Skip to content
Beacon CRE

Webster County, NE: population growth, jobs and income

Webster County gained 11 residents between 2024 and 2025 (+0.3%).

Webster County had an estimated 3,336 residents in 2025, down 1.6% (53 fewer people) since 2020. That is slower than Nebraska as a whole (+2.8%), and the 57th fastest growth of 81 counties in Nebraska.

Data as of 2025 · updated

See page 1 free (PDF)

14-day full refund · Stripe, Apple Pay or Google Pay · Instant PDF + CSV · Sold by Simply Stats LLC (NC)

How we compute every number · Refund terms

In the Webster County report

One-time $99 PDF: everything on this page for Webster County, ranked against Nebraska and the U.S., plus these figures that are not on the free page:

  • Median gross rent$647/mo2020–24
  • Vacant homes, incl. seasonal and second homes15.4%2020–24
  • New homes permitted, last 12 months42025-10/2026-09
  • Rent growth, 5 yearsIn the report
  • Permits in 5+ unit buildingsIn the report
  • IRS income moving in (net AGI)In the report
  • Neighbouring-county comparison tableIn the report

What's inside: 5 pages

  1. 1 Summary, headline numbers and ranks (free preview)
  2. 2 Ranks and the neighbouring-county table
  3. 3 Migration, with IRS mover and income flows
  4. 4 Rent, vacant homes, permits and employers
  5. 5 Every source and the methods
See every page of a sample report

Want Pro for Nebraska? Get notified

Headline numbers

New homes permitted

6

2025

1.8 per 1,000 residents

Small base: the change swings on a few homes or people, so we don't show it.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2025. Housing units authorized by building permits in the year.

What the numbers say

Net domestic migration added 31 people in 2025: more people moved in from other U.S. counties than moved out.

Private employers had 619 paid employees in mid-March 2023, +1.3% since 2018 (County Business Patterns).

Unemployment averaged 2.7% in 2025, 0.4 points lower than in 2019 (before the pandemic).

Builders were authorized to start 6 new homes in 2025, or 1.8 per 1,000 residents.

Median household income was $64,347 in the 2020–24 American Community Survey, +24.5% since 2016–20.

Across the 3,107 U.S. counties with a comparable estimate, its population growth ranks 2,356th.

Part of the Hastings, NE micro area.

Get Webster County’s next numbers by email

Email me when Webster County gets new Census numbers: population, building permits, jobs and income. About 4 emails a year, one click to stop.

We use your address only to email you when new data for Webster County is out: what changed, with a link to that county's report. No newsletter, no other sales emails. Delete it any time with the link in every email. We'll email you a link to confirm first; nothing starts until you click it. Privacy notice.

Webster County population by year

Resident population, July 1 estimate (Census Bureau)
YearPopulationChange
20253,336+11
20243,325−16
20233,341+3
20223,338−55
20213,393+4
20203,389–

Census Bureau population estimates, July 1 of each year.

What drove the change in Webster County

Webster County lost 53 people since 2020 even though 68 more people moved in from other U.S. counties than left: deaths outnumbered births by 128, and net international migration added 6.

Components of population change, people (Census Bureau)
Component20252020–25Share
Natural changebirths minus deaths−22−128
International migrationfrom and to other countries+3+6
Domestic migrationfrom and to other U.S. counties+31+68
Census adjustmentbalancing residual−1+1
Total change+11−53

Census Bureau population estimates, components of change, each year July 1 to June 30. The components add up to the change in the estimate; the Census adjustment is the small balancing figure the Bureau publishes.

How it ranks

MeasureIn NebraskaAmong U.S. counties
Population growth57th of 812,356th of 3,107
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents6th of 81596th of 3,108
Private-sector job growth31st of 801,676th of 3,092
Median household income54th of 811,661st of 3,107
Lowest unemployment rate41st of 81209th of 3,108
New homes permitted per 1,000 residents43rd of 811,633rd of 3,005

1st = highest (lowest for unemployment). Counties are ranked only against others with a figure for the same period.

Get the county report — $99

The County Growth and Demographics Report for Webster County, NE as a PDF, from federal data: population and migration, housing and rents, permits, private employers and jobs, unemployment, ranks in the state and the country, and neighbouring counties, with a source next to every number. Pay once, no subscription.

Add 2 neighbouring counties for $50: the Adams County and Kearney County reports too, $149 for all 3.

Choose other neighbouring counties

Preview page 1 of the Webster County report (free, PDF) · See a full 5-page sample (PDF) · Other counties and options

Every purchase also includes a CSV of every table in the report, ready for a spreadsheet.

Refund terms: Terms. · How we compute every number

Neighbouring counties

Over 2020–25, Webster County's population change (−1.6%) was ahead of 2 of its 7 neighbouring counties and behind 5.

4 of its 7 neighbouring counties had a higher median household income than Webster County's $64,347 (2020–24).

Webster County, NE and its 7 neighbouring counties: public federal figures
CountyPopulation2025Population change2020–25Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents2025Homes permitted per 1,000 residents2025Median household income2020–24
Webster County, NE This county3,336−1.6%9.31.8$64,347
Adams County, NE31,071−0.3%−4.93.8$68,365
Nuckolls County, NE4,100+0.2%2.41.0$73,976
Franklin County, NE2,795−3.1%−5.01.4$60,195
Jewell County, KS2,830−3.3%−7.80.0$52,634
Smith County, KS3,566+0.0%−4.80.0$59,135
Clay County, NE6,170+1.1%5.32.9$78,986
Kearney County, NE6,790+1.5%1.91.5$78,631

Census Bureau population estimates and building permits, American Community Survey 5-year income. Rates per 1,000 residents. – means no figure, or a base too small for a change or rate (it would swing on a few people). A figure from another period shows its year and is left out of the comparison.

All 93 Nebraska counties · Every state

Questions

Is Webster County growing?

No. Its population fell 1.6% between 2020 and 2025, about 53 fewer people (Census Bureau population estimates). Nebraska as a whole changed +2.8% over the same years. That ranks 57th of 81 counties in Nebraska for population growth.

How many people moved to Webster County?

On net, about 31 people in 2025: that many more moved in from other U.S. counties than moved out (Census Bureau net domestic migration estimate).

What is the unemployment rate in Webster County?

It averaged 2.7% in 2025 (BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual average).

What is the population of Webster County?

About 3,336 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's population estimate for July 1, 2025.

How many jobs are in Webster County?

Private employers there had 619 paid employees in mid-March 2023, +1.3% since 2018 (Census Bureau County Business Patterns; government jobs and the self-employed are not counted).

What Beacon CRE covers in Nebraska

Map, parcel and listing layers cover North and South Carolina only for now. This page and the other Nebraska county pages carry the public federal growth figures.

Webster County data alerts

Email me when Webster County gets new Census numbers: population, building permits, jobs and income. About 4 emails a year, one click to stop.

We use your address only to email you when new data for Webster County is out: what changed, with a link to that county's report. No newsletter, no other sales emails. Delete it any time with the link in every email. We'll email you a link to confirm first; nothing starts until you click it. Privacy notice.

Sources and method

Each number shows its own period. Changes compare the latest period with five years earlier (or the earliest period available). Beacon CRE last refreshed these figures on 2026-11-05. Figures come from public federal statistics and are informational only, not investment advice. Check the source before relying on a number. Methodology: how we compute every number. More on every layer: data sources and licences.

Jobs outside North and South Carolina use County Business Patterns (paid private-sector employees in mid-March); wages and government jobs are not included.