County statistics of the United States

Template:Short description In 45 of the 50 states of the United States, the county is used for the level of local government immediately below the state itself. Louisiana uses parishes, and Alaska uses boroughs. In Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, some or all counties within states have no governments of their own; the counties continue to exist as legal entities, however, and are used by states for some administrative functions and by the United States Census bureau for statistical analysis. There are 3,242 counties and county equivalent administrative units in total, including the District of Columbia and 100 county-equivalents in the U.S. territories.

There are 41 independent cities in the United States. In Virginia, any municipality that is incorporated as a city legally becomes independent of any county. Where indicated, the statistics below do not include Virginia's 38 independent cities.

In Alaska, most of the land area of the state has no county-level government. Those parts of the state are divided by the United States Census Bureau into census areas, which are not the same as boroughs. The state's largest statistical division by area is the Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, which is larger than any of the state's boroughs. Although Anchorage is called a municipality, it is considered a consolidated city and borough.

There are 100 county-equivalents in the territories of the United States: they are the 3 districts and 2 atolls of American Samoa, all of Guam (Guam as one single county-equivalent), the 4 municipalities in the Northern Mariana Islands, the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico, the 3 main islands of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the 9 islands in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands. All of these territorial county-equivalents are defined by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Count

This is the number of counties and county-equivalents for each state, the District of Columbia, the 5 inhabited territories of the United States, and the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.

File:Texas Locator Map.PNG

Texas has 254 counties, the most of any state

File:Delaware counties.png

Delaware has three counties, the fewest of any state

Lists of counties and county equivalents by number per political division:

Count	State, federal district or territory	Notes
254	Template:Flagicon Texas	The most counties of any U.S. state
159	Template:Flagicon Georgia
133	Template:Flagicon Virginia	95 counties and 38 independent cities
120	Template:Flagicon Kentucky
115	Template:Flagicon Missouri	114 counties and 1 independent city
105	Template:Flagicon Kansas
102	Template:Flagicon Illinois
100	Template:Flagicon North Carolina
99	Template:Flagicon Iowa
95	Template:Flagicon Tennessee
93	Template:Flagicon Nebraska
92	Template:Flagicon Indiana
88	Template:Flagicon Ohio
87	Template:Flagicon Minnesota
83	Template:Flagicon Michigan
82	Template:Flagicon Mississippi
78	Template:Flagicon Puerto Rico	Puerto Rico has no counties. The 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico are counted as county-equivalents by the U.S. Census Bureau
77	Template:Flagicon Oklahoma
75	Template:Flagicon Arkansas
72	Template:Flagicon Wisconsin
67	Template:Flagicon Alabama
67	Template:Flagicon Florida
67	Template:Flagicon Pennsylvania
66	Template:Flagicon South Dakota
64	Template:Flagicon Colorado
64	Template:Flagicon Louisiana	Louisiana has no counties. The 64 parishes of Louisiana are counted as county-equivalents by the U.S. Census Bureau
62	Template:Flagicon New York	New York City is a sui generis jurisdiction, in which the city government consists of 5 boroughs each coterminous with a county of the State of New York
58	Template:Flagicon California
56	Template:Flagicon Montana
55	Template:Flagicon West Virginia
53	Template:Flagicon North Dakota
46	Template:Flagicon South Carolina
44	Template:Flagicon Idaho
39	Template:Flagicon Washington
36	Template:Flagicon Oregon
33	Template:Flagicon New Mexico
30	Template:Flagicon Alaska	Alaska has no counties. The following areas in Alaska are counted as county-equivalents: the 19 organized boroughs and, in its Unorganized Borough, 11 designated census areas
29	Template:Flagicon Utah
24	Template:Flagicon Maryland	23 counties and 1 independent city
23	Template:Flagicon Wyoming
21	Template:Flagicon New Jersey
17	Template:Flagicon Nevada	16 counties and 1 independent city
16	Template:Flagicon Maine
15	Template:Flagicon Arizona
14	Template:Flagicon Massachusetts	8 of the 14 counties in Massachusetts were disincorporated in the 1990s and early 2000s; local government in these areas consists of cities and towns. One of the remaining 6 counties is a consolidated town-county
14	Template:Flagicon Vermont
10	Template:Flagicon New Hampshire
9	Template:Flagicon U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	The U.S. Minor Outlying Islands does not have counties. The 9 islands in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands are counted as county-equivalents by the U.S. Census Bureau
9	Template:Flagicon Connecticut	The U.S. Census Bureau uses Connecticut's nine planning regions instead of its eight historic counties for statistical purposes.
5	Template:Flagicon American Samoa	The 3 districts and 2 unorganized atolls of American Samoa are counted as county-equivalents by the U.S. Census Bureau. American Samoa locally has 14 "counties", but these "counties" are not counted as counties by the U.S. Census Bureau (they are treated as "minor civil divisions")
5	Template:Flagicon Hawaii
5	Template:Flagicon Rhode Island	Counties in Rhode Island have no governmental functions; local government is provided by eight cities and thirty-one towns
4	Template:Flagicon Northern Mariana Islands	The Northern Mariana Islands has no counties. The 4 municipalities of the Northern Mariana Islands are counted as county-equivalents by the U.S. Census Bureau
3	Template:Flagicon Delaware	The fewest counties of any U.S. state
3	Template:Flagicon Virgin Islands (U.S.)	The U.S. Virgin Islands has no counties. The 3 main islands of the U.S. Virgin Islands are counted as county-equivalents by the U.S. Census Bureau
1	Template:Flagicon District of Columbia	The District of Columbia has no counties; the District of Columbia is considered both a state-equivalent and a county equivalent for statistical purposes
1	Template:Flagicon Guam	Guam has no counties; Guam is considered both a state-equivalent and a county-equivalent for statistical purposes by the U.S. Census Bureau (similar to the District of Columbia)

