County outline
Where St. Landry Parish is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 98.3% of St. Landry Parish’s measured area and water for 1.7%. Its combined area converts to 2,432.2 square kilometers or approximately 601,020 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 923.378 | 2,391.538 | 590,961.9 |
| Water | 15.715 | 40.702 | 10,057.6 |
| Total | 939.093 | 2,432.24 | 601,019.5 |
How St. Landry Parish compares
By original Census land area, St. Landry Parish ranks #11 of 64 in Louisiana and #790 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 1.429 times the Louisiana county-equivalent median of 645.9 square miles. It accounts for 2.1% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Louisiana ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of St. Landry Parish
The Census Bureau estimates that 80,765 people lived in St. Landry Parish on July 1, 2025. That ranks #733 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #16 of 64 in Louisiana. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 82,546, the population has declined by 1,781 (−2.2%), compared with −0.9% for Louisiana as a whole.
With 923.4 square miles of land, that is 87 people per square mile (34 per km²), placing St. Landry Parish #1,091 nationally for density and #21 in Louisiana. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Louisiana median is 48. Put another way, there are about 7.3 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 82,306 | 82,207 | 81,661 | 81,423 | 81,048 | 80,765 |
| Change | — | −99 | −546 | −238 | −375 | −283 |
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 St. Landry Parish
12 incorporated places lie at least partly in St. Landry Parish. Together they are home to 34,335 people (42.5%); the other 46,430 (57.5%) live outside any incorporated place, in unincorporated communities and rural areas.
The largest is Opelousas city, with 15,098 residents in the county. Among places with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, Sunset town grew fastest since then (+8.2%).
| Incorporated place | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opelousas cityCounty seat | 15,098 | −4.6% | 9.672 |
| Eunice cityAlso in 1 other county | 8,746 | −4.1% | 5.138 |
| Sunset town | 3,194 | +8.2% | 3.233 |
| Port Barre town | 1,741 | −0.7% | 1.078 |
| Arnaudville townAlso in 1 other county | 954 | −1% | 0.694 |
| Krotz Springs town | 877 | −3% | 1.674 |
| Leonville town | 870 | −0.1% | 2.725 |
| Grand Coteau town | 759 | −2.1% | 2.423 |
| Melville town | 735 | −3.3% | 1.256 |
| Washington town | 704 | −5.4% | 0.827 |
| Cankton village | 563 | −2.8% | 2.039 |
| Palmetto village | 94 | 0% | 0.887 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each place inside St. Landry Parish. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer, for the whole place even where it extends into other counties. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
St. Landry Parish is a central county of the Opelousas, LA Micropolitan Statistical Area. St. Landry Parish is the area’s only county equivalent, so the micro area has the same 923.4 square miles of land. By combined land it ranks #205 of 542 micropolitan areas, and #72 by population. It belongs to the Lafayette-New Iberia-Opelousas, LA Combined Statistical Area.
ZIP codes
19 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in St. Landry Parish; 13 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
70512705207052570535705417055070551705707057770584705867058970750713227134571353713567135871362
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 St. Landry Parish
St. Landry Parish shares a land border with 6 county equivalents. It has more land than every one of them. The largest neighbor is Avoyelles Parish (831.4 mi²) and the smallest is Lafayette Parish (268.8 mi²). Together with its neighbors, St. Landry Parish forms a block of 4,634.3 mi² of land, of which it holds 19.9%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. St. Landry | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avoyelles Parish | 831.4 | 1.1× smaller | Compare |
| St. Martin Parish | 737.5 | 1.3× smaller | Compare |
| Evangeline Parish | 662.4 | 1.4× smaller | Compare |
| Acadia Parish | 655.2 | 1.4× smaller | Compare |
| Pointe Coupee Parish | 555.5 | 1.7× smaller | Compare |
| Lafayette Parish | 268.8 | 3.4× smaller | Compare |
How big is St. Landry Parish compared with U.S. states?
St. Landry Parish has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.1 times as much. Louisiana’s county land could hold about 47 areas the size of St. Landry Parish.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 30.4 miles (48.9 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 St. Landry Parish?
St. Landry Parish has more land than 2,432 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 St. Landry Parish at #863 nationally by total area, 73 places farther from the top than its land rank. Other county equivalents gain more area when their water measurements are included.
Its water share is 1.7%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 0.5 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 St. Landry Parish in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #789 | Sterling County, Texas | 923.4 | Compare |
| #790 | St. Landry Parish, Louisiana | 923.4 | This county |
| #791 | Sherman County, Texas | 922.9 | 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 30.583441, -91.989274. 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: 2,391,536,702 m²; AWATER: 40,700,813 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 St. Landry Parish?
St. Landry Parish, Louisiana has 923.4 square miles (2,391.5 km²) of land and 15.7 square miles of water, for a total area of 939.1 square miles. It ranks #790 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is St. Landry Parish the largest county in Louisiana?
No. St. Landry Parish ranks #11 of 64 in Louisiana by land area. The largest is Vernon Parish, with 1,326.7 square miles of land.
What counties border St. Landry Parish?
St. Landry Parish shares a land border with Evangeline Parish, Acadia Parish, St. Martin Parish, Pointe Coupee Parish, Avoyelles Parish, and Lafayette Parish.
What is the population of St. Landry Parish?
The Census Bureau estimates St. Landry Parish had 80,765 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #733 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 87 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of St. Landry Parish?
The county seat of St. Landry Parish is Opelousas.
What cities and towns are in St. Landry Parish?
St. Landry Parish has 12 incorporated places. The most populous five are Opelousas city, Eunice city, Sunset town, Port Barre town, and Arnaudville town; 46,430 residents live outside any incorporated place.
Is St. Landry Parish part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the Opelousas, LA Micropolitan Statistical Area.
How many ZIP codes are in St. Landry Parish?
19 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in St. Landry Parish, and 13 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does St. Landry Parish compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.1 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in St. Landry Parish?
The land measurement converts to approximately 590,962 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 601,020 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.