Prairie County Demographics

A map of Prairie County's Population by Race

Race	2024 Pop	2020 Pop	2024 %	2020 %
White	6,728	6,924	83.4%	83.6%
Black	796	922	9.9%	11.1%
Multiracial	329	238	4.1%	2.9%
Hispanic	192	145	2.4%	1.8%
Native American/Other	19	33	0.2%	0.4%
Asian	0	20	0.0%	0.2%

Prairie County, Arkansas has an estimated population of 8,064, a slight decrease from the 8,282 recorded in the 2020 Census. The population is 83.4% White, 9.9% Black, 4.1% Multiracial, 2.4% Hispanic, 0.2% Native American/Other, and 0.0% Asian. This demographic dot map shows the population of Prairie County, with one dot drawn for each person counted by the Census, color-coded by race.

Prairie is about as racially diverse as it was in the 2020 Census. It is considerably less diverse than Arkansas overall. Demographers use a diversity index to measure the probability that two randomly selected individuals belong to different racial or ethnic groups. In Prairie County, that probability was 28.7% in 2020 and 29.2% in the most recent ACS estimates.

Prairie County is ranked the 67th most populous county in Arkansas, out of 75 counties. Prairie County was ranked the 67th most populous county in the 2020 Census.

Prairie County's White Population

6,728 residents of Prairie County, or 83.4% of the population, identify as White. The share of White residents in Prairie County is significantly higher than in Arkansas overall, where 67.4% of the population is White. Prairie County ranks 26th statewide in terms of White residents as a share of the population, out of 75 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Prairie County's White population has declined by an estimated 2.8%. White residents' share of Prairie County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 83.4%.

Prairie County is more White than neighboring Lonoke County (83% White), Monroe County (52.8% White), Woodruff County (69.2% White), and Arkansas County (67.1% White). Prairie County is less White than neighboring White County (85% White).

Prairie County's Black Population

796 residents of Prairie County, or 9.9% of the population, identify as Black. The share of Black residents in Prairie County is slightly lower than in Arkansas overall, where 14.6% of the population is Black. Prairie County ranks 33rd statewide in terms of Black residents as a share of the population, out of 75 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Prairie County's Black population has declined by an estimated 13.7%. Black residents' share of Prairie County's population has decreased from 11.1% to 9.9%.

Prairie County is more Black than neighboring Lonoke County (5.5% Black), and White County (4.2% Black). Prairie County is less Black than neighboring Monroe County (40.2% Black), Woodruff County (24.8% Black), and Arkansas County (26.1% Black).

Prairie County's Asian Population

0 residents of Prairie County, or 0.0% of the population, identify as Asian. The share of Asian residents in Prairie County is comparable to the share in Arkansas overall, where 1.6% of the population is Asian. Prairie County ranks 62nd statewide in terms of Asian residents as a share of the population, out of 75 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Prairie County's Asian population has declined by an estimated 100.0%. Asian residents' share of Prairie County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 0.0%.

Prairie County is less Asian than neighboring Lonoke County (1% Asian), Monroe County (0.7% Asian), White County (0.7% Asian), Woodruff County (0.1% Asian), and Arkansas County (0.1% Asian).

Prairie County's Hispanic Population

192 residents of Prairie County, or 2.4% of the population, identify as Hispanic. The share of Hispanic residents in Prairie County is lower than in Arkansas overall, where 9% of the population is Hispanic. Prairie County ranks 71st statewide in terms of Hispanic residents as a share of the population, out of 75 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Prairie County's Hispanic population has grown by an estimated 32.4%. Hispanic residents' share of Prairie County's population has increased from 1.8% to 2.4%.

Prairie County is more Hispanic than neighboring Woodruff County (1.4% Hispanic). Prairie County is less Hispanic than neighboring Lonoke County (5.4% Hispanic), Monroe County (2.9% Hispanic), White County (5% Hispanic), and Arkansas County (4.1% Hispanic).

Prairie County's Native American/Other Population

19 residents of Prairie County, or 0.2% of the population, identify as American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander/Other. The share of Native American/Other residents in Prairie County is comparable to the share in Arkansas overall, where 1% of the population is Native American/Other. Prairie County ranks 70th statewide in terms of Native American/Other residents as a share of the population, out of 75 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Prairie County's Native American/Other population has declined by an estimated 42.4%. Native American/Other residents' share of Prairie County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 0.2%.

Prairie County is more Native American/Other than neighboring Monroe County (0.1% Native American/Other), and Arkansas County (0.1% Native American/Other). Prairie County is less Native American/Other than neighboring Lonoke County (0.3% Native American/Other), White County (0.4% Native American/Other), and Woodruff County (0.7% Native American/Other).

Prairie County's Multiracial Population

329 residents of Prairie County, or 4.1% of the population, identify as Multiracial. The share of Multiracial residents in Prairie County is slightly lower than in Arkansas overall, where 6.3% of the population is Multiracial. Prairie County ranks 67th statewide in terms of Multiracial residents as a share of the population, out of 75 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Prairie County's Multiracial population has grown by an estimated 38.2%. Multiracial residents' share of Prairie County's population has increased from 2.9% to 4.1%.

Prairie County is more Multiracial than neighboring Monroe County (3.3% Multiracial), Woodruff County (3.8% Multiracial), and Arkansas County (2.4% Multiracial). Prairie County is less Multiracial than neighboring Lonoke County (4.8% Multiracial), and White County (4.8% Multiracial).

Sources: Most recent population estimates are from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. 2020 population counts and map data are from 2020 Census State Redistricting Data. Geographic data are from Census TIGER/Line Shapefiles.