County outline
Where Cattaraugus County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 98.9% of Cattaraugus County’s measured area and water for 1.1%. Its combined area converts to 3,425 square kilometers or approximately 846,326 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 1,308.183 | 3,388.178 | 837,237.1 |
| Water | 14.202 | 36.783 | 9,089.3 |
| Total | 1,322.385 | 3,424.961 | 846,326.4 |
How Cattaraugus County compares
By original Census land area, Cattaraugus County ranks #8 of 62 in New York and #457 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 2.001 times the New York county-equivalent median of 653.7 square miles. It accounts for 2.8% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete New York ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Cattaraugus County
The Census Bureau estimates that 75,390 people lived in Cattaraugus County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #757 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #35 of 62 in New York. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 77,042, the population has declined by 1,652 (−2.1%), compared with −1% for New York as a whole.
With 1,308.2 square miles of land, that is 58 people per square mile (22 per km²), placing Cattaraugus County #1,418 nationally for density and #51 in New York. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the New York median is 112. Put another way, there are about 11 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 76,977 | 76,560 | 76,032 | 75,671 | 75,448 | 75,390 |
| Change | — | −417 | −528 | −361 | −223 | −58 |
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 Cattaraugus County
Cattaraugus County is divided into 37 cities and towns. In New York, county subdivisions are local governments, and together they cover all of the county’s land and residents.
The most populous is Olean city, with 13,508 residents (17.9% of the county). The largest by land is Allegany town, at 70.9 mi², or 5.4% of the county’s land. The county seat, Little Valley town, has 1,674 residents. Among those with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, Napoli town grew fastest since then (+2.9%).
| County subdivision | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olean city | 13,508 | −3% | 5.9 | 0.5% |
| Allegany town | 7,484 | −0.1% | 70.9 | 5.4% |
| Salamanca city | 5,719 | −3.7% | 5.994 | 0.5% |
| Yorkshire town | 3,733 | −2.5% | 36.9 | 2.8% |
| Portville town | 3,359 | −3.9% | 35.6 | 2.7% |
| Franklinville town | 2,715 | −3.2% | 51.8 | 4% |
| Randolph town | 2,405 | −2.7% | 36 | 2.8% |
| Machias town | 2,294 | −0.7% | 40.4 | 3.1% |
| Freedom town | 2,196 | −2.9% | 40.4 | 3.1% |
| Persia town | 2,138 | −2.8% | 20.9 | 1.6% |
| Hinsdale town | 2,097 | −1% | 38.7 | 3% |
| Great Valley town | 1,933 | −2.6% | 50.1 | 3.8% |
| New Albion town | 1,925 | −2.8% | 36.1 | 2.8% |
| Ashford town | 1,918 | −2.6% | 51.2 | 3.9% |
| Olean town | 1,846 | −2.6% | 29.6 | 2.3% |
Show the other 22 subdivisions
| Name | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conewango town | 1,734 | −3% | 36.1 |
| Little Valley townCounty seat | 1,674 | −0.4% | 29.9 |
| Dayton town | 1,637 | −2.8% | 35.6 |
| Perrysburg town | 1,483 | −2.8% | 28.4 |
| Ellicottville town | 1,298 | −0.7% | 45.1 |
| Leon town | 1,259 | +0.7% | 36.1 |
| Napoli town | 1,201 | +2.9% | 36.4 |
| Carrollton town | 1,174 | −2.8% | 42.2 |
| Farmersville town | 1,073 | −0.4% | 47.8 |
| Allegany Reservation | 1,035 | −2.2% | 36.3 |
| East Otto town | 951 | −2.5% | 41.2 |
| Mansfield town | 850 | +1.3% | 39.6 |
| Otto town | 781 | +0.3% | 32.1 |
| Ischua town | 723 | −1.4% | 32.4 |
| Humphrey town | 689 | −1.4% | 36.6 |
| Lyndon town | 678 | −0.9% | 33.2 |
| Coldspring town | 652 | −1.1% | 51.4 |
| Cattaraugus Reservation | 482 | −2.6% | 5.845 |
| Salamanca town | 462 | −2.1% | 18.3 |
| South Valley town | 244 | −2.4% | 36.8 |
| Red House town | 29 | −3.3% | 55.6 |
| Oil Springs Reservation | 11 | 0% | 0.37 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each subdivision inside Cattaraugus County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
Cattaraugus County is a central county of the Olean, NY Micropolitan Statistical Area. Cattaraugus County is the area’s only county equivalent, so the micro area has the same 1,308.2 square miles of land. By combined land it ranks #128 of 542 micropolitan areas, and #85 by population. It belongs to the Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Olean, NY Combined Statistical Area.
