County outline
Where Mineral County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 98.4% of Mineral County’s measured area and water for 1.6%. Its combined area converts to 9,871.6 square kilometers or approximately 2,439,336 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 3,751.283 | 9,715.778 | 2,400,821.1 |
| Water | 60.18 | 155.865 | 38,515.2 |
| Total | 3,811.463 | 9,871.644 | 2,439,336.3 |
How Mineral County compares
By original Census land area, Mineral County ranks #12 of 17 in Nevada and #135 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 0.68 times the Nevada county-equivalent median of 5,519.2 square miles. It accounts for 3.4% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Nevada ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Mineral County
The Census Bureau estimates that 4,407 people lived in Mineral County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #2,937 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #13 of 17 in Nevada. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 4,552, the population has declined by 145 (−3.2%), compared with +5.7% for Nevada as a whole.
With 3,751.3 square miles of land, that is 1.2 people per square mile (0.45 per km²), placing Mineral County #3,131 nationally for density and #11 in Nevada. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Nevada median is 3.2. Put another way, there are about 545 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 4,554 | 4,622 | 4,542 | 4,520 | 4,481 | 4,407 |
| Change | — | +68 | −80 | −22 | −39 | −74 |
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 Mineral County
Mineral County has no incorporated cities, towns or villages. All 4,407 of its residents live in unincorporated communities, which the Census Bureau describes as census-designated places rather than municipalities.
Metropolitan area
Mineral County is not part of any metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area in the Office of Management and Budget’s July 2023 delineation; 1,306 other county equivalents are also outside one. These areas are built around an urban core of at least 10,000 people plus the counties tied to it by commuting, so counties outside them are generally rural.
ZIP codes
6 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Mineral County; 4 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
890108940989415894208942289427
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 Mineral County
Mineral County shares a land border with 5 county equivalents, including 1 in California. It has more land than 3 of them. The largest neighbor is Nye County (18,181.9 mi²) and the smallest is Lyon County (2,003.1 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Mineral County forms a block of 35,517.2 mi² of land, of which it holds 10.6%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Mineral | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nye County | 18,181.9 | 4.8× larger | Compare |
| Churchill County | 4,950.2 | 1.3× larger | Compare |
| Esmeralda County | 3,581.9 | about the same | Compare |
| Mono CountyCalifornia | 3,048.9 | 1.2× smaller | Compare |
| Lyon County | 2,003.1 | 1.9× smaller | Compare |
How big is Mineral County compared with U.S. states?
Mineral County has more land than 2 of the 50 states. It is about 1.9 times the land area of Delaware (1,948.6 mi²), while Connecticut, the next larger state, has 1.3 times as much land (4,842.5 mi²). Nevada’s county land could hold about 29 areas the size of Mineral County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 61.2 miles (98.6 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 Mineral County?
Mineral County has more land than 3,087 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 Mineral County at #140 nationally by total area, 5 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 1.6%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 0.4 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 Mineral County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #134 | Colfax County, New Mexico | 3,758 | Compare |
| #135 | Mineral County, Nevada | 3,751.3 | This county |
| #136 | Sandoval County, New Mexico | 3,710.2 | 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 38.516647, -118.416279. 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: 9,715,777,471 m²; AWATER: 155,864,513 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 Mineral County?
Mineral County, Nevada has 3,751.3 square miles (9,715.8 km²) of land and 60.2 square miles of water, for a total area of 3,811.5 square miles. It ranks #135 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Mineral County the largest county in Nevada?
No. Mineral County ranks #12 of 17 in Nevada by land area. The largest is Nye County, with 18,181.9 square miles of land.
What counties border Mineral County?
Mineral County shares a land border with Lyon County, Nye County, Esmeralda County, Mono County, California, and Churchill County.
What is the population of Mineral County?
The Census Bureau estimates Mineral County had 4,407 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #2,937 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 1.2 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Mineral County?
The county seat of Mineral County is Hawthorne.
Is Mineral County part of a metropolitan area?
No. Mineral County is outside every metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area in the July 2023 OMB delineation.
How many ZIP codes are in Mineral County?
6 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Mineral County, and 4 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Mineral County compare with U.S. states?
It has more land than 2 of the 50 states, including Delaware (1,948.6 square miles of land).
How many acres of land are in Mineral County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 2,400,821 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 2,439,336 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.