Hardee County, Florida
County seat: Wauchula · Population 25,932 (2025) · 638 sq mi
Hardee County is the 53rd most populous of Florida's 67 counties, with 25,932 people (2025 estimate). Its county seat is Wauchula. It is part of the Central Florida region, one of the 10 Florida regional planning council regions. The map shows its 3 cities and towns and the 5 neighboring counties.
Hardee County facts
- County seat
- Wauchula
- Population (2025 estimate)
- 25,932 +2.4% since 2020
- Land area
- 638 sq mi 40th largest of 67
- Water area
- 1 sq mi
- Population density
- 41 per sq mi
- Established
- 1921
- Named after
- Cary A. Hardee American politician (1876-1957)
- Largest city
- Wauchula 4,946
- Median household income
- $60,489
- Cities and towns
- 3 plus 6 CDPs
- ZIP codes
- 4
- Time zone
- Eastern
- FIPS code
- 12049
Cities and towns in Hardee County
Hardee County has 3 incorporated cities, towns and villages. Populations count the people living inside Hardee County; cities that cross a county line also list the other counties.
| Name | Type | Population 2025 | Also in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wauchula (county seat) | City | 4,946 | |
| Bowling Green | City | 2,448 | |
| Zolfo Springs | Town | 1,754 |
Unincorporated communities (CDPs)
Census-designated places are communities without their own city government; the county provides their services.
| Community | Population | Also in |
|---|---|---|
| Fort Green Springs | 762 | |
| Lemon Grove | 547 | |
| Gardner | 381 | |
| Ona | 44 | |
| Fort Green | 39 | |
| Limestone | 25 |
ZIP codes in Hardee County
4 ZIP codes reach into Hardee County. ZIP codes ignore county lines, so some also cover a neighboring county.
- 33834 also Polk County
- 33865 also DeSoto County
- 33873
- 33890
Population of Hardee County, 2020–2025
Hardee County grew by 606 people (+2.4%) between April 2020 and July 2025: 244 more births than deaths and a net gain of 343 people from migration.
| Year (July 1) | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 25,335 |
| 2021 | 25,318 |
| 2022 | 25,658 |
| 2023 | 25,927 |
| 2024 | 26,107 |
| 2025 | 25,932 |
Neighboring counties
- DeSoto County south · 37,078 people
- Polk County north · 874,790 people
- Manatee County west · 468,200 people
- Highlands County east · 111,122 people
- Hillsborough County northwest · 1,574,115 people
Printable Hardee County map
The PDF is a vector file with real text: it prints sharp on Letter paper and you can search it for a town. The PNG is 2400 pixels wide for slides and documents. Both are free to use with a credit to WhichCounty.
- PDF (Letter) (113 KB)
- PNG (2400 px) (59 KB)
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Sources
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Cartographic Boundary Files (1:500,000).
- Population: Census Bureau county and city estimates, Vintage 2025. CDP populations: American Community Survey 2020–2024.
- Places and ZIP codes: Census Bureau 2026 Gazetteer and 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Area relationship files.
- County seat, founding year and name origin: Wikidata (CC0), checked against state sources.
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