The homesteading movement has changed so many different ways over the last ten years. We began Homesteaders of America in 2016, with our first event in 2017. Since then, we have been through a “pandemic”, multiple different political parties within our government, inflation and recession, natural disasters, good times and bad. Homesteaders have endured, and many are still only just beginning within the movement.
I am always blown away when I see you guys on the streets and you stop to tell me about your milk cow, or your chickens, or how you used one of our videos in the library to learn about canning. You bless me so much. It gives me hope for this nation and the home and family here.
It is because of YOU that this way of living is expanding and changing our nation. So many have started smaller and larger homestead events. Others are teaching hands on classes right on their farm. You are making a difference. Don’t give up. This movement is more than just food and health—it’s about bringing it all back home to the family unit.
We didn’t start Homesteaders of America for accolades, recognition, or merit. In fact, we stand true to what Joel Salatin has always called our conference—”the poor boy conference”. Not as a dig, but as the salt of the earth. We are just a bunch of homesteaders running this organization. We have farms, families, and businesses outside of HOA. We are learning alongside you. We are not fancy. We hire speakers that are going to work their tails off to educate you during the weekend, not folks who want you to act like they are royalty.
We are men and women, mothers and fathers—Americans helping Americans get back to living agrarian, in liberty, once again. That’s just who we are. That’s it.
But that’s not why you’re here…let’s talk statistics.
In 2022 we surveyed our subscribers and members (over 4,000) with questions about demographics, topics they enjoy learning about, income, political affiliations, and more. Now, in 2026, we thought it was time to do it all over again! We once again surveyed over 4,000 homesteaders in America (with almost 1,000 of those people responding to all of the questions).
The results are interesting, and help us see how the homesteading movement has changed, where it is headed, what people want to learn about, and how we can support this movement and community.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The bulk of American homesteaders in 2026 are between ages 40-59, with 79% married and predominantly holding bachelor’s degrees or higher.
- Virginia hosts the highest concentration of homesteaders at over 20%, followed by Pennsylvania at 9.1%, North Carolina at 6.6%, Texas at 5%, and Tennessee at 4.9%.
- Most homesteaders (28%) operate on less than one acre of land, with 21.6% on 1-3 acres, representing a shift toward smaller-scale homesteading compared to 2022.
- The combined annual household income for 30% of homesteaders ranges from $100,000-$200,000, nearly doubling from the 14.7% reported in 2022.
- More than 42% of current homesteaders have zero farming or agricultural background in their family lineage, indicating homesteading is primarily a movement of first-generation practitioners.
First, we once again started with the basic demographics, like income, marriage status, heritage, and how much land you own.
It was really intriguing to see the age response, as the homesteading community consistently reflects the age range from age 30 to 79—with the bulk of homesteaders between the ages of 40-49, and then 50-59. The bulk of homesteaders are between the ages of 40 and 59 years of age. In 2022, the largest age range was the 30-39 age range, followed by the 40-49 age range. These 2026 demographics show that those who were homesteading four years ago are more than likely still homesteading.
More than 79% of homesteaders are married. Which doesn’t surprise us! The demographics also show that 35% of homesteaders have 1-2 children, 32% have 3-4 children, and 19% have no children. A small 9% of the surveyed homesteaders have 5-6+ children.
The question on generational and heritage homesteading is always intriguing. More than 42% of the surveyed homesteaders say that they come from zero homesteading or farming experience. About 38% say that their grandparents were in agriculture, 28% say their great-grandparents, and only 16% of their parents were involved. It was nice to see that 10% had four or more generations of homesteaders or farmers in their family lineage.
The annual household income changed slightly. In 2022, 14.7% was the combined annual income of $100,000-$200,000. Now, in 2026, 30% of the combined annual income is $100,000-$200,000. Around 17% has a combined annual income of $80,000 to $100,000. This means that of those who are currently homesteading, almost half of them make an annual income between $80,000 and $200,000, with the annual income gradually decreasing from there.
The survey also showed that 85.2% of homesteaders own their own home, with renter and “other” coming in at second and third place. This is encouraging, as only 73% owned their own home in 2022, while 18.9% still rented a home or property. It seems that more and more homesteaders are buying property now in 2026.
Next we moved on to how many years homesteaders have been homesteading…
When asked how many years they have been homesteading, it was almost a direct tie between 1-3 years, 4-6 years, and just getting started. The 7-9 year range came in at 9.3%, with 1-3 year coming in on top at 23.9%. After that, the 10-14 year range came in, right before 20+ years, and then 15-19 years.
This statistic shows us that the homesteading movement is still very new among Americans, and growing stronger and stronger each year. We have more new homesteaders in the 2026 demographic survey than we do the 2022 survey. And that’s saying something, since the 2022 survey came upon the heels of the 2020 pandemic.
How Much Land do Homesteaders Own?
The “how many acres do you homestead” is always very revealing. It also helps us better prepare for the following year’s topics. If homesteaders own a lot of land, then the topics should reflect that. But if the homesteaders in this community only own an acre or less, we need to teach them ways to become more efficient on a small space.
In our 2026 survey, 28% of homesteaders say they homestead on less than an acre. We were shocked, and yet not. With the reflection of how many years this new wave of homesteaders has been homesteading, it only makes sense that many have not yet moved on to larger land. Or, maybe the experienced homesteaders simply don’t want to—you can do quite a lot on small acreage. It may also reflect the aging homesteading community that still wants to homestead, but cannot manage a large amount of land any longer.
