Counties in Nebraska by population

Douglas County had the highest population of 93 counties in 2024, at 600,903. McPherson County had the lowest, at 374. The median was 6,114 and the figure for Nebraska was 2.01 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest600,903Douglas County
Median6,11493 counties
Nebraska2,005,591History

Top 40 counties, 2024

CSVChart (SVG)

Douglas CountyDouglas County: 600,903 persons600,903Lancaster CountyLancaster County: 331,341 persons331,341Sarpy CountySarpy County: 204,519 persons204,519Hall CountyHall County: 63,891 persons63,891Buffalo CountyBuffalo County: 51,126 persons51,126Dodge CountyDodge County: 37,931 persons37,931Madison CountyMadison County: 35,793 persons35,793Scotts Bluff CountyScotts Bluff County: 35,658 persons35,658Platte CountyPlatte County: 35,657 persons35,657Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 33,285 persons33,285Adams CountyAdams County: 31,203 persons31,203Cass CountyCass County: 27,501 persons27,501Dawson CountyDawson County: 24,527 persons24,527Saunders CountySaunders County: 23,444 persons23,444Gage CountyGage County: 21,688 persons21,688Dakota CountyDakota County: 21,494 persons21,494Washington CountyWashington County: 21,287 persons21,287Seward CountySeward County: 17,890 persons17,890Otoe CountyOtoe County: 16,472 persons16,472Saline CountySaline County: 14,980 persons14,980York CountyYork County: 14,436 persons14,436Colfax CountyColfax County: 10,914 persons10,914Box Butte CountyBox Butte County: 10,660 persons10,660Custer CountyCuster County: 10,517 persons10,517Red Willow CountyRed Willow County: 10,405 persons10,405Holt CountyHolt County: 10,066 persons10,066Wayne CountyWayne County: 9,900 persons9,900Hamilton CountyHamilton County: 9,633 persons9,633Cheyenne CountyCheyenne County: 9,538 persons9,538Phelps CountyPhelps County: 9,030 persons9,030Cuming CountyCuming County: 8,911 persons8,911Butler CountyButler County: 8,467 persons8,467Knox CountyKnox County: 8,374 persons8,374Cedar CountyCedar County: 8,344 persons8,344Keith CountyKeith County: 8,161 persons8,161Dawes CountyDawes County: 8,015 persons8,015Merrick CountyMerrick County: 7,846 persons7,846Richardson CountyRichardson County: 7,593 persons7,593Pierce CountyPierce County: 7,349 persons7,349Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 7,150 persons7,150
persons. Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCounties2024
persons
Change on 2023
1Douglas County600,903+1.2%
2Lancaster County331,341+1%
3Sarpy County204,519+2.1%
4Hall County63,891+0.9%
5Buffalo County51,126+0.8%
6Dodge County37,931+1.1%
7Madison County35,793-0.1%
8Scotts Bluff County35,658-0.1%
9Platte County35,657+1.2%
10Lincoln County33,285-0.6%
11Adams County31,203+1%
12Cass County27,501+0.1%
13Dawson County24,527+0.3%
14Saunders County23,444-0.2%
15Gage County21,688+0.2%
16Dakota County21,494+0.9%
17Washington County21,287+0.4%
18Seward County17,890+1%
19Otoe County16,472+0.3%
20Saline County14,980+1.3%
21York County14,436+0.2%
22Colfax County10,914+1.8%
23Box Butte County10,660-0.4%
24Custer County10,517-0.9%
25Red Willow County10,405-0.9%
26Holt County10,066-0.5%
27Wayne County9,900-0.3%
28Hamilton County9,633+0.8%
29Cheyenne County9,538+0.2%
30Phelps County9,030-0.8%
31Cuming County8,911-0.2%
32Butler County8,467+0.2%
33Knox County8,374+0.3%
34Cedar County8,344+1%
35Keith County8,161-0%
36Dawes County8,015-1.6%
37Merrick County7,846+1.1%
38Richardson County7,593-1.1%
39Pierce County7,349+0.6%
40Jefferson County7,150+0.8%
41Nemaha County7,104+0.2%
42Kearney County6,763+0.5%
43Burt County6,726+0.2%
44Thurston County6,609+1.7%
45Howard County6,536-0.2%
46Antelope County6,370+1%
47Clay County6,114-0.4%
48Stanton County5,783-1.1%
49Dixon County5,581+0.4%
50Cherry County5,574+0.9%
51Fillmore County5,466-1.1%
52Boone County5,390+1.1%
53Polk County5,287+1.5%
54Johnson County5,197-0.1%
55Sheridan County4,900-0.6%
56Thayer County4,874+0.4%
57Furnas County4,471-1.7%
58Morrill County4,447-1.4%
59Nuckolls County4,096-0.1%
60Valley County4,065+0.8%
61Chase County3,716-0.8%
62Webster County3,325-0.5%
63Kimball County3,298-0.5%
64Nance County3,286+0.4%
65Harlan County3,014-1.1%
66Sherman County2,953-1%
67Brown County2,838-0.9%
68Franklin County2,821-0.3%
69Perkins County2,807+0.3%
70Frontier County2,605-0.3%
71Pawnee County2,517+0.8%
72Hitchcock County2,485-3%
73Greeley County2,183-1.5%
74Deuel County1,863+0.1%
75Gosper County1,827-1%
76Garden County1,811-0.1%
77Boyd County1,718-1.7%
78Garfield County1,699-3.4%
79Dundy County1,569+0.6%
80Rock County1,262-0.1%
81Sioux County1,205+0.4%
82Hayes County838+0.5%
83Keya Paha County808+0.9%
84Wheeler County792+1.7%
85Hooker County698+3.1%
86Logan County683+4.4%
87Banner County670+0.3%
88Thomas County649-4.1%
89Loup County586-0.3%
90Grant County563-0.7%
91Blaine County459+5%
92Arthur County417+1.2%
93McPherson County374-1.6%

Other periods

About this ranking

Resident population. Spain and the EU: 1 January, with Spanish figures from the official municipal register (PadrĂ³n). United States: Census Bureau population estimates for 1 July. Other countries and the World: World Bank mid-year estimates, which count all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.

For Denmark, Statistics Denmark counts the registered resident population on 1 January. Greenland and the Faroe Islands are excluded. The annual series selects the first-quarter reference date from FOLK1A. The World Bank series exists for every country, so use it (through compare) to rank countries on one basis.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for the United States, states and counties, 1 July (Population Estimates Program). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which county has the highest population?

Douglas County, with 600,903 in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest population?

McPherson County, with 374 in 2024.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual estimates of the resident population for the United States, states and counties, 1 July (Population Estimates Program). Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Population: other rankings

Counties in Nebraska: more rankings