• county
  • FIPS 31157
  • Largest town: Scottsbluff

Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska

Scotts Bluff County had 35,734 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 739.6 square miles of land. It ranks 7th of 93 in Nebraska by population and 32nd by land area.

Population
35,734
#7 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,297 in US
Area
739.6 sq mi
#32 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,195 in US
Density
48 / sq mi
#13 of 93 in Nebraska · #1,504 in US
Median household income
$57,571
#74 of 93 in Nebraska · #2,077 in US

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

Scotts Bluff County within Nebraska. Pin: Lincoln.

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Tools and pages that start from Scotts Bluff County

Scotts Bluff County population, land area and income

Scotts Bluff County had 35,734 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 739.6 square miles of land. It ranks 7th of 93 in Nebraska by population and 32nd by land area. That works out to 48.3 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and above the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Nebraska has 6,103 residents, so Scotts Bluff County is 5.9 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $57,571 is below the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

35,734

3144th1st

1297th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

740 sq mi

3144th1st

1195th of 3,144 (US)

Density

48.3 / sq mi

3144th1st

1504th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$57,571

3143rd1st

2077th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Nebraska (93)

Population

35,734

93rd1st

7th of 93 (NE)

Land area

740 sq mi

93rd1st

32nd of 93 (NE)

Density

48.3 / sq mi

93rd1st

13th of 93 (NE)

Median household income

$57,571

93rd1st

74th of 93 (NE)

How Scotts Bluff County's population changed since 2020

Scotts Bluff County lost 317 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 0.9%. That ranks 50th 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, Scotts Bluff County recorded 1,835 births and 1,915 deaths, a natural change of -80. Net international migration added +241 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -518. The largest single component was domestic migration, which removed 518 people.

36.1k202035.9k202135.8k202235.7k202335.7k2024
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
1,835
Deaths
1,915
Net international migration
+241
Net domestic migration
-518
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+13

Where Scotts Bluff County is

The Census internal point of Scotts Bluff County is at 41.850500, -103.703000. It sits in UTM zone 13N. The map shades Nebraska's 93 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Scotts Bluff 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: Scotts Bluff County internal point. Dark pin: Lincoln.

Internal point

Decimal
41.850500, -103.703000
DMS
41°51'1.80"N 103°42'10.80"W
UTM
13N 607666.5E 4633990.8N
Geohash
9xqq04tub
Plus code
85HRV72W+6R

Towns in Scotts Bluff County

4 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Scotts Bluff County, 25,443 people together, or 71% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Scotts Bluff County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Scottsbluff with 14,323.

  1. 01Scottsbluff14,323
  2. 02Gering8,554
  3. 03Mitchell1,521
  4. 04Terrytown1,045
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Scotts Bluff County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 5 neighbors for Scotts Bluff County, including 1 across a state line. The most populous is Goshen County, WY, with 12,635 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Lincoln and the nearest big city

Lincoln is 370.3 miles E of Scotts Bluff County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Greeley, CO (population 114,363), 113.6 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Scottsbluff, NE (population 14,323), 2.4 miles away.

Scotts Bluff County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Scotts Bluff County is 31157: state code 31 for Nebraska plus county code 157. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $57,571.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 35,734. That is down 317 people (0.9%) from the July 2020 estimate of 36,051.

What is the FIPS code of Scotts Bluff County?

31157. The first two digits (31) are Nebraska; the last three (157) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Scotts Bluff County?

Scottsbluff, with 14,323 residents inside Scotts Bluff County in 2024.

Which counties border Scotts Bluff County?

5 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Goshen County, WY; Box Butte County, NE; Morrill County, NE; Sioux County, NE; Banner 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.