• Total (50 states and District of Columbia): 3,143 (3,007 counties and 136 county equivalents)
• Total (50 states, District of Columbia and territories): 3,243 (3,007 counties and 236 county equivalents)
• Average number of counties per state (not including D.C. and the territories): 62.84Template:Refn
• Average number of counties per state (including D.C. and the territories): 56.8947368421Template:Refn

Population

Nationwide population extremes

These rankings include county equivalents.

Largest population counties nationwide (2021 Census estimate) Rank County Population 1 Los Angeles County, California 9,829,544 2 Cook County, Illinois 5,173,146 3 Harris County, Texas 4,728,030 4 Maricopa County, Arizona 4,496,588 5 San Diego County, California 3,286,069 6 Orange County, California 3,167,809 7 Miami-Dade County, Florida 2,662,777 8 Kings County, New York 2,641,052 9 Dallas County, Texas 2,586,050 10 Riverside County, California 2,458,395 11 Queens County, New York 2,331,143 12 Clark County, Nevada 2,292,476

Smallest population counties in the 50 states and District of Columbia (2021 Census estimate) Rank County Population 1 Loving County, Texas 57 2 Kalawao County, Hawaii 82 3 King County, Texas 258 4 Kenedy County, Texas 340 5 McPherson County, Nebraska 379 6 Arthur County, Nebraska 439 7 Blaine County, Nebraska 461 8 Petroleum County, Montana 519 9 Grant County, Nebraska 579 10 Loup County, Nebraska 604 11 McMullen County, Texas 608 12 Borden County, Texas 617

The following is a list of the least populous counties and county-equivalents in all U.S. territory. Note that the only entity on this list with a permanent human population is Swains Island, American Samoa. The first 8 counties (county-equivalents) are uninhabited, while the 10th on the list (Palmyra Atoll) has a small non-permanent human population whose maximum capacity is 20 people.

Smallest population counties in all U.S. territory
(2020 Census)

Rank	County	Population
1	Baker Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0
2	Howland Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0
3	Jarvis Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0
4	Johnston Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0
5	Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0
6	Navassa Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0
7	Northern Islands Municipality, Northern Mariana Islands	0
8	Rose Atoll, American Samoa	0
9	Swains Island, American Samoa	0
10	Palmyra Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	20 Template:Refn

• Los Angeles in Los Angeles County, California, the most populous county in the United States
  Los Angeles in Los Angeles County, California, the most populous county in the United States
• Palmyra Atoll — the least-populous inhabitedTemplate:Refn county or county-equivalent in the United States
  Palmyra Atoll — the least-populous inhabitedTemplate:Refn county or county-equivalent in the United States
• Loving County, Texas, the least populous county in the main 50-states in the United States.
  Loving County, Texas, the least populous county in the main 50-states in the United States.

