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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 in the past week.

While social media has its drawbacks鈥攕uch as pulling attention away from other tasks or fostering a problematic comparison culture鈥攊t remains a vital tool for helping people stay connected.

A 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.

compiled a ranking of the most socially connected counties in Wyoming using 2021 data from , based on a . 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.

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#8. Albany County and Carbon County

- Albany County population: 38,257
- Carbon County population: 14,334
- Social connectedness index: 1,237,776

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#7. Converse County and Natrona County

- Converse County population: 13,809
- Natrona County population: 79,941
- Social connectedness index: 2,474,681

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#6. Lincoln County and Sublette County

- Lincoln County population: 20,880
- Sublette County population: 8,969
- Social connectedness index: 2,810,142

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#5. Platte County and Goshen County

- Platte County population: 8,546
- Goshen County population: 12,642
- Social connectedness index: 4,550,436

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#4. Johnson County and Sheridan County

- Johnson County population: 8,759
- Sheridan County population: 32,519
- Social connectedness index: 5,106,934

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#3. Park County and Big Horn County

- Park County population: 30,735
- Big Horn County population: 12,018
- Social connectedness index: 5,310,543

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#2. Washakie County and Hot Springs County

- Washakie County population: 7,710
- Hot Springs County population: 4,661
- Social connectedness index: 7,015,129

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#1. Crook County and Weston County

- Crook County population: 7,592
- Weston County population: 6,808
- Social connectedness index: 7,982,664

This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Kayla Zhu, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 46 states.