Farm operations
421
Avg 1,477 ac / farm
2022 USDA Census MT · FIPS 30089 421 farms Bottom quartile (#52/56) 5% cropland TRACE PASTURE-LED
Sanders County, Montana - Farm Data
Agricultural and commodity intelligence for Sanders County. Ranked #52 of 56 counties in Montana.
622K acres of agricultural land
- Cropland
- 4.7% 30K acres
- Other land
- 95.3% 592K acres
USDA NASS · 2022 Census of Agriculture
Sanders County received $1.22 in Census government payments per agricultural acre, 0.2× the Montana county median of $7.13.
According to the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture.
- $1.22
- government payments per agricultural acre
- $7.13
- Montana county median per acre
- 0.17×
- Montana median per acre
Payments per acre use the same NASS county table for receipts and acreage. Census county totals are not a roll-up of the USDA ERS state payment series.
421 farms · $14.4M sales
Sanders County, Montana reports 421 farms and $14.4M in commodity sales in the 2022 USDA NASS Census of Agriculture, ranking #1991 of 2943 U.S. counties by federal farm program payments. According to the Census extract on PlainFarmData, in-state commodity-sales rank is #52 of 56 counties in Montana; Census county totals are not a roll-up of USDA ERS state payment series.
- In-state sales rank #52 of 56
- National payments rank #1991 of 2943
- Govt payments / sales ratio 5.3%
Commodity sales
$14.4M
0.19× state median -- Well below state median
Federal payments
$757K
5.3% of sales -- Above-typical dependence
Net farm income
$2.8M
2022 cash income -- Below-typical net income
D
Farm economy grade: D -- Sanders County's net farm income sits at the 23th percentile among 3,046 NASS-reporting counties nationally (2022 Census). Percentile-benchmarked, not a same-state comparison like the tier label above.
What the Sanders County Farm Data Shows
Sanders County, Montana reported 421 farm operations in the 2022 USDA Census of Agriculture, generating $14.4M in total commodity sales and receiving $757K in federal farm program payments. Intensity stamp TRACE ($1.22/acre); land stamp PASTURE-LED. Net cash farm income came in at $2.8M. In-state sales rank #52 of 56 in Montana.
Of 621,625 acres agricultural land, cropland is only 29,517 acres (4.7%) - a PASTURE-LED mix where livestock forage and disaster titles (LFP/ELAP) usually outweigh row-crop commodity programs. Federal intensity is TRACE; pair the ABS payment peers below before treating any single county as representative of Montana.
Land Use
$1.22 per acre of agricultural land · the median Montana county receives $7.13. Payments per acre normalise federal support for farm size; both figures come from the same USDA NASS 2022 Census county table.
Total Ag Land
621,625 acres
Cropland
29,517 acres
Avg Farm Size
1,477 ac
Cropland share of agricultural land 4.7%
29,517 cropland acres · PASTURE-LED stamp.
Land Use Breakdown
| Category | Acres | Share of Ag Land |
|---|---|---|
| Total agricultural land | 621,625 | 100.0% |
| Cropland | 29,517 | 4.7% |
| Pasture, range, woodland, other | 592,108 | 95.3% |
| Average farm size | 1,477 | acres / farm |
Frequently Asked Questions
How many farms are in Sanders County, Montana?
Sanders County, Montana has 421 farms (2022 USDA Census). Average farm size 1,477 acres; land stamp PASTURE-LED.
What is the total agricultural production value of Sanders County?
Sanders County's total commodity sales are $14.4M (2022 Census of Agriculture), ranking #52 among 56 counties in Montana.
How much federal farm assistance does Sanders County receive?
Sanders County received $757K in federal government farm program receipts (2022), stamping TRACE on NASS payments-per-acre ($1.22/acre) with a PASTURE-LED land mix.
What is the net farm income in Sanders County?
Net cash farm income for operations in Sanders County is $2.8M (2022 Census of Agriculture).
Read with Sanders County
Nearest NASS federal-payment peers and $/acre poles for Sanders (TRACE · PASTURE-LED), replacing the old fixed Related and same-state alphabetical strip.
TRACE PASTURE-LED
Essex County, VA · HEAVY
$757K federal receipts is higher by - than Sanders; land stamp CROP-HEAVY vs PASTURE-LED.
Haywood County, NC · HEAVY
$756K federal receipts is lower by $1K than Sanders; land stamp PASTURE-LED vs PASTURE-LED.
Hubbard County, MN · MID
$759K federal receipts is higher by $2K than Sanders; land stamp CROP-LED vs PASTURE-LED.
Johnson County, AR · MID
$752K federal receipts is lower by $5K than Sanders; land stamp MIXED vs PASTURE-LED.
Jim Hogg County (TRACE $/acre pole)
Jim Hogg sits near Sanders on payments-per-acre ($1.38) while total receipts differ.
Palo Pinto County (TRACE $/acre pole)
Palo Pinto sits near Sanders on payments-per-acre ($1.41) while total receipts differ.
Montana ERS state roll-up
Sanders stamps TRACE · PASTURE-LED inside Montana's NASS county table, open the state ERS payment stack next.
Census payments leaderboard (#1991)
Sanders ranks #1991 of 2943 on NASS federal farm program payments under the TRACE intensity band.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
What to do with this
Sanders County, Montana stamps TRACE · PASTURE-LED in the 2022 NASS Census, ranking #1991 of 2943 U.S. counties by federal farm program payments. Three places to go next:
- See how Montana compares nationally on ERS farm payments and income. Montana state page
- Browse the full county table to compare payment intensity across the country. All counties
- Understand what actually drives county-level farm payments. Read the guide
County figures (2022 NASS Census of Agriculture) are a separate population from USDA ERS state and national payment series and must not be summed together.
County farm figures on this page are rendered from the USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture, no number is typed in by an editor. Census county totals are not a roll-up of the USDA ERS state payment series. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.