County · Mississippi

Bolivar County, Mississippi

Bolivar County, Mississippi. Bolivar County had 28,262 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 8.8% since 2020, a steeper fall than Mississippi's (−0.2%). It holds 19 places (15 cities, villages and boroughs and 4 census-designated) and 9 census tracts. GEOID 28011.

Bolivar County is the county of the Cleveland, MS micropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

28,262

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 30,985 · ACS 2020-2024: 29,534

Median household income

$39,585

±$4,860 (90% margin)
Mississippi: $56,447

Median home value

$130,000

±$12,596 (90% margin)
Mississippi: $169,800

Median gross rent

$685

±$49 (90% margin)
Mississippi: $954

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

The 2020 Census counted 30,985 residents in Bolivar County. The Census Bureau estimates 28,262 for July 1, 2025, down 8.8% since 2020, a steeper fall than Mississippi's (−0.2%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 29,534 over 877 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −698 (30,140)
2021→2022 −711 (29,429)
2022→2023 −600 (28,829)
2023→2024 −306 (28,523)
2024→2025 −261 (28,262)

Bolivar County in Mississippi. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Bolivar County	Mississippi	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	29,534	2,946,779	−2,314
Households	11,915±263	1,145,431	no clear change
Average household size	2.35±0.05	2.49	−0.16
Housing units	13,673±52	1,341,114	−684

Bolivar County's population since 2000

From 40,633 in 2000 to 28,262 in 2025: down 30.4%. 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 40,633
2005 (estimate) 36,305
2010 Census 34,145
2015 (estimate) 33,233
2020 Census 30,985
2025 (estimate) 28,262

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 Bolivar County?

Bolivar County holds 19 places: 15 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 4 census-designated places. The largest is Cleveland with 10,138 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 Bolivar County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Cleveland	city	11,199	10,623±26	$44,074	$159,300	29.3%	100%
Shelby	city	2,021	1,700±392	$25,948	$90,400	55.6%	100%
Rosedale	city	1,584	1,703±294	$18,696	$103,600	57.5%	100%
Mound Bayou	city	1,534	1,449±360	$23,732	$65,700	46.4%	100%
Shaw	city	1,457	1,508±266	$30,469	$102,100	37.5%	100%
Renova	town	676	978±421	$25,625	$105,700	57.1%	100%
BoyleGEOID 2808180	town	532	414±192	$42,143	not published	16.4%	100%
MerigoldGEOID 2846720	town	379	484±203	$51,250	$138,300	4.8%	100%
BenoitGEOID 2805220	town	365	509±238	not published	$83,100	38.3%	100%
GunnisonGEOID 2829900	town	295	392±156	not published	$57,000	33.4%	100%
DuncanGEOID 2820380	town	276	477±220	$49,041	not published	20.3%	100%
BeulahGEOID 2805820	town	242	327±128	$31,607	$56,300	32.1%	100%
SkeneGEOID 2868200	CDP	210	129±135	not published	not published	0.0%	100%
PaceGEOID 2854920	town	183	104±56	$27,917	$76,000	6.7%	100%
WinstonvilleGEOID 2880800	town	153	132±67	not published	$162,500	33.3%	100%
AlligatorGEOID 2800940	town	116	116±104	not published	$58,200	37.9%	100%
ScottGEOID 2866240	CDP	90	27±40	not published	not published	0.0%	100%
SymondsGEOID 2872080	CDP	72	24±24	not published	not published	70.8%	100%
BolivarGEOID 2807460	CDP	39	59±68	not published	not published	0.0%	100%

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 Bolivar County?

The median resident of Bolivar County is 37.5 years old; 24.6% are under 18 and 17.1% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic Black residents at 63.2%, then non-Hispanic white residents at 31.0%. 1.7% 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	Bolivar County	Mississippi	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	37.5±1.1	38.6	+1.9
Under 18 years	24.6%±0.1 pts	23.3%	–
65 years and over	17.1%±0.1 pts	17.2%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	2.7%	3.7%	+0.5 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	31.0%±0.9 pts	55.2%	−1.5 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	63.2%±0.4 pts	36.3%	−0.8 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	1.0%±0.2 pts	1.0%	no clear change
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.4%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.2 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	1.8%±0.9 pts	3.0%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.3%±0.4 pts	0.3%	–
Born outside the United States	1.7%±0.6 pts	2.4%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	3.0%±0.6 pts	4.3%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	3.2%±1.0 pts	6.8%	–
With a disability	18.9%±1.4 pts	17.8%	–
No health insurance coverage	11.2%±2.0 pts	11.0%	−3.1 pts
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	84.9%±1.9 pts	87.1%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	28.0%±2.7 pts	25.1%	+4.4 pts
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	12.5%±2.0 pts	9.9%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.0%±0.6 pts	2.1%	–

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 Bolivar County earn?

