26,068 people (2024 Census estimate, +2.9% since 2020)
638 square miles of land · 41 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
9 active community water systems list Hardee County in the area they serve, reporting 15,692 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| WAUCHULA CITY WATER DEPARTMENT groundwater · local government · FL6250329 | 5,000 served |
| WAUCHULA HILLS WTP (HARDEE COUNTY) groundwater · local government · FL6254799 | 3,038 served |
| BOWLING GREEN, CITY OF groundwater · local government · FL6252022 | 2,940 served |
| ZOLFO SPRINGS WTP groundwater · local government · FL6250332 | 2,062 served |
| HARDEE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTE groundwater · state · FL6254754 | 1,900 served |
| BROOKSIDE BLUFF RV PARK groundwater · private · FL6254762 | 300 served |
| PEACE RIVER HEIGHTS groundwater · private · FL6251954 | 250 served |
| CHARLIE CREEK-THE VILLAGE OF groundwater · private · FL6250278 | 142 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 146 people were held in Hardee County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2026). In 2021 it was about 103.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
1 school district has its office in Hardee County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $65 million — $58.5 million to run schools, about $11,932 per student, plus $4.6 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $16.3 million local (mostly property tax), $31 million state, $17.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $1.8 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Hardee County about $25.4 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Very Low; social vulnerability: Relatively Moderate.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
84 bridges in Hardee County: 37 in good condition, 45 fair, and 2 poor (2.4%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| CR-664 over LITTLE PAYNE CREEK · built 1915 | 600 vehicles a day |
| COWART RD. over LAKE DALE BRANCH · built 1970 | 500 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $15.1 million of work in Hardee County in fiscal 2025, about $595 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-05. Vote-by-mail request due by 5 pm: 2026-10-22. Early voting — the statewide minimum: 2026-10-24 to 2026-10-31. Election Day — and mail ballots must arrive: 2026-11-03.
Source: Florida Division of Elections — election dates · WPTV, 2026 deadlines · Florida Division of Elections — early voting
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Hardee County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Hardee County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Florida: the state government and every county in Florida.
Nearby counties: DeSoto County (21 mi) · Highlands County (31 mi) · Polk County (33 mi) · Manatee County (35 mi) · Sarasota County (41 mi) · Charlotte County (42 mi).