Population per state or territory

Most and least populous counties per state/territory (2021 Census estimate)

State, federal district, or territory	Least populous	Population	Most populous	Population
Alabama	Greene	7,629	Jefferson	667,820
Alaska	Yakutat	704	Anchorage	288,121
American Samoa	Rose Atoll	0	Western District	31,819
Arizona	Greenlee	9,404	Maricopa	4,496,588
Arkansas	Calhoun	4,741	Pulaski	397,821
California	Alpine	1,235	Los Angeles	9,829,544
Colorado	San Juan	733	El Paso	737,867
Connecticut	Windham	116,418	Fairfield	959,768
Delaware	Kent	184,149	New Castle	571,708
District of Columbia	District of Columbia Template:Refn	670,050	District of Columbia	670,050
Florida	Liberty	7,900	Miami-Dade	2,662,777
Template:Flagicon Georgia	Taliaferro	1,558	Fulton	1,065,334
Guam	Guam Template:Refn	153,835	Guam	153,835
Hawaii	Kalawao	82	Honolulu	1,000,890
Idaho	Clark	792	Ada	511,931
Illinois	Hardin	3,650	Cook	5,173,146
Indiana	Ohio	5,978	Marion	971,102
Iowa	Adams	3,641	Polk	496,844
Kansas	Greeley	1,304	Johnson	613,219
Kentucky	Robertson	2,257	Jefferson	777,874
Louisiana	Tensas	4,043	East Baton Rouge	453,301
Maine	Piscataquis	17,165	Cumberland	305,231
Maryland	Kent	19,270	Montgomery	1,054,827
Massachusetts	Nantucket	14,491	Middlesex	1,614,742
Michigan	Keweenaw	2,107	Wayne	1,774,816
Minnesota	Traverse	3,286	Hennepin	1,267,416
Mississippi	Issaquena	1,280	Hinds	222,679
Missouri	Worth	1,983	St. Louis	997,187
Montana	Petroleum	519	Yellowstone	167,146
Nebraska	McPherson	379	Douglas	585,008
Nevada	Esmeralda	743	Clark	2,292,476
New Hampshire	Coos	31,268	Hillsborough	422,937
New Jersey	Salem	65,046	Bergen	953,819
New Mexico	Harding	639	Bernalillo	674,393
Template:Country data New York	Hamilton	5,119	Kings	2,641,052
North Carolina	Tyrrell	3,254	Wake	1,150,204
North Dakota	Slope	690	Cass	186,562
Northern Mariana Islands	Northern Islands Municipality	7	Saipan Municipality	43,385
Ohio	Vinton	12,696	Franklin	1,321,414
Oklahoma	Cimarron	2,248	Oklahoma	798,575
Oregon	Wheeler	1,451	Multnomah	803,377
Pennsylvania	Cameron	4,459	Philadelphia	1,576,251
Puerto Rico	Culebra Municipality	1,792	San Juan Municipality	342,259
Rhode Island	Bristol	50,818	Providence	658,221
South Carolina	Allendale	7,858	Greenville	533,834
South Dakota	Jones	879	Minnehaha	199,685
Tennessee	Pickett	5,079	Shelby	924,454
Texas	Loving	57	Harris	4,728,030
Template:Flagicon U.S. Minor Outlying Islands*	6 entities Template:Refn	0	Wake Island	100 Template:Refn
Utah	Daggett	976	Salt Lake	1,186,421
Vermont	Essex	5,925	Chittenden	168,865
Template:Flagicon Virgin Islands (U.S.)	Saint John Island	3,881	Saint Thomas Island	42,261
Virginia	Highland	2,226	Fairfax	1,139,720
Template:Country data Washington	Garfield	2,286	King	2,269,675
West Virginia	Wirt	5,063	Kanawha	177,952
Wisconsin	Menominee	4,289	Milwaukee	928,059
Wyoming	Niobrara	2,438	Laramie	100,863

Area

Nationwide land area extremes

The largest counties and county-equivalents are organized boroughs and the census areas of Alaska with the top two being Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area () and North Slope Borough (). The smallest counties and county equivalents (in the 50 states) are the independent cities of Virginia with the extreme being Falls Church at . If the U.S. territories are included, the smallest county-equivalent is Kingman Reef, with a land area of .

