Clay County population, land area and income

Clay County had 6,103 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 572.3 square miles of land. It ranks 47th of 93 in Nebraska by population and 55th by land area. That works out to 10.7 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 Clay County.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $67,568 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

6,103

3144th1st

2722nd of 3,144 (US)

Land area

572 sq mi

3144th1st

1753rd of 3,144 (US)

Density

10.7 / sq mi

3144th1st

2546th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$67,568

3143rd1st

1158th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Nebraska (93)

Population

6,103

93rd1st

47th of 93 (NE)

Land area

572 sq mi

93rd1st

55th of 93 (NE)

Density

10.7 / sq mi

93rd1st

43rd of 93 (NE)

Median household income

$67,568

93rd1st

32nd of 93 (NE)

How Clay County's population changed since 2020

Clay County lost 7 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 0.1%. That ranks 42nd 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, Clay County recorded 316 births and 333 deaths, a natural change of -17. Net international migration added +27 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -9. The largest single component was international migration, which added 27 people.

6,11020206,04620216,07020226,14420236,1032024
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
316
Deaths
333
Net international migration
+27
Net domestic migration
-9
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
-41

Where Clay County is

The Census internal point of Clay County is at 40.523700, -98.050900. 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 Clay 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: Clay County internal point. Dark pin: Lincoln.

Internal point

Decimal
40.523700, -98.050900
DMS
40°31'25.32"N 98°03'3.24"W
UTM
14N 580393.2E 4486318.1N
Geohash
9z4q8c1e8
Plus code
86G3GWFX+FJ

Towns in Clay County

One incorporated place of 1,000+ people has residents in Clay County, 1,443 people together, or 24% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Clay County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Sutton with 1,443.

  1. 01Sutton1,443
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Clay County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Clay County. The most populous is Adams County, NE, with 31,196 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Lincoln and the nearest big city

Lincoln is 73.5 miles ENE of Clay County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Lincoln, NE (population 300,619), 74.8 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Hastings, NE (population 25,152), 18.5 miles away.

Clay County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Clay County is 31035: state code 31 for Nebraska 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 $67,568.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Clay County, Nebraska?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 6,103. That is down 7 people (0.1%) from the July 2020 estimate of 6,110.

What is the FIPS code of Clay County?

31035. The first two digits (31) are Nebraska; the last three (035) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Clay County?

Sutton, with 1,443 residents inside Clay County in 2024.

Which counties border Clay County?

6 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Adams County, NE; York County, NE; Hamilton County, NE; Fillmore County, NE; Nuckolls County, NE; Webster 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.