This story originally appeared on Spokeo and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
Most socially connected counties in Nevada
In today's digital age, social media platforms enable people to bridge geographic distances and connect with their friends, family, and community, no matter where they are. According to a 2022 Gallup and Meta study, at least 1 in 3 people across seven countries, including the U.S., said they used social media to interact with others at least once a day in the past week.
While social media has its drawbacks—such as pulling attention away from other tasks or fostering a problematic comparison culture—it remains a vital tool for helping people stay connected.
A majority of students in grades 3 to 12 said social media helped them develop relationships, learn social skills, and make a positive impact in their community, according to a 2024 report from The Social Institute.
Spokeo compiled a ranking of the most socially connected counties in Nevada using 2021 data from Facebook, based on a national analysis. County pairs were ranked by their social connectedness index, which measures the relative probability that two individuals across two locations are friends with each other on Facebook. The social connectedness index is a scaled value up to a billion. Larger indexes indicate a greater share of Facebook friends between county pairs.
#7. Carson City and Washoe County
- Carson City population: 58,036
- Washoe County population: 498,022
- Social connectedness index: 444,010
#6. Pershing County and Elko County
- Pershing County population: 6,364
- Elko County population: 54,293
- Social connectedness index: 708,959
#5. Lyon County and Storey County
- Lyon County population: 62,583
- Storey County population: 4,177
- Social connectedness index: 1,203,824
#4. Mineral County and Churchill County
- Mineral County population: 4,528
- Churchill County population: 25,803
- Social connectedness index: 2,240,184
#3. Nye County and Esmeralda County
- Nye County population: 55,720
- Esmeralda County population: 736
- Social connectedness index: 2,699,918
#2. Humboldt County and Lander County
- Humboldt County population: 17,136
- Lander County population: 5,769
- Social connectedness index: 4,379,735
#1. White Pine County and Eureka County
- White Pine County population: 8,522
- Eureka County population: 1,917
- Social connectedness index: 5,910,802
This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Kayla Zhu, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 46 states.