The following two tables exclude county-equivalents:

Largest counties by land area nationwide (excluding county-equivalents)

Rank	County	Land area (sq mi)	Land area (km2)
1	San Bernardino County, California	20,056.94	51,947.24
2	Coconino County, Arizona	18,618.89	48,222.70
3	Nye County, Nevada	18,181.92	47,090.96
4	Elko County, Nevada	17,169.83	44,469.66
5	Mohave County, Arizona	13,311.08	34,475.54
6	Apache County, Arizona	11,197.52	29,001.44
7	Lincoln County, Nevada	10,633.20	27,539.86
8	Sweetwater County, Wyoming	10,426.65	27,004.90
9	Inyo County, California	10,180.88	26,368.36
10	Harney County, Oregon	10,133.17	26,244.79

Smallest counties by land area nationwide (excluding county-equivalents)

Rank	County	Land area (sq mi)	Land area (km2)
1	Kalawao County, Hawaii	11.99	31.05
2	New York County, New York	22.83	59.13
3	Bristol County, Rhode Island	24.16	62.57
4	Arlington County, Virginia	25.97	67.26
5	Broomfield County, Colorado	33.03	85.55
6	Bronx County, New York	42.10	109.04
7	Nantucket County, Massachusetts	44.97	116.47
8	Hudson County, New Jersey	46.19	119.63
9	San Francisco County, California	46.87	121.39
10	Suffolk County, Massachusetts	58.15	150.61

The following two tables include county-equivalents: Template:Refn

Largest counties by land area nationwide (including county-equivalents)

Rank	County	Land area (sq mi)	Land area (km2)
1	Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska	145,899.69	377,868.5
2	North Slope Borough, Alaska	88.817.12	230,035.3
3	Bethel Census Area, Alaska	40.633.31	105,239.8
4	Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska	35,898.34	92,976.3
5	Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska	34,319.1	88,886
6	Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska	24,814.86	64,270.2
7	Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska	24,681.54	63,924.9
8	Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska	23,781.96	61,595.0
9	Nome Census Area, Alaska	23,000.91	59,572
10	San Bernardino County, California	20,052.5	51,936

Smallest counties by land area nationwide (including county-equivalents)

Rank	County	Land area (sq mi)	Land area (km2)
1	Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0.01	0.03
2	Rose Atoll, American Samoa	0.1	0.3
3	Baker Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0.5	1.4
4	Howland Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0.6	1.6
5	Swains Island, American Samoa	1	2.6
6	Johnston Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	1.1	2.8
7	Jarvis Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	1.7	4.5
8	Navassa Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	2.08	5.4
9	Independent City of Falls Church, Virginia	2.1	5.44
10	Midway Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	2.4	6.2

Smallest counties by land area in the 50 states and District of Columbia (including county-equivalents)

Rank	County	Land area (sq mi)	Land area (km2)
1	Independent City of Falls Church, Virginia	2.1	5.4
2	Independent City of Lexington, Virginia	2.5	6.5
3	Independent City of Manassas Park, Virginia	2.5	6.5
4	Independent City of Covington, Virginia	4	10
5	Independent City of Fairfax, Virginia	6	16
6	Independent City of Buena Vista, Virginia	7	18
7	Independent City of Emporia, Virginia	7	18
8	Independent City of Norton, Virginia	7	18
9	Independent City of Colonial Heights, Virginia	8	21
10	Independent City of Franklin, Virginia	8	21
11	Independent City of Galax, Virginia	8	21

• Largest county or county-equivalent: Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska
• Largest true county: San Bernardino County, California
• Smallest county or county-equivalent: Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands
• Smallest county or county-equivalent in the 50 states: Independent City of Falls Church, Virginia
• Smallest true county: Kalawao County, Hawaii

