• county
  • FIPS 31047
  • Largest town: Lexington

Dawson County, Nebraska

Dawson County had 24,554 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 1,013.8 square miles of land. It ranks 13th of 93 in Nebraska by population and 15th by land area.

Population
24,554
#13 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,633 in US
Area
1,013.8 sq mi
#15 of 93 in Nebraska · #662 in US
Density
24 / sq mi
#21 of 93 in Nebraska · #2,088 in US
Median household income
$67,619
#31 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,152 in US

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

Dawson County within Nebraska. Pin: Lincoln.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Dawson County

Dawson County population, land area and income

Dawson County had 24,554 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 1,013.8 square miles of land. It ranks 13th of 93 in Nebraska by population and 15th by land area. That works out to 24.2 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and below the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Nebraska has 6,103 residents, so Dawson County is 4.0 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $67,619 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

24,554

3144th1st

1633rd of 3,144 (US)

Land area

1,014 sq mi

3144th1st

662nd of 3,144 (US)

Density

24.2 / sq mi

3144th1st

2088th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$67,619

3143rd1st

1152nd of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Nebraska (93)

Population

24,554

93rd1st

13th of 93 (NE)

Land area

1,014 sq mi

93rd1st

15th of 93 (NE)

Density

24.2 / sq mi

93rd1st

21st of 93 (NE)

Median household income

$67,619

93rd1st

31st of 93 (NE)

How Dawson County's population changed since 2020

Dawson County gained 472 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 2.0%. That ranks 15th 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, Dawson County recorded 1,599 births and 1,019 deaths, a natural change of +580. Net international migration added +1,274 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -1,403. The largest single component was domestic migration, which removed 1,403 people.

24.1k202023.9k202124.0k202224.4k202324.6k2024
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
1,599
Deaths
1,019
Net international migration
+1,274
Net domestic migration
-1,403
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+161

Where Dawson County is

The Census internal point of Dawson County is at 40.867800, -99.815600. 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 Dawson 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: Dawson County internal point. Dark pin: Lincoln.

Internal point

Decimal
40.867800, -99.815600
DMS
40°52'4.08"N 99°48'56.16"W
UTM
14N 431269.6E 4524401.9N
Geohash
9z302xu2p
Plus code
86G2V59M+4Q

Towns in Dawson County

3 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Dawson County, 18,597 people together, or 76% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Dawson County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Lexington with 11,205.

  1. 01Lexington11,205
  2. 02Cozad3,945
  3. 03Gothenburg3,447
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Dawson County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Dawson County. The most populous is Buffalo County, NE, with 51,156 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Lincoln and the nearest big city

Lincoln is 162.9 miles E of Dawson County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Lincoln, NE (population 300,619), 164.2 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Lexington, NE (population 11,205), 7.2 miles away.

Dawson County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Dawson County is 31047: state code 31 for Nebraska plus county code 047. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $67,619.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Dawson County, Nebraska?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 24,554. That is up 472 people (2.0%) from the July 2020 estimate of 24,082.

What is the FIPS code of Dawson County?

31047. The first two digits (31) are Nebraska; the last three (047) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Dawson County?

Lexington, with 11,205 residents inside Dawson County in 2024.

Which counties border Dawson County?

6 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Buffalo County, NE; Lincoln County, NE; Custer County, NE; Phelps County, NE; Frontier County, NE; Gosper 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.