Howard County, Nebraska

Howard County, Nebraska, has 6,538 residents (July 2025 estimate). Its county seat is St. Paul. It uses Central Time and covers 569 sq mi (1,474 km²) of land.

Howard County in Nebraska

Howard County and its neighbors (simplified outlines). Open in OpenStreetMap ↗

Resident population, July 2025: 6,538
Land area: 569 sq mi (1,474 km²)
County seat or government: St. Paul
Time zone: Central TimeUTC-06:00 in January; UTC-05:00 in July
Median household income: $76,767 ± $7,196
Median home value: $209,100 ± $18,825
Median rent, with utilities: $777 ± $115
Homes lived in by their owners: 78.2% ± 2.9 points
County type: County
Metro or micro area: Grand Island, NE metro areaOutlying county
Water area: 6.32 sq mi (16.4 km²)
State: Nebraska
County code (FIPS): 31093
Coordinates (central point): 41.216851, -98.513342

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These coordinates mark a central point for the area, not a street address. Income, home value, rent and homes lived in by their owners: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates, ± margin at 90% confidence; checked on October 13, 2026.

Time zones in Howard County

Time zone	Local time and UTC offset	Next clock change
Central TimeAmerica/Chicago	UTC-06:00 in January; UTC-05:00 in July. Enable JavaScript for the live clock.	Enable JavaScript for upcoming changes.

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ZIP Code areas, largest first

688733,785 people
688241,562 people
68872992 people
68864958 people
68875716 people
68831705 people
68835459 people
68882401 people
68820343 people
68817340 people
68838150 people

11 ZIP Code areas overlap Howard County. People counts are 2020–2024 estimates for each whole ZIP area. Mailing ZIPs can differ; check an address with USPS ZIP Code Lookup.

Official county information

Howard County government website ↗ is the next stop for county offices, tax, voting, jury and records information. A geographic lookup cannot determine eligibility, tax liability or a court obligation.

Precincts in Howard County, largest first

All 14

Kelso Precinct47 people
Dannevirke Precinct40 people

People counts are American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates. All precincts in Nebraska, by county

School districts in Howard County, largest first

St. Paul Public Schools4,108 people
Northwest Public Schools3,643 people
Centura Public Schools2,480 people
Central Valley Public Schools2,006 people
Loup City Public Schools1,962 people
Palmer Public Schools904 people
Elba Public Schools458 people

Districts with land in the county; a district can cross county lines. People counts are American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates. A district boundary doesn’t decide which school a student attends.

Cities, towns and communities, largest first

These areas overlap the mapped boundary; an overlap does not mean that every address belongs to both.

St. Paul, Nebraska (city)2,758 people
St. Libory, Nebraska (CDP)307 people
Dannebrog, Nebraska (village)235 people
Howard City (Boelus), Nebraska (village)186 people
Elba, Nebraska (village)171 people
Cushing, Nebraska (village)112 people
Farwell, Nebraska (village)78 people
Cotesfield, Nebraska (village)27 people

Bordering areas, nearest first

Distances are straight lines between map points.

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See this county on Census.gov ↗

Areas that only touch the edge

These areas meet the boundary only along a sliver. Most addresses here are not in them; for an address near the line, check with the county.