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Most populous counties

County equivalents ranked by the Census Bureau’s latest July 1 population estimate. Land area and density are shown alongside, because a populous county is not necessarily a dense one.

Ranks 2001–2100

Vintage 2025 population estimates · 2026 Gazetteer land area · 3,222 county equivalents · page 21 of 33

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What this part of the ranking shows

This page runs from Adjuntas Municipio, Puerto Rico at 17,994 residents to Torrance County, New Mexico at 16,100 residents. The 100 entries represent 34 state-level jurisdictions. Arkansas has the most entries on this page (8, tied for the lead).

Rank numbers continue across pages and describe the full selected ranking. They are not state ranks. Start at rank 1 for the leading entries, or open a county profile for its state rank and median comparisons.

Most populous counties, ranks 2001 through 2100. Population is the July 1, 2025 estimate; density is per square mile of land.
RankCounty / equivalentStatePopulationPer mi²Land mi²
2001Adjuntas MunicipioPuerto Rico17,99427066.6
2002Pike CountyMissouri17,95527670.4
2003Covington CountyMississippi17,89843413.8
2004Idaho CountyIdaho17,8742.18,477.5
2005Falls CountyTexas17,86923765.5
2006Montour CountyPennsylvania17,868137130.3
2007Sequatchie CountyTennessee17,86167265.9
2008Unicoi CountyTennessee17,85696186.1
2009Robertson CountyTexas17,83921855.2
2010Concordia ParishLouisiana17,83626695.7
2011Ashley CountyArkansas17,83119925.5
2012Rabun CountyGeorgia17,76448370.1
2013Franklin CountyArkansas17,72529609
2014Otero CountyColorado17,683141,261.9
2015Delaware CountyIowa17,67431577.7
2016Jasper CountyGeorgia17,63248368.4
2017Marion CountyArkansas17,59329596.6
2018Hughes CountySouth Dakota17,57024741.5
2019Lafayette CountyWisconsin17,47828633.6
2020Winston CountyMississippi17,47329607.3
2021Gunnison CountyColorado17,4395.43,239.1
2022Patrick CountyVirginia17,42436483
2023Piscataquis CountyMaine17,4094.43,960.8
2024Union CountySouth Dakota17,40238462
2025Madison CountyIowa17,27031561
2026Humboldt CountyNevada17,2671.89,640.8
2027Radford cityVirginia17,2431,7829.7
2028Burnett CountyWisconsin17,22321821.6
2029Luquillo MunicipioPuerto Rico17,19066625.8
2030Appomattox CountyVirginia17,17251334.2
2031Buckingham CountyVirginia17,13730579.6
2032Cooper CountyMissouri17,13630564.7
2033McCreary CountyKentucky17,12440426.7
2034Attala CountyMississippi17,10023735
2035Ben Hill CountyGeorgia17,09968250.1
2036Washburn CountyWisconsin17,08721797.1
2037Bertie CountyNorth Carolina17,08624699.2
2038Drew CountyArkansas17,05421828.7
2039Haywood CountyTennessee17,04232533.1
2040Richland CountyWisconsin17,03629586.2
2041Fountain CountyIndiana17,01343395.7
2042Bond CountyIllinois16,95945380.3
2043Mason CountyKentucky16,93671240.1
2044Schuyler CountyNew York16,92452328.3
2045Mariposa CountyCalifornia16,918121,448.8
2046Leon CountyTexas16,894161,073.2
2047McDowell CountyWest Virginia16,87832533.5
2048Clayton CountyIowa16,84522778.5
2049Hancock CountyIllinois16,80321793.7
2050Tama CountyIowa16,79623721
2051Piatt CountyIllinois16,79138439.2
2052Bayfield CountyWisconsin16,787111,477.9
2053Rush CountyIndiana16,76741408.1
2054Jackson CountyArkansas16,74126633.6
2055Richland CountyNorth Dakota16,731121,435.7
2056Chickasaw CountyMississippi16,73033501.8
2057La Paz CountyArizona16,7113.74,496.6
2058Alamosa CountyColorado16,68823722.6
2059Baker CountyOregon16,6585.43,068
2060Union CountyIllinois16,65640413.4
2061Ciales MunicipioPuerto Rico16,65225066.6
2062Parke CountyIndiana16,64237444.7
2063Kanabec CountyMinnesota16,62832521.6
2064Pitkin CountyColorado16,62517970.7
2065Giles CountyVirginia16,56446357.2
2066Manassas Park cityVirginia16,5605,4743
2067Otoe CountyNebraska16,53127615.6
2068Bates CountyMissouri16,51220836.7
2069Iowa CountyIowa16,50428586.5
2070Grand CountyColorado16,4968.91,846.6
2071Northampton CountyNorth Carolina16,49131536.7
2072Guayanilla MunicipioPuerto Rico16,48939042.2
2073Hardin CountyIowa16,45529569.3
2074Henry CountyKentucky16,44757286.3
2075Gooding CountyIdaho16,44623729.3
2076Bristol cityVirginia16,4181,27512.9
2077Wayne CountyTennessee16,41622734.1
2078Oglethorpe CountyGeorgia16,41537439.1
2079Lewis CountyWest Virginia16,39442386.9
2080Edgar CountyIllinois16,32326623.3
2081Taylor CountyWest Virginia16,28794172.8
2082Lawrence CountyArkansas16,27328587.5
2083Marshall CountyOklahoma16,25544371.5
2084Aitkin CountyMinnesota16,2528.91,821.3
2085Union CountyFlorida16,25067243.9
2086Van Buren CountyArkansas16,23823709.6
2087Crawford CountyIowa16,23723714.2
2088Warren CountyIllinois16,22230542.4
2089Casey CountyKentucky16,20536444.3
2090Ashland CountyWisconsin16,203161,045
2091Clay CountyIowa16,20229567.2
2092Cross CountyArkansas16,18626616.3
2093Benton CountyTennessee16,18341394.3
2094Atchison CountyKansas16,17238431.2
2095Hill CountyMontana16,1675.62,899.4
2096Scurry CountyTexas16,16218905.4
2097Dade CountyGeorgia16,15493174.1
2098Rockcastle CountyKentucky16,14851316.6
2099Brooks CountyGeorgia16,10133493.2
2100Torrance CountyNew Mexico16,1004.83,345.2

Read the differences behind ranks 2001–2100

The median population among these 100 entries is 16,794. The first and last entries span 1,894 residents. This median describes the entries on this page, not the full national dataset. Pagination is a browsing boundary, not a distinct geographic region.

Adjacent ranks can differ by a handful of residents or by many thousands. Open a county profile for its population trend since 2020, land area, and state comparisons.

Where the entries on this page are located

  • Arkansas8 entries · 8% of this page
  • Iowa8 entries · 8% of this page
  • Virginia7 entries · 7% of this page
  • Georgia6 entries · 6% of this page
  • Illinois6 entries · 6% of this page
  • Wisconsin6 entries · 6% of this page

The remaining 28 jurisdictions contribute 59 entries. The list above shows the six most represented, with alphabetical ordering when counts tie.

These counts describe representation in this slice of the ranking. They do not measure a state’s share of national land or population. Compare the first and last county equivalents on this page to inspect land, water, and total area separately.

Read the geographic explanation behind this ranking, or return to the ranking overview for the national distribution and guidance on selecting a measurement.

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Browse by state for a complete state ranking.

Population rankings use Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimates; density rankings divide them by original ALAND square meters. Land rankings use original ALAND square meters; total-area rankings use ALAND + AWATER. Exact ties use ascending GEOID. Displayed square-mile values are rounded. Read the methodology.