• San Bernardino County, California, the largest county in the United States by land area (excluding county-equivalents)
  San Bernardino County, California, the largest county in the United States by land area (excluding county-equivalents)
• Kalawao County, Hawaii, the smallest county in the United States by land area (excluding county-equivalents)
  Kalawao County, Hawaii, the smallest county in the United States by land area (excluding county-equivalents)
• Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, the largest county or county-equivalent by land area in the United States
  Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, the largest county or county-equivalent by land area in the United States
• Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands, the smallest county or county-equivalent by land area in the United States
  Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands, the smallest county or county-equivalent by land area in the United States
• Falls Church, Virginia, the smallest county-equivalent in the 50 states by land area
  Falls Church, Virginia, the smallest county-equivalent in the 50 states by land area

Smallest, largest, and average area per state and territory

The following is a list of civil right appeal of jury appeal of judge counties and county-equivalents showing the average size of each state/territory's counties, the smallest county (or equivalent) in each state/territory, and the largest county (or equivalent) in each state/territory. States/territories on the list are arranged by the average land area of their counties. Though not on the list, the North Slope Borough is the largest independently incorporated county equivalent. The Unorganized Borough is substantially larger, but is an extension of the State of Alaska government and not independently incorporated.

Also note that the smallest land area with county-level governance in the U.S. is Falls Church, Virginia, but it is an independent city and not a county or part of one. Kingman Reef is the smallest county-equivalent in all U.S. territory (though it has no government). Kalawao County, Hawaii is the smallest true county by land area.

Smallest, largest and average land areas for counties and county-equivalents by state and territory

State federal district or territory	Avg. county land area, sq. mi. (km2)	Smallest county	Area, sq. mi. (km2)	Largest county	area, sq. mi. (km2)
The 50 states & D.C.	Template:Refn	Independent City of Falls Church, Virginia		Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, AlaskaTemplate:Refn
The 50 states, D.C. & U.S. territories	Template:Refn	Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands		Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska
Alaska		Skagway Municipality		Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area
Arizona		Santa Cruz County		Coconino County
Nevada		City of Carson City		Nye County
Wyoming		Hot Springs County		Sweetwater County
New Mexico		Los Alamos County		Catron County
Utah		Davis County		San Juan County
California		San Francisco County		San Bernardino County
Oregon		Multnomah County		Harney County
Montana		Silver Bow County		Beaverhead County
Maine		Sagadahoc County		Aroostook County
Idaho		Payette County		Idaho County
Template:Country data Washington		San Juan County		Okanogan County
Colorado		Broomfield County		Las Animas County
North Dakota		Eddy County		McKenzie County
Hawaii		Kalawao County		Hawaii County
South Dakota		Clay County		Meade County
Texas		Rockwall County		Brewster County
Minnesota		Ramsey County		St. Louis County
New Hampshire		Strafford County		Coos County
Oklahoma		Marshall County		Osage County
Nebraska		Sarpy County		Cherry County
Florida		Union County		Collier County
Kansas		Wyandotte County		Butler County
Alabama		Etowah County		Baldwin County
Template:Country data New York		New York County		St. Lawrence County
Wisconsin		Pepin County		Marathon County
Arkansas		Lafayette County		Union County
Michigan		Benzie County		Marquette County
Louisiana		Orleans Parish		Vernon Parish
Pennsylvania		Montour County		Lycoming County
Vermont		Grand Isle County		Windsor County
South Carolina		McCormick County		Horry County
Delaware		New Castle County		Sussex County
Connecticut		Middlesex County		Litchfield County
Missouri		City of St. Louis		Texas County
Mississippi		Alcorn County		Yazoo County
Iowa		Dickinson County		Kossuth County
Massachusetts		Nantucket County		Worcester County
Illinois		Putnam County		McLean County
North Carolina		Chowan County		Robeson County
Ohio		Lake County		Ashtabula County
West Virginia		Hancock County		Randolph County
Tennessee		Trousdale County		Shelby County
Maryland		City of Baltimore		Frederick County
Indiana		Ohio County		Allen County
Template:Flagicon Georgia		Clarke County		Ware County
New Jersey		Hudson County		Burlington County
Kentucky		Robertson County		Pike County
Virginia		Independent City of Falls Church		Pittsylvania County
Guam		Guam		Guam
Rhode Island		Bristol County		Providence County
District of Columbia		District of Columbia		District of Columbia
Puerto Rico		Cataño Municipality		Arecibo Municipality
Northern Mariana Islands		Rota Municipality		Northern Islands Municipality
U.S. Virgin Islands		Saint John		Saint Croix
American Samoa		Rose Atoll		Western District
Template:Flagicon U.S. Minor Outlying Islands		Kingman Reef		Palmyra Atoll

