County outline
Where Clarion County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 98.5% of Clarion County’s measured area and water for 1.5%. Its combined area converts to 1,579.5 square kilometers or approximately 390,300 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 600.836 | 1,556.158 | 384,535 |
| Water | 9.008 | 23.331 | 5,765.1 |
| Total | 609.844 | 1,579.489 | 390,300.2 |
How Clarion County compares
By original Census land area, Clarion County ranks #38 of 67 in Pennsylvania and #1621 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 0.92 times the Pennsylvania county-equivalent median of 653.3 square miles. It accounts for 1.3% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Pennsylvania ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Clarion County
The Census Bureau estimates that 36,680 people lived in Clarion County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #1,305 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #57 of 67 in Pennsylvania. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 37,237, the population has declined by 557 (−1.5%), compared with +0.4% for Pennsylvania as a whole.
With 600.8 square miles of land, that is 61 people per square mile (24 per km²), placing Clarion County #1,370 nationally for density and #51 in Pennsylvania. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Pennsylvania median is 137. Put another way, there are about 10 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 37,200 | 37,598 | 37,287 | 36,944 | 36,741 | 36,680 |
| Change | — | +398 | −311 | −343 | −203 | −61 |
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 Clarion County
Clarion County is divided into 35 municipalities and townships. In Pennsylvania, county subdivisions are local governments, and together they cover all of the county’s land and residents.
The most populous is Clarion borough, with 4,037 residents (11% of the county). The largest by land is Farmington township, at 62.3 mi², or 10.4% of the county’s land. Among those with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, Clarion borough grew fastest since then (+2.7%).
| County subdivision | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clarion boroughCounty seat | 4,037 | +2.7% | 1.574 | 0.3% |
| Clarion townshipCounty seat | 3,583 | −2.2% | 31.3 | 5.2% |
| Washington township | 1,835 | −1.4% | 32.9 | 5.5% |
| Limestone township | 1,825 | −2.6% | 37.8 | 6.3% |
| Beaver township | 1,782 | −2.5% | 33.4 | 5.6% |
| Farmington township | 1,730 | −2.8% | 62.3 | 10.4% |
| Paint township | 1,622 | −1.5% | 20.3 | 3.4% |
| Monroe township | 1,469 | −0.9% | 29.4 | 4.9% |
| Elk township | 1,399 | −2.2% | 31.5 | 5.2% |
| Redbank township | 1,301 | −2.4% | 30.1 | 5% |
| Porter township | 1,253 | −2.8% | 43.9 | 7.3% |
| Madison township | 1,133 | −1.2% | 26.7 | 4.4% |
| Ashland township | 1,092 | −2.6% | 22.4 | 3.7% |
| Knox borough | 1,068 | −2.7% | 0.562 | 0.1% |
| Knox township | 977 | −1.7% | 16 | 2.7% |
Show the other 20 subdivisions
| Name | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toby township | 968 | −2.3% | 29 |
| New Bethlehem borough | 943 | −2.8% | 0.466 |
| Rimersburg borough | 919 | −3.1% | 0.364 |
| Perry township | 893 | −2.8% | 28.8 |
| Salem township | 882 | −1.8% | 16 |
| East Brady borough | 799 | −2.4% | 0.809 |
| Sligo borough | 666 | −1.9% | 1.407 |
| Licking township | 574 | +0.3% | 17.5 |
| Highland township | 540 | +1.1% | 19.9 |
| Strattanville borough | 521 | −2.3% | 0.5 |
| Richland township | 474 | +1.5% | 15.1 |
| Hawthorn borough | 468 | −2.1% | 1.025 |
| Shippenville borough | 440 | −0.5% | 0.388 |
| Piney township | 404 | −1% | 17.8 |
| Millcreek township | 361 | 0% | 28.9 |
| St. Petersburg borough | 326 | −3.3% | 0.319 |
| Foxburg borough | 178 | −1.7% | 0.368 |
| Callensburg borough | 143 | −2.7% | 0.145 |
| Brady township | 70 | −2.8% | 1.653 |
| Emlenton borough | 5 | 0% | 0.097 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each subdivision inside Clarion County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
Clarion 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
32 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Clarion County; 21 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
1582915860158641602816036160491605416213162141621716220162241623016232162331623516240162421624816254162551625816260163191632616331163321633416353163611636416373
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 Clarion County
Clarion County shares a land border with 5 county equivalents. It has more land than 1 of them. The largest neighbor is Butler County (789.5 mi²) and the smallest is Forest County (427.3 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Clarion County forms a block of 3,797.6 mi² of land, of which it holds 15.8%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Clarion | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Butler County | 789.5 | 1.3× larger | Compare |
| Venango County | 674.3 | 1.1× larger | Compare |
| Armstrong County | 653.3 | 1.1× larger | Compare |
| Jefferson County | 652.5 | 1.1× larger | Compare |
| Forest County | 427.3 | 1.4× smaller | Compare |
How big is Clarion County compared with U.S. states?
Clarion County has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.7 times as much. Pennsylvania’s county land could hold about 74 areas the size of Clarion County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 24.5 miles (39.4 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 Clarion County?
Clarion County has more land than 1,601 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 Clarion County at #1,713 nationally by total area, 92 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 1.5%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 0.3 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 Clarion County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1620 | Jo Daviess County, Illinois | 600.9 | Compare |
| #1621 | Clarion County, Pennsylvania | 600.8 | This county |
| #1622 | Honolulu County, Hawaii | 600.8 | 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 41.204617, -79.418849. 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: 1,556,156,936 m²; AWATER: 23,330,905 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 Clarion County?
Clarion County, Pennsylvania has 600.8 square miles (1,556.2 km²) of land and 9.008 square miles of water, for a total area of 609.8 square miles. It ranks #1621 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Clarion County the largest county in Pennsylvania?
No. Clarion County ranks #38 of 67 in Pennsylvania by land area. The largest is Lycoming County, with 1,228.9 square miles of land.
What counties border Clarion County?
Clarion County shares a land border with Armstrong County, Forest County, Jefferson County, Venango County, and Butler County.
What is the population of Clarion County?
The Census Bureau estimates Clarion County had 36,680 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #1,305 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 61 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Clarion County?
The county seat of Clarion County is Clarion.
What cities and towns are in Clarion County?
Clarion County has 35 county subdivisions (cities, towns and townships). The most populous five are Clarion borough, Clarion township, Washington township, Limestone township, and Beaver township.
Is Clarion County part of a metropolitan area?
No. Clarion County is outside every metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area in the July 2023 OMB delineation.
How many ZIP codes are in Clarion County?
32 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Clarion County, and 21 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Clarion County compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.7 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in Clarion County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 384,535 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 390,300 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.