county

Cherry County, NE

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

AI Overview

Cherry County is a sparsely populated, agriculture-centered economy in the Nebraska Sandhills, with a total population of 5,468 that has declined 5.6% over five years. The labor force is small but nearly fully employed at a 0.4% unemployment rate, with 67.5% labor force participation, median worker earnings of $35,428, and 24.2% of residents holding a bachelor's degree or higher. Housing costs are low—median home value of $136,000 and median gross rent of $873/month—while GDP per capita of $61,099 sits well above median worker earnings, reflecting the capital-intensive nature of ranching operations in the region.

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

Population

5,468

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$66,270

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

41.4 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-5.6% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone4,613 (83.9%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone286 (5.2%)
  • Some Other Race Alone196 (3.6%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races179 (3.3%)
  • Asian Alone95 (1.7%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race74 (1.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish105
  2. 2.Vietnamese63
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic9
  4. 4.Other Indo-European8

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

23.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

54.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

22.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

4.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

273

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$61,099

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$33,287

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

0.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

7.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining596
  2. 2.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance561
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services417
  4. 4.Retail Trade (Group)325
  5. 5.Construction (Group)293

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations1,162
  2. 2.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations573
  3. 3.Service Occupations457
  4. 4.Sales & Office Occupations437
  5. 5.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations289

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 12.09×)564
  2. 2.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.62×)415
  3. 3.Construction (LQ 1.32×)267
  4. 4.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.02×)695
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 0.79×)251

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$136,000

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$873/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

61.4%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999239 (17.4%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999155 (11.3%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999146 (10.7%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999119 (8.7%)
  • $400,000 to $499,99998 (7.2%)
  • $300,000 to $399,99979 (5.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

24.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

97.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

67.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,428

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

15.2 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

7.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone1,876 (66.7%)
  • Carpooled312 (11.1%)
  • Walked255 (9.1%)
  • Worked At Home204 (7.3%)
  • Other109 (3.9%)
  • Motorcycle43 (1.5%)

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.