Population density

File:Above Gotham.jpg

New York County, New York (Manhattan), the most densely populated county in the United States. At the top and top-left (beyond the East River) is Kings County (Brooklyn), the second-most densely populated county in the United States.

Most densely populated

Data presented below is based on U.S. Census department data from 2010. Calculations are made by dividing the population by the land area. All county equivalents are included. This list includes the 50 most densely populated counties and county-equivalents in the 50 states and District of Columbia, plus the 9 highest-density municipalities (county-equivalents) of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is the only U.S. territory with population densities (of county-equivalents) high enough to be on this list. Note that many of these high-density counties are coterminous with large cities (for example San Francisco and Philadelphia) or are independent cities in Virginia (as well as Baltimore and St. Louis) which are considered county-equivalents.

Rank	County name	Principal cities	Pop/sq mi	Pop/km2
1	New York County, New York	Manhattan, New York City	69,468	26,822
2	Kings County, New York	Brooklyn, New York City	35,369	13,656
3	Bronx County, New York	The Bronx, New York City	32,903	12,704
4	Queens County, New York	Queens, New York City	20,554	7,936
5	City and County of San Francisco, California	San Francisco	17,179	6,633
6	Hudson County, New Jersey	Hoboken, Jersey City	13,732	5,302
7	Suffolk County, Massachusetts	Boston	12,417	4,794
8	Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	11,379	4,394
9	Washington, District of Columbia		9,857	3,806
10	Alexandria, Virginia		9,314	3,596
11	Arlington County, Virginia	Arlington	8,853	3,520
12	San Juan Municipality, Puerto Rico		8,262	3,190
13	Richmond County, New York	Staten Island, New York City	8,030	3,101
14	City of Baltimore, Maryland		7,672	2,962
15	Essex County, New Jersey	Newark	6,212	2,398
16	Falls Church, Virginia		6,170	2,382
17	Cataño Municipality, Puerto Rico		5,809	2,243
18	Manassas Park, Virginia		5,633	2,175
19	Cook County, Illinois	Chicago	5,495	2,122
20	Union County, New Jersey	Elizabeth	5,216	2,014
21	City of Saint Louis, Missouri		5,157	1,991
22	Nassau County, New York	Hempstead, western Long Island	4,705	1,817
23	Bayamón Municipality, Puerto Rico		4,695	1,813
24	Norfolk, Virginia		4,486	1,732
25	Charlottesville, Virginia		4,242	1,638
26	Milwaukee County, Wisconsin	Milwaukee	3,926	1,516
27	Denver County, Colorado	Denver	3,923	1,515
28	Carolina Municipality, Puerto Rico		3,900	1,506
29	Bergen County, New Jersey	Hackensack	3,884	1,500
30	Toa Baja Municipality, Puerto Rico		3,856	1,489
31	Manassas, Virginia		3,828	1,478
32	Orange County, California	Anaheim, Santa Ana, Irvine	3,808	1,470
33	Fairfax City, Virginia		3,617	1,396
34	Trujillo Alto Municipality, Puerto Rico		3,604	1,392
35	Guaynabo Municipality, Puerto Rico		3,551	1,371
36	Richmond, Virginia		3,415	1,318
37	Pinellas County, Florida	St. Petersburg	3,348	1,292
38	Ramsey County, Minnesota	St. Paul	3,342	1,290
39	Delaware County, Pennsylvania	Southwest Philadelphia suburbs	3,039	1,173
40	Wayne County, Michigan	Detroit	2,974	1,148
41	Portsmouth, Virginia		2,839	1,096
42	Winchester, Virginia		2,838	1,096
43	Lexington, Virginia		2,820	1,089
44	Harrisonburg, Virginia		2,808	1,084
45	Cuyahoga County, Ohio	Cleveland	2,800	1,081
46	DuPage County, Illinois	Western Chicago suburbs	2,800	1,081
47	Fairfax County, Virginia	Washington, D.C. suburbs	2,767	1,068
48	Toa Alta Municipality, Puerto Rico		2,742	1,058
49	Dallas County, Texas	Dallas	2,718	1,049
50	Passaic County, New Jersey	Paterson	2,715	1,048
51	Hampton, Virginia		2,674	1,032
52	Newport News, Virginia		2,634	1,017
53	Middlesex County, New Jersey	New Brunswick, Edison	2,622	1,012
54	DeKalb County, Georgia	Atlanta suburbs and small part of Atlanta	2,586	998
55	Caguas Municipality, Puerto Rico		2,439	942
56	Los Angeles County, California	Los Angeles	2,420	934
57	Harris County, Texas	Houston	2,402	928
58	Fredericksburg, Virginia		2,326	898
59	Camden County, New Jersey	Camden	2,322	896

