County · Kansas

Brown County, Kansas

Brown County, Kansas. Brown County had 9,104 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 4.3% since 2020, while Kansas grew 1.3%. It holds 27 places (11 cities, villages and boroughs, 10 towns and townships and 6 census-designated) and 3 census tracts. GEOID 20013.

Residents, July 2025 estimate

9,104

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 9,508 · ACS 2020-2024: 9,343

Median household income

$62,233

±$7,582 (90% margin)
Kansas: $74,275

Median home value

$118,100

±$8,559 (90% margin)
Kansas: $217,200

Median gross rent

$646

±$98 (90% margin)
Kansas: $1,060

How many people live in Brown County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 9,508 residents in Brown County. The Census Bureau estimates 9,104 for July 1, 2025, down 4.3% since 2020, while Kansas grew 1.3%. The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 9,343 over 571 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −22 (9,458)
2021→2022 −83 (9,375)
2022→2023 −93 (9,282)
2023→2024 −149 (9,133)
2024→2025 −29 (9,104)

Brown County in Kansas. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Brown County	Kansas	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	9,343	2,947,197	−283
Households	3,794±154	1,174,060	no clear change
Average household size	2.43±0.10	2.44	no clear change
Housing units	4,478±37	1,293,635	−273

Brown County's population since 2000

From 10,724 in 2000 to 9,104 in 2025: down 15.1%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 10,724
2005 (estimate) 10,087
2010 Census 9,984
2015 (estimate) 9,710
2020 Census 9,508
2025 (estimate) 9,104

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Brown County?

Brown County holds 27 places: 11 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places), 10 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government) and 6 census-designated places. The largest is Hiawatha with 3,124 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Brown County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Hiawatha	city	3,280	3,197±26	$68,750	$121,800	14.7%	100%
Horton	city	1,523	1,610±169	$41,471	$79,600	22.4%	100%
Powhattan Township	township	849	767±118	$51,477	$61,600	19.8%	100%
Hiawatha TownshipGEOID 2001331700	township	616	584±156	$107,000	$313,800	0.4%	100%
Walnut Township, Brown County	township	560	718±196	$61,892	$119,100	8.6%	100%
Mission Township, Brown County	township	550	641±96	$59,688	$116,200	3.8%	100%
Morrill TownshipGEOID 2001348325	township	491	359±121	$88,438	$99,400	3.1%	100%
Washington Township, Brown County	township	471	478±109	$59,079	$120,800	25.5%	100%
Robinson TownshipGEOID 2001360350	township	363	242±72	$57,188	$105,100	6.8%	100%
Irving Township	township	315	388±87	$82,386	$201,400	13.0%	100%
Hamlin TownshipGEOID 2001329725	township	275	156±71	not published	$112,500	2.6%	100%
Everest	city	265	356±81	$47,813	$92,200	34.3%	100%
FairviewGEOID 2022425	city	240	342±117	$61,018	$109,200	16.4%	100%
MorrillGEOID 2048300	city	218	210±85	$67,750	$65,000	5.2%	100%
Padonia TownshipGEOID 2001354025	township	204	203±77	$98,750	$169,100	5.4%	100%
RobinsonGEOID 2060325	city	183	154±43	$59,167	$70,000	10.8%	100%
Kickapoo Tribal Center	CDP	177	128±41	$35,000	$43,800	47.5%	100%
Kickapoo Site 1GEOID 2036735	CDP	110	48±32	$24,722	not published	37.5%	100%
Kickapoo Site 7GEOID 2036741	CDP	104	64±37	$86,071	not published	18.8%	100%
PowhattanGEOID 2057350	city	69	74±40	$45,313	$47,500	50.0%	100%
ReserveGEOID 2059050	city	67	48±24	$41,250	$83,300	8.3%	100%
Kickapoo Site 5GEOID 2036739	CDP	59	161±47	$70,977	$43,000	8.7%	100%
Kickapoo Site 2GEOID 2036736	CDP	27	15±13	not published	not published	0.0%	100%
HamlinGEOID 2029700	city	25	14±14	$81,250	$73,300	0.0%	100%
WillisGEOID 2079400	city	24	35±20	$88,125	$50,000	6.1%	100%
Kickapoo Site 6GEOID 2036740	CDP	13	0±11	not published	not published	–	100%
Sabetha	city	2,545	2,471±237	$70,464	$170,800	10.6%	0%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Brown County?