In our 2022 survey, 17% said they owned 4-6 acres. But now, in the 2026 survey, the bulk of the surveyed homesteaders say this—28% own less than an acre, 21.6% own 1-3 acres, and 13.8% own 4-6 acres.
Homesteader employment, education, and career statistics
Employment, education, and career were actually what really surprised us this year. In the 2026 survey, 46.1% are employed full-time, while 20.4% are retired. Around 13.4% are “other”, 12.9% are self-employed, and 7.2% are employed part-time. This statistic changed quite a bit from 2022, with those statistics showing 57% employed full time, 19.2% self-employed, 11% were employed part time, and those retired came in less than 11%. It seems that the 10% shift was between employed full time to now being retired.
Almost 20% of homesteaders in the 2026 survey are in the health/healthcare industry. With 10.7% coming in second for those working in education. Financial, government, and trade came in at between 9% and 5%.
How Educated are homesteaders?
The education of the homesteading community has changed slightly, but is almost comparable to the 2022 survey. Believe it or not, the homesteading community is largely educated, with 33.5% holding a bachelor’s degree, 19.7% holding only a high school diploma (or equivalent), 17.7% holding a master’s degree, and 16.4% holding an associates degree. Trade school came in at 5.5%.
Homesteaders Are still largely Christian
The religion and spiritual statistics of homesteaders remains strongly Christian, with 57.8% being christian (non-denominational), 18.4% being protestant (reformed, baptist, etc), and only 7.6% being catholic. This shows that over 83% of the homesteading community is of some Christian denomination. This has actually slightly increased from 2022. Only 5.9% say that they are of no religion or are not spiritual.
Political and Governmental Affiliations
Political affiliation also holds strong at mostly conservative, republican, and independent. More than 45% consider themselves conservative, 17% republican, and 10% independent. That large maroon slice you see is 8% that have zero political affiliation.
Active voters in the US sit at 93%. And only 14.4% of responders have been active in the US military.
Which State Has the Most Homesteaders?
This is always one of the most fun questions to see the answers to. We do have to take into consideration that the Homesteaders of America event is hosted in Virginia, therefore, that could play into the responses for this question (there may be more Virginian followers). However, there were contenders on the other side of the country, making us believe that our organization location may not have much to do with this question. It is possible that with the event being in this location, and Virginia being such a well-known agricultural state already, that these events (which have spurred more local county and regional organizations here) has caused the swift advancement of homesteading in this state.
This is a testament that when you endure through teaching and equipping the people, the culture begins to change.
So, what are the results? More than 20% of homesteaders that responded said they live in Virginia. Pennsylvania came in second at 9.1%, North Carolina third at 6.6%, Texas fourth at 5%, Tennessee fifth at 4.9%, and Ohio sixth at 4.3%.
The fact that that PA, NC, and TX all beat out TN is astounding. TN has been said to be the most popular state to homestead in, but our statistics show that there are several other states that are consistently beating out TN in numbers.
Top 6 Homesteading States: 2026 Survey
| Rank | State | Percentage |
| 1 | Virginia | 20%+ |
| 2 | Pennsylvania | 9.1% |
| 3 | North Carolina | 6.6% |
| 4 | Texas | 5% |
| 5 | Tennessee | 4.9% |
We asked other questions too…
Like why do you homestead, has that changed over the years, and what is your biggest struggle in homesteading? We use these questions to help us better prepare and organize future speaking topics, master classes, and events.
Here were those results:
- 77% say they started homesteading to live healthier
- 63% say they started homesteading for food security
- Almost 36% say their faith or personal convictions prompted them to homestead
- Those numbers changed when we asked why they homestead now vs. when they began—81% healthier living, 66% food security, 43% faith or personal conviction.
- 48% say their biggest struggle in homesteading is finances, while 27% say land ownership, 17% say education, 10% say health or opportunity, and 6% say time constraints.
- When asked what topic people would like to learn about more, 61% said herbalism, 60% food preservation, 57% gardening, 52% water sources (pond, water infrastructure, etc), 49% beekeeping, 41% off grid living, and the list goes on.
MOST IMPORTANT INSIGHTS TO REMEMBER
#1 The homesteading movement is experiencing an unprecedented retirement boom with 20.4% of active homesteaders now retired compared to less than 11% in 2022, demonstrating that Americans are choosing agrarian productivity over traditional retirement.
#2 Small-scale homesteading has become the dominant model with 28% operating on less than one acre and 21.6% on 1-3 acres, proving that land size is no longer a barrier to entry for the homesteading lifestyle.
#3 Homesteading is predominantly a first-generation movement with 42% of practitioners having zero farming or agricultural heritage in their family lineage, making education and community support more critical than ever.
#4 Economic stability among homesteaders has dramatically improved with 30% now earning combined household incomes of $100,000-$200,000 (up from 14.7% in 2022) and 85.2% owning their homes (up from 73% in 2022). Although, this could also signal cost of living going up, therefore some income going up.
#5 Regional concentration of educational resources drives homesteading growth more than geography or climate as evidenced by Virginia hosting over 20% of homesteaders due to consistent annual events and community infrastructure, while traditionally popular states like Tennessee lag behind at 4.9%.
It is an honor for myself and the Homesteaders of America team to help steward this movement. We are amazed more and more every year by how God is using this community to bring change to our nation and beyond. This isn’t just about farming and living healthier, this is about changing the culture, taking back freedoms, building a parallel system, and living the lives our founding father’s fought to protect. This is how it always should’ve been. We are a movement of liberty—and we pray freedom continues to ring loudly in the years ahead.
For His Glory,
Amy K. Fewell
Founder, Homesteaders of America