Least densely populated

File:Baker settlement remains.jpg

Baker Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands — one of the 8 county-equivalents with zero people

This list was generated by dividing the population by the land area. All county equivalents are included. The list is dominated by just a few states: Alaska, Montana, and Texas together comprise about two-thirds of the entries. The Unorganized Borough is not included here as a unit, but its census areas (non-governmental entities) are. If the census areas were removed from the list, the Unorganized Borough would rank fourteenth with a density of .

The 8 uninhabited county-equivalents in the U.S. territories are listed at the top of the table — these are technically the least-densely populated counties/county-equivalents in the United States, but since they have no people, they are listed unranked.

Counties with lowest population densities

Rank	County name	Pop/sq mi	Pop/km2
—	Baker Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0	0
—	Howland Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0	0
—	Jarvis Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0	0
—	Johnston Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0	0
—	Kingman Reef, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0	0
—	Navassa Island, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	0	0
—	Northern Islands Municipality, Northern Mariana Islands	0	0
—	Rose Atoll, American Samoa	0	0
1	Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska	0.03	0.01
2	Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska	0.06	0.02
3	Yakutat Borough, Alaska	0.08	0.03
4	North Slope Borough, Alaska	0.10	0.04
5	Loving County, Texas	0.12	0.04
6	Denali Borough, Alaska	0.14	0.05
7	Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska	0.21	0.08
8	Esmeralda County, Nevada	0.21	0.08
9	Garfield County, Montana	0.25	0.10
10	Dillingham Census Area, Alaska	0.26	0.10
11	Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska	0.28	0.10
12	Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska	0.28	0.11
13	Kenedy County, Texas	0.28	0.11
14	Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska	0.28	0.11
15	Petroleum County, Montana	0.29	0.11
16	King County, Texas	0.31	0.12
17	Harding County, New Mexico	0.32	0.12
18	Carter County, Montana	0.34	0.13
19	Nome Census Area, Alaska	0.41	0.16
20	Terrell County, Texas	0.41	0.16
21	Bethel Census Area, Alaska	0.41	0.16
22	Kusilvak Census Area, Alaska	0.43	0.16
23	Aleutians East Borough, Alaska	0.45	0.17
24	Harding County, South Dakota	0.47	0.18
25	Eureka County, Nevada	0.47	0.18
26	Lincoln County, Nevada	0.50	0.19
27	Powder River County, Montana	0.52	0.20
28	Catron County, New Mexico	0.53	0.20
29	Clark County, Idaho	0.55	0.21
30	Slope County, North Dakota	0.59	0.23
31	McMullen County, Texas	0.62	0.24
32	McPherson County, Nebraska	0.62	0.24
33	Culberson County, Texas	0.62	0.24
34	Sioux County, Nebraska	0.63	0.24
35	Arthur County, Nebraska	0.64	0.24
36	McCone County, Montana	0.65	0.25
37	Blaine County, Nebraska	0.67	0.26
38	Prairie County, Montana	0.67	0.26
39	Billings County, North Dakota	0.68	0.26
40	Borden County, Texas	0.71	0.27
41	Harney County, Oregon	0.73	0.28
42	Treasure County, Montana	0.73	0.28
43	Golden Valley County, Montana	0.75	0.29
44	Hinsdale County, Colorado	0.75	0.29
45	Hudspeth County, Texas	0.76	0.29
46	Meagher County, Montana	0.79	0.30
47	Kiowa County, Colorado	0.79	0.30
48	Grant County, Nebraska	0.79	0.30
49	Mineral County, Colorado	0.81	0.31
50	Phillips County, Montana	0.82	0.31

