| ZIP Codes: | 8 ZIP Codes (6 Standard, 2 PO Box, 0 Unique) [See All] |
| Area Codes: | 402 / 531 |
| Timezone: | Central (GMT -06:00) |
| Local Time: | 2:13:07 PM |
| Population: | 35,756 [See All] |
| FIPS: | 31141 |
| CBSA: | Columbus, NE |
| Land Area: | 667 sq mi |
| Water Area: | 12 sq mi |
| Coordinates: | 41.5607, -97.4800 |
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35,756 residents live across 8 ZIPs covering 667 sq mi, served by 7 distinct USPS-recognized cities.
Population moved from 33,080 to 35,756 from 2014 to 2024 — a +8.1% change. 3 ZIPs gained residents, 4 lost.
The county's wealthiest ZIP 68647 (Monroe, $103,038 median) and poorest ZIP 68601 (Columbus, $68,480) are 13.8 miles apart — a 1.5× income gap across local geography.
Median home values vary 1.8× across this county — from $165,000 in 68634 (Duncan) to $298,100 in 68644 (Lindsay).
Density varies 161× across the county — from 8 people/sq mi in 68631 (Creston) to 1,311 in 68634 (Duncan).
Educational attainment ranges from 12.6% bachelor's+ in 68634 (Duncan) to 31.5% in 68647 (Monroe) — the breadth of educational profiles across the area.
Within Nebraska, this is the #9 most populous of 107 counties and ranks #7 for median household income with the #13 fastest decade growth .
Weighted by population, the typical household earns about $71,515 across the county — reflecting what a typical resident sees, not a simple ZIP average.
22.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher (5,219 of 23,159 reporting).
6 Standard delivery, 2 PO Box only, 0 single-entity Unique ZIPs serve this county.
A frontier county — vast land area with only a few residents per square mile. Daily life looks very different here than in the country's denser counties.
One ZIP holds the majority of this county's population — a sign of a county built around a single city or town.
| ZIP | City | Type | Population | Median Income | Area (sq mi) | 10-yr Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 68601 | Columbus | Standard | 30,944 | $68,480 | 284.5 | 9.8% |
| 68642 | Humphrey | Standard | 1,628 | $93,798 | 132.0 | -8.9% |
| 68644 | Lindsay | Standard | 762 | $81,750 | 89.2 | -8.9% |
| 68653 | Platte Center | Standard | 748 | $99,500 | 59.5 | -10.5% |
| 68647 | Monroe | Standard | 702 | $103,038 | 60.3 | 29.8% |
| 68634 | Duncan | PO Box | 635 | $74,125 | 0.5 | 66.7% |
| 68631 | Creston | Standard | 337 | $86,750 | 41.4 | -33.5% |
| 68602 | Columbus | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |