Farm Census

Gallatin County, Montana

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

1,009 farms655,883 acres in farms$163 million in farm sales

Gallatin County's largest product group with a published figure, grains and oilseeds, makes up 27.1% of farm sales, against 43.0% across Montana.

Its farms account for 3.6% of all farm sales in Montana, the fourth-largest share among the state's 56 counties.

Grains and oilseeds: 27.1%Grains and oilseeds27.1%Cattle and calves: 22.3%Cattle and calves22.3%Vegetables and melons: 20.5%Vegetables and melons20.5%Hay and other crops: 15.7%Hay and other crops15.7%Milk: 6.3%Milk6.3%Nursery and greenhouse: 4.0%4.0%Withheld groups: 2.7%2.7%Horses and mules: 0.9%0.9%Sheep and goats: 0.3%Poultry and eggs: 0.2%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%Grains and oilseeds: 27.1%Grains and oilseeds27.1%Cattle and calves: 22.3%Cattle and calves22.3%Vegetables and melons: 20.5%20.5%Hay and other crops: 15.7%Hay and other crops15.7%Milk: 6.3%Milk6.3%Nursery and greenhouse: 4.0%4.0%Withheld groups: 2.7%2.7%Horses and mules: 0.9%Sheep and goats: 0.3%Poultry and eggs: 0.2%Fruit and nuts: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: hogs and pigs and other animal products.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$44.3 million17th of 49
Cattle and calves$36.4 million19th of 51
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$33.5 million1st of 18
Hay and other crops$25.5 million1st of 37
Milk from cows$10.2 million1st of 5
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$6.5 million3rd of 13
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$1.4 million3rd of 48
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$521,00016th of 44
Poultry and eggs$388,0008th of 28
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$53,0006th of 13
Christmas trees and short-rotation woody crops$4,0003rd of 4

What the fields held

Gallatin County harvested 163,820 acres of cropland in 2022, 21st of 56 counties in Montana. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 40% of that, wheat 35%.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage65,6360.12%
Wheat57,1270.15%
Barley25,0611.0%
Vegetables6,1980.14%
of which potatoes5,9900.56%
Canola1,9720.09%
Corn for silage1,549under 0.1%
Corn for grain1,427under 0.1%
Oats441under 0.1%
Orchard land21under 0.1%
of which apples16under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: soybeans, grain sorghum, dry edible beans and berries.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms39.3%

Gallatin County ranks 45th of 56 counties in Montana on this measure.

  • 216,776 acres of cropland, 33% of farmland
  • 431,077 acres of pastureland, 66% of farmland
  • 30,272 acres of woodland, 5% of farmland
  • 80,504 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

The typical farm in Gallatin County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 55 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 650 acres, 48th-largest of 55 in Montana. The most common size class is 10–49 acres, with 38.7% of farms. Farms of 1,000 acres or more are 13.3% of the total.

1–910%10–4939%50–17916%180–49914%500–9998%1,000–1,9996%2,000+7%
Gallatin County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Horses and ponies3,5070.15%
Sheep and lambs2,459under 0.1%
Beef cows14,026under 0.1%
Cattle and calves33,714under 0.1%
Goats714under 0.1%
Milk cows1,846under 0.1%
Laying hens7,105under 0.1%
Hogs and pigs221under 0.1%
Turkeys20under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Gallatin County's 1,009 farms are made by 1,867 producers. Their average age is 59.2, the same as the Montana average. Women are 39.6% of them.

Under 358%35–4413%45–5414%55–6421%65–7428%75+16%
Gallatin County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms1,123−10.2%
Land in farms, acres700,462−6.4%
Average farm size, acres624+4.2%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$112 million+45.5%
Barley, acres31,738−21.0%
Potatoes, acres6,286−4.7%
Wheat, acres39,501+44.6%
Horses and ponies, head4,632−24.3%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Gallatin County accounts for 4.2% of the farms in Montana. Rank Montana counties for barley.

Source: USDA NASS Census of Agriculture. How to read these pages.