Population density per state and territory

Data presented below is based on U.S. Census Bureau data from 2010. Calculations are made by dividing the population by the land area. All county equivalents are included.

Excluding the census areas of Alaska, Lake and Peninsula Borough is the least densely populated county equivalent with .

The District of Columbia and Guam each only have one county-equivalent, so their most/least densely populated county is the same.

State federal district or territory	Least densely populated county	Population density	Most densely populated county	Population density
Alabama	Wilcox County		Jefferson County
Alaska	Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area		Anchorage Municipality
American Samoa	Rose Atoll Template:Refn		Western District
Arizona	La Paz County		Maricopa County
Arkansas	Calhoun County		Pulaski County
California	Alpine County		San Francisco County
Colorado	Hinsdale County		Denver County
Connecticut	Litchfield County		Fairfield County
Delaware	Sussex County		New Castle County
District of Columbia	District of Columbia		District of Columbia
Florida	Liberty County		Pinellas County
Template:Flagicon Georgia	Clinch County		DeKalb County
Guam	Guam		Guam
Hawaii	Kalawao County		Honolulu County
Idaho	Clark County		Ada County
Illinois	Pope County		Cook County
Indiana	Benton County		Marion County
Iowa	Adams County		Polk County
Kansas	Greeley County		Johnson County
Kentucky	Hickman County		Jefferson County
Louisiana	Cameron Parish		Orleans Parish
Maine	Piscataquis County		Cumberland County
Maryland	Garrett County		City of Baltimore
Massachusetts	Franklin County		Suffolk County
Michigan	Keweenaw County		Wayne County
Minnesota	Lake of the Woods County		Ramsey County
Mississippi	Issaquena County		DeSoto County
Missouri	Worth County		City of St. Louis
Montana	Garfield County		Yellowstone County
Nebraska	McPherson County		Douglas County
Nevada	Esmeralda County		Carson City
New Hampshire	Coos County		Hillsborough County
New Jersey	Salem County		Hudson County
New Mexico	Harding County		Bernalillo County
Template:Country data New York	Hamilton County		New York County
North Carolina	Hyde County		Mecklenburg County
North Dakota	Billings County		Cass County
Northern Mariana Islands	Northern Islands Municipality Template:Refn		Saipan Municipality
Ohio	Monroe County		Cuyahoga County
Oklahoma	Cimarron County		Tulsa County
Oregon	Harney County		Multnomah County
Pennsylvania	Cameron County		Philadelphia County
Puerto Rico	Culebra Municipality		San Juan Municipality
Rhode Island	Washington County		Bristol County
South Carolina	Allendale County		Greenville County
South Dakota	Harding County		Minnehaha County
Tennessee	Perry County		Davidson County
Texas	Loving County		Dallas County
Template:Flagicon U.S. Minor Outlying Islands	6 entities Template:Refn		Wake Island
Utah	Garfield County		Salt Lake County
Vermont	Essex County		Chittenden County
Template:Flagicon Virgin Islands (U.S.)	Saint John Island		Saint Thomas Island
Virginia	Highland County		Alexandria City
Template:Country data Washington	Garfield County		King County
West Virginia	Pocahontas County		Ohio County
Wisconsin	Iron County		Milwaukee County
Wyoming	Niobrara County		Laramie County

See also

• Local government in the United States

Notes

^ A: The Unorganized Borough, Alaska, formed by the Borough Act of 1961, is a legal entity, run by the Alaska state government as an extension of State government, it and the independently incorporated Unified, Home Rule, First Class and Second Class boroughs roughly correspond to parishes in Louisiana and to counties in the other 48 states.

External links

• Labor Statistics County Employment and Wages