Half of Bolivar County's 11,915 households earn less than $39,585 a year (±$4,860), against $56,447 in Mississippi. In 2015-2019 it was $36,741 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 32.6% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Bolivar County	Mississippi	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$39,585±$4,860	$56,447	no clear change
Mean household income	$60,985±$4,627	$78,922	–
Per capita income	$25,454±$1,960	$31,549	no clear change
People below the poverty line	32.6%±3.6 pts	18.9%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	44.8%±5.7 pts	26.0%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	26.0%±2.9 pts	13.5%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	77.9%±3.5 pts	84.1%	–

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 Bolivar County?

Owners occupy 62.6% of Bolivar County's occupied homes and renters 37.4%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $130,000 by its owner (±$12,596). The median renter pays $685 a month including utilities, and 45.8% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Bolivar County	Mississippi	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$130,000±$12,596	$169,800	no clear change
Median gross rent	$685±$49	$954	−$99
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	45.8%±7.5 pts	42.1%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,250±$60	$1,394	–
Owner-occupied homes	62.6%±3.2 pts	70.0%	+9.0 pts
Housing units	13,673±52	1,341,114	−684
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.8%±1.0 pts	0.8%	–
Rental vacancy rate	4.3%±2.9 pts	8.2%	–
Single-family detached homes	71.8%±3.0 pts	69.3%	–
Mobile homes	8.0%±1.5 pts	14.4%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.4%±0.5 pts	1.7%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	6.6%±1.8 pts	4.0%	–

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 Bolivar County building?

Builders took permits for 20 new housing units across Bolivar County in 2025 (20 single-family), 0.7 per 1,000 residents.

2019 25 units
2020 20 units
2021 26 units
2022 16 units
2023 12 units
2024 15 units
2025 20 units

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

How do people in Bolivar County get to work?

86.1% of Bolivar County's workers drive alone and 2.4% work from home. The average trip to work takes 20.1 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 7.1%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Bolivar County	Mississippi	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	49.2%±2.4 pts	57.4%	–
Unemployment rate	7.1%±2.0 pts	5.8%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	86.1%±3.0 pts	81.8%	–
Carpooled	9.8%±2.6 pts	9.2%	–
Public transportation	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Walked	1.4%±0.7 pts	1.3%	–
Worked from home	2.4%±0.9 pts	5.9%	no clear change
Mean travel time to work	20.1 min±2.0	25.6 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 Bolivar County's census tracts?

Bolivar County is divided into 9 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $22,271 (Tract 9502) to $71,038 (Tract 9506.02).

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

Tract 950128011950100	Shelby (22%)	3,088	2,762±408	$28,932	$63,900	$685	46.7%
Tract 950228011950200	Rosedale (29%)	2,516	2,449±330	$22,271	$85,200	$433	46.3%
Tract 950328011950300	Mound Bayou (28%)	2,904	2,664±427	$31,771	$107,300	$548	34.2%
Tract 950428011950400	Shaw (17%)	3,784	3,518±425	$36,875	$89,900	$528	31.3%
Tract 950528011950500	Boyle (14%)	5,104	5,381±573	$56,217	$144,200	$825	23.3%
Tract 9506.0128011950601	Cleveland (97%)	2,841	2,217±371	$56,393	$192,500	$1,123	17.8%
Tract 9506.0228011950602	Cleveland (86%)	3,781	3,951±396	$71,038	$195,500	$1,044	16.1%
Tract 9507.0128011950701	Cleveland (77%)	4,053	2,914±372	$19,028	$123,300	$644	56.4%
Tract 9507.0228011950702	Cleveland (95%)	2,914	3,678±510	$29,183	$98,700	$774	33.8%

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

How does Bolivar County compare with Mississippi's other counties?

Bolivar County's rank among Mississippi's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	26th of 82
Growth 2020-2025	70th of 82
Residents per square mile	48th of 82
Median household income	66th of 82
Median home value	31st of 82
Median gross rent	60th of 81
Poverty rate	3rd of 82
Bachelor's degree or higher	12th of 82
Median age	65th of 82

Every county in Mississippi

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 Bolivar 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.