County outline
Where Greene County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 98.3% of Greene County’s measured area and water for 1.7%. Its combined area converts to 1,704.3 square kilometers or approximately 421,151 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 647.161 | 1,676.139 | 414,183 |
| Water | 10.888 | 28.2 | 6,968.3 |
| Total | 658.049 | 1,704.339 | 421,151.4 |
How Greene County compares
By original Census land area, Greene County ranks #33 of 62 in New York and #1462 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 0.99 times the New York county-equivalent median of 653.7 square miles. It accounts for 1.4% 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 Greene County
The Census Bureau estimates that 47,238 people lived in Greene County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #1,063 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #48 of 62 in New York. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 47,926, the population has declined by 688 (−1.4%), compared with −1% for New York as a whole.
With 647.2 square miles of land, that is 73 people per square mile (28 per km²), placing Greene County #1,228 nationally for density and #45 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 8.8 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 47,743 | 48,272 | 47,654 | 47,411 | 47,311 | 47,238 |
| Change | — | +529 | −618 | −243 | −100 | −73 |
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 Greene County
Greene County is divided into 14 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 Catskill town, with 11,184 residents (23.7% of the county). The largest by land is Hunter town, at 89.9 mi², or 13.9% of the county’s land. Among those with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, Windham town grew fastest since then (+0.4%).
| County subdivision | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catskill townCounty seat | 11,184 | −1.1% | 60.4 | 9.3% |
| Coxsackie town | 8,079 | −3.5% | 36.9 | 5.7% |
| Cairo town | 6,661 | −0.3% | 59.8 | 9.2% |
| Athens town | 3,917 | −0.2% | 26.2 | 4.1% |
| Greenville town | 3,707 | −1.6% | 38.8 | 6% |
| New Baltimore town | 3,139 | −2.1% | 41.4 | 6.4% |
| Hunter town | 2,994 | −1.8% | 89.9 | 13.9% |
| Durham town | 2,603 | −1.3% | 49.3 | 7.6% |
| Windham town | 1,701 | +0.4% | 45.2 | 7% |
| Jewett town | 858 | −2.1% | 50.3 | 7.8% |
| Lexington town | 765 | −0.6% | 80.2 | 12.4% |
| Prattsville town | 721 | −0.8% | 21 | 3.2% |
| Ashland town | 656 | −1.4% | 24.6 | 3.8% |
| Halcott town | 253 | 0% | 23 | 3.6% |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each subdivision inside Greene County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
Greene 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
42 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Greene County; 37 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
120151204212046120511205812083120871212012124121431217612192124051240712413124141241812422124231242412427124301243112436124391244212444124501245112452124541246012463124681246912470124731248012482124851249212496
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 Greene County
Greene County shares a land border with 5 county equivalents. It has more land than 3 of them. The largest neighbor is Delaware County (1,442.6 mi²) and the smallest is Albany County (522.9 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Greene County forms a block of 4,993.4 mi² of land, of which it holds 13%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Greene | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware County | 1,442.6 | 2.2× larger | Compare |
| Ulster County | 1,124.2 | 1.7× larger | Compare |
| Columbia County | 634.7 | about the same | Compare |
| Schoharie County | 621.8 | about the same | Compare |
| Albany County | 522.9 | 1.2× smaller | Compare |
How big is Greene County compared with U.S. states?
Greene County has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.6 times as much. New York’s county land could hold about 73 areas the size of Greene County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 25.4 miles (40.9 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 Greene County?
Greene County has more land than 1,760 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 Greene County at #1,545 nationally by total area, 83 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 Greene County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1461 | Faulkner County, Arkansas | 647.2 | Compare |
| #1462 | Greene County, New York | 647.2 | This county |
| #1463 | Greene County, Alabama | 647 | 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 42.286970, -74.149542. 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: 1,676,140,479 m²; AWATER: 28,201,062 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 Greene County?
Greene County, New York has 647.2 square miles (1,676.1 km²) of land and 10.9 square miles of water, for a total area of 658 square miles. It ranks #1462 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Greene County the largest county in New York?
No. Greene County ranks #33 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 Greene County?
Greene County shares a land border with Ulster County, Columbia County, Albany County, Delaware County, and Schoharie County.
What is the population of Greene County?
The Census Bureau estimates Greene County had 47,238 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #1,063 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 73 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Greene County?
The county seat of Greene County is Catskill.
What cities and towns are in Greene County?
Greene County has 14 county subdivisions (cities, towns and townships). The most populous five are Catskill town, Coxsackie town, Cairo town, Athens town, and Greenville town.
Is Greene County part of a metropolitan area?
No. Greene County is outside every metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area in the July 2023 OMB delineation.
How many ZIP codes are in Greene County?
42 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Greene County, and 37 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Greene County compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.6 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in Greene County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 414,183 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 421,151 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.