county

Thurston County, NE

Demographic and economic profile of Thurston County, NE, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Thurston County, NE is a small rural county of 6,666 residents with a notably young median age of 29.2 years and a modest workforce — labor force participation stands at 64.8% with an unemployment rate of 10.3%, and just 20.2% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Worker costs are low, with median worker earnings of $37,493 and median gross rent of only $698/month, while median home values sit at $105,100. The county has seen a population decline of 6.6% over five years, carries an 18.0% poverty rate, and despite a low per capita income of $25,128, posts a GDP per capita of $76,287, suggesting output is concentrated in capital- or transfer-intensive sectors rather than broad wage employment.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

6,666

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$69,177

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

29.2 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-6.6% since 2018

Thurston County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone3,630 (54.8%)
  • White Alone2,418 (36.5%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races231 (3.5%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race132 (2.0%)
  • Some Other Race Alone105 (1.6%)
  • Asian Alone93 (1.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish65
  2. 2.Other Asian and Pacific Island25
  3. 3.Other Indo-European16
  4. 4.German or other West Germanic1

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

34.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

53.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

12.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.8%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

243

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$76,287

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$25,128

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

10.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

18.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance846
  2. 2.Public Administration (Group)398
  3. 3.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining237
  4. 4.Manufacturing (Group)225
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services216

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations1,033
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations534
  3. 3.Service Occupations506
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations391
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations271

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 5.09×)221
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 3.37×)433
  3. 3.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.28×)811
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.13×)269
  5. 5.Manufacturing (LQ 1.06×)287

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$105,100

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$698/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

61.0%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,999123 (10.1%)
  • $200,000 to $249,99999 (8.2%)
  • $80,000 to $89,99985 (7.0%)
  • $400,000 to $499,99982 (6.8%)
  • $250,000 to $299,99981 (6.7%)
  • $150,000 to $174,99974 (6.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

20.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

92.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

64.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$37,493

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

21.3 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

8.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone2,247 (83.4%)
  • Carpooled205 (7.6%)
  • Walked115 (4.3%)
  • Worked At Home86 (3.2%)
  • Other24 (0.9%)
  • Public Transit18 (0.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.