County outline
Where Okeechobee County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 86.2% of Okeechobee County’s measured area and water for 13.8%. Its combined area converts to 2,310.4 square kilometers or approximately 570,904 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 769.302 | 1,992.483 | 492,353.3 |
| Water | 122.736 | 317.885 | 78,551 |
| Total | 892.038 | 2,310.368 | 570,904.3 |
How Okeechobee County compares
By original Census land area, Okeechobee County ranks #27 of 67 in Florida and #1129 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 1.104 times the Florida county-equivalent median of 696.5 square miles. It accounts for 1.4% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Florida ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Okeechobee County
The Census Bureau estimates that 42,608 people lived in Okeechobee County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #1,161 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #47 of 67 in Florida. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 39,644, the population has grown by 2,964 (+7.5%), compared with +8.9% for Florida as a whole.
With 769.3 square miles of land, that is 55 people per square mile (21 per km²), placing Okeechobee County #1,453 nationally for density and #49 in Florida. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Florida median is 209. Put another way, there are about 12 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 39,662 | 40,029 | 40,403 | 41,575 | 42,341 | 42,608 |
| Change | — | +367 | +374 | +1,172 | +766 | +267 |
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates. Estimates are revised each year and are not decennial census counts. Density divides the whole population by the whole county’s land area, so it describes an average, not how settlement is distributed within the county. Population sources and methods.
Cities and towns in Okeechobee County
1 incorporated place lies at least partly in Okeechobee County. Together they are home to 5,811 people (13.6%); the other 36,797 (86.4%) live outside any incorporated place, in unincorporated communities and rural areas.
The largest is Okeechobee city, with 5,811 residents in the county.
Metropolitan area
Okeechobee County is a central county of the Okeechobee, FL Micropolitan Statistical Area. Okeechobee County is the area’s only county equivalent, so the micro area has the same 769.3 square miles of land. By combined land it ranks #277 of 542 micropolitan areas, and #296 by population. It belongs to the Miami-Port St. Lucie-Fort Lauderdale, FL Combined Statistical Area.
ZIP codes
2 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Okeechobee County; 1 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
3497234974
ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are the Census Bureau’s approximations of USPS ZIP Code service areas, from the 2020 Census relationship files. Lighter codes have less than half of their land in this county. Post-office-box and single-address ZIP Codes have no tabulation area.
Counties bordering Okeechobee County
Okeechobee County shares a land border with 6 county equivalents. It has more land than 3 of them. The largest neighbor is Osceola County (1,327.3 mi²) and the smallest is Indian River County (502.6 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Okeechobee County forms a block of 5,539.4 mi² of land, of which it holds 13.9%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Okeechobee | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Osceola County | 1,327.3 | 1.7× larger | Compare |
| Highlands County | 1,017.7 | 1.3× larger | Compare |
| Glades County | 806.8 | about the same | Compare |
| St. Lucie County | 571.9 | 1.3× smaller | Compare |
| Martin County | 543.9 | 1.4× smaller | Compare |
| Indian River County | 502.6 | 1.5× smaller | Compare |
How big is Okeechobee County compared with U.S. states?
Okeechobee County has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.3 times as much. Florida’s county land could hold about 70 areas the size of Okeechobee County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 27.7 miles (44.6 km) on each side. Real county shapes are rarely square, so this is a scale reference rather than a width or driving distance.
State figures are the sums of each state’s county-equivalent land measurements in the same Census release, so states and counties are compared on the same basis. Published state totals can differ slightly because of rounding. Compare all states · Counties bigger than entire states.
What stands out about Okeechobee County?
Okeechobee County has more land than 2,093 of the other 3,221 county equivalents in the dataset.
A median is the middle county-equivalent measurement, not the average of the largest and smallest. All three bars use the same linear scale. Very small areas may appear as a thin sliver; the labels retain their values.
Does including water change its rank?
Using land plus water places Okeechobee County at #1,003 nationally by total area, 126 places closer to the top than its land rank. The water assigned to this geography moves it ahead of some county equivalents with more land.
Its water share is 13.8%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 12.6 percentage points higher. This describes the statistical geography’s land/water mix, not flood exposure or developable land.
Closest positions in the national land ranking
These entries sit immediately beside Okeechobee County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1128 | Choctaw County, Oklahoma | 770.4 | Compare |
| #1129 | Okeechobee County, Florida | 769.3 | This county |
| #1130 | Sioux County, Iowa | 767.9 | Compare |
Calculated from the same Census release as the area table. Total-area order uses original ALAND + AWATER; water shares and chart labels use published square miles. Calculation details.
Representative coordinates
The Census internal point is 27.385592, -80.887388. It represents a location inside the geography; it is not necessarily the centroid or the address of a courthouse.
Source and precision
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 Gazetteer Files, Counties. Original ALAND: 1,992,482,218 m²; AWATER: 317,885,012 m². Rankings use ALAND; exact ties use ascending GEOID. Tables preserve Census-published square miles to three decimals, with conversions based on those values.
Common questions
How big is Okeechobee County?
Okeechobee County, Florida has 769.3 square miles (1,992.5 km²) of land and 122.7 square miles of water, for a total area of 892 square miles. It ranks #1129 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Okeechobee County the largest county in Florida?
No. Okeechobee County ranks #27 of 67 in Florida by land area. The largest is Collier County, with 1,997 square miles of land.
What counties border Okeechobee County?
Okeechobee County shares a land border with Highlands County, St. Lucie County, Martin County, Glades County, Indian River County, and Osceola County.
What is the population of Okeechobee County?
The Census Bureau estimates Okeechobee County had 42,608 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #1,161 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 55 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Okeechobee County?
The county seat of Okeechobee County is Okeechobee.
Is Okeechobee County part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the Okeechobee, FL Micropolitan Statistical Area.
How many ZIP codes are in Okeechobee County?
2 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Okeechobee County, and 1 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Okeechobee County compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.3 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in Okeechobee County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 492,353 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 570,904 acres. One square mile equals 640 acres.
Why might another source show a different area?
Check whether it reports land or total area, its Census vintage, and its rounding. Our guide explains how to reconcile county area figures.
Can this establish a property boundary?
No. Statistical measurements and generalized maps do not establish property lines. Consult the relevant local surveying or land-records authority.