ZIP codes
37 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Cattaraugus County; 27 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
14009140301404114042140601406214065140701408114101141291413814141141681417114173147061471914726147271472914731147371473814741147431474714748147531475514760147701477214778147791478314788
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 Cattaraugus County
Cattaraugus County shares a land border with 6 county equivalents, including 2 in Pennsylvania. It has more land than every one of them. The largest neighbor is Chautauqua County (1,060.4 mi²) and the smallest is Wyoming County (592.7 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Cattaraugus County forms a block of 6,897.5 mi² of land, of which it holds 19%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Cattaraugus | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chautauqua County | 1,060.4 | 1.2× smaller | Compare |
| Erie County | 1,042.8 | 1.3× smaller | Compare |
| Allegany County | 1,029.5 | 1.3× smaller | Compare |
| McKean CountyPennsylvania | 979.7 | 1.3× smaller | Compare |
| Warren CountyPennsylvania | 884.3 | 1.5× smaller | Compare |
| Wyoming County | 592.7 | 2.2× smaller | Compare |
How big is Cattaraugus County compared with U.S. states?
Cattaraugus County has more land than 1 of the 50 states. It is about 1.3 times the land area of Rhode Island (1,033.9 mi²), while Delaware, the next larger state, has 1.5 times as much land (1,948.6 mi²). New York’s county land could hold about 36 areas the size of Cattaraugus County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 36.2 miles (58.2 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 Cattaraugus County?
Cattaraugus County has more land than 2,765 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 Cattaraugus County at #519 nationally by total area, 62 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 1.1%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2%. The two percentages are within 0.1 percentage points of each other. 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 Cattaraugus County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #456 | Schleicher County, Texas | 1,310.6 | Compare |
| #457 | Cattaraugus County, New York | 1,308.2 | This county |
| #458 | Mellette County, South Dakota | 1,307.3 | 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 42.239099, -78.662332. 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: 3,388,177,044 m²; AWATER: 36,783,591 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 Cattaraugus County?
Cattaraugus County, New York has 1,308.2 square miles (3,388.2 km²) of land and 14.2 square miles of water, for a total area of 1,322.4 square miles. It ranks #457 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Cattaraugus County the largest county in New York?
No. Cattaraugus County ranks #8 of 62 in New York by land area. The largest is St. Lawrence County, with 2,679.5 square miles of land.
What counties border Cattaraugus County?
Cattaraugus County shares a land border with Chautauqua County, Allegany County, Erie County, McKean County, Pennsylvania, Wyoming County, and Warren County, Pennsylvania.
What is the population of Cattaraugus County?
The Census Bureau estimates Cattaraugus County had 75,390 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #757 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 58 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Cattaraugus County?
The county seat of Cattaraugus County is Little Valley.
What cities and towns are in Cattaraugus County?
Cattaraugus County has 37 county subdivisions (cities, towns and townships). The most populous five are Olean city, Allegany town, Salamanca city, Yorkshire town, and Portville town.
Is Cattaraugus County part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the Olean, NY Micropolitan Statistical Area.
How many ZIP codes are in Cattaraugus County?
37 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Cattaraugus County, and 27 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Cattaraugus County compare with U.S. states?
It has more land than 1 of the 50 states, including Rhode Island (1,033.9 square miles of land).
How many acres of land are in Cattaraugus County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 837,237 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 846,326 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.