The median resident of Brown County is 41.7 years old; 25.0% are under 18 and 22.3% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 81.5%, then non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaska Native residents at 6.3%. 1.2% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Brown County	Kansas	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	41.7±0.4	37.4	no clear change
Under 18 years	25.0%	23.8%	–
65 years and over	22.3%±0.3 pts	17.0%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	4.7%	13.6%	+0.1 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	81.5%±0.9 pts	72.7%	−1.5 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	1.6%±0.4 pts	5.2%	+0.9 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	0.3%±0.2 pts	2.9%	–
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	6.3%±0.7 pts	0.4%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.1%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	4.7%±0.8 pts	4.8%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	1.0%±0.8 pts	0.4%	–
Born outside the United States	1.2%±0.5 pts	7.4%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	2.0%±0.6 pts	12.1%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	7.5%±1.2 pts	6.8%	–
With a disability	16.6%±1.8 pts	13.5%	–
No health insurance coverage	10.2%±1.9 pts	8.8%	+3.0 pts
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	94.4%±1.3 pts	92.0%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	19.6%±2.6 pts	35.6%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	6.0%±1.2 pts	13.4%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	2.0%±0.8 pts	3.0%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Brown County earn?

Half of Brown County's 3,794 households earn less than $62,233 a year (±$7,582), against $74,275 in Kansas. In 2015-2019 it was $59,483 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 13.8% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Brown County	Kansas	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$62,233±$7,582	$74,275	no clear change
Mean household income	$86,032±$7,409	$100,417	–
Per capita income	$35,762±$2,814	$40,978	+$4,739
People below the poverty line	13.8%±2.3 pts	11.3%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	14.8%±4.8 pts	13.1%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	11.6%±2.3 pts	6.8%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	87.0%±3.4 pts	90.7%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Brown County?

Owners occupy 76.3% of Brown County's occupied homes and renters 23.7%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $118,100 by its owner (±$8,559). The median renter pays $646 a month including utilities, and 23.1% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Brown County	Kansas	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$118,100±$8,559	$217,200	no clear change
Median gross rent	$646±$98	$1,060	−$133
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	23.1%±5.9 pts	34.5%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,293±$131	$1,689	–
Owner-occupied homes	76.3%±3.4 pts	67.2%	+6.1 pts
Housing units	4,478±37	1,293,635	−273
Homeowner vacancy rate	1.1%±1.5 pts	0.9%	–
Rental vacancy rate	6.7%±5.0 pts	6.2%	–
Single-family detached homes	84.2%±2.8 pts	71.8%	–
Mobile homes	2.6%±0.8 pts	4.0%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.6%±0.6 pts	1.4%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	32.4%±3.3 pts	15.4%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Brown County building?

Builders took permits for 0 new housing units across Brown County in 2025 (0 single-family), 0.0 per 1,000 residents.

2019 2 units
2020 2 units
2021 0 units
2022 2 units
2023 1 units
2024 0 units
2025 0 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Brown County get to work?

76.5% of Brown County's workers drive alone and 7.1% work from home. The average trip to work takes 17.4 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 5.2%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Brown County	Kansas	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	63.0%±2.2 pts	66.1%	–
Unemployment rate	5.2%±1.6 pts	3.9%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	76.5%±2.6 pts	75.4%	–
Carpooled	11.3%±2.0 pts	8.7%	–
Public transportation	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.4%	–
Walked	3.4%±1.2 pts	2.3%	–
Worked from home	7.1%±1.9 pts	11.8%	no clear change
Mean travel time to work	17.4 min±1.4	19.7 min	no clear change

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Brown County's census tracts?

Brown County is divided into 3 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $56,069 (Tract 4808) to $70,758 (Tract 4807).

Census tracts of Brown County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 480620013480600	Fairview (4%)	2,786	2,624±182	$65,568	$119,500	$579	11.1%
Tract 480720013480700	Hiawatha (74%)	3,585	3,467±138	$70,758	$125,800	$660	13.8%
Tract 480820013480800	Horton (22%)	3,137	3,252±192	$56,069	$101,500	$672	16.0%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Brown County compare with Kansas's other counties?

Brown County's rank among Kansas's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	42nd of 105
Growth 2020-2025	87th of 105
Residents per square mile	38th of 105
Median household income	65th of 105
Median home value	58th of 105
Median gross rent	92nd of 104
Poverty rate	28th of 102
Bachelor's degree or higher	95th of 105
Median age	49th of 105

Every county in Kansas

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Brown County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.