Dakota County, Nebraska

Dakota County
County
Dakota County courthouse in Dakota City
Location within the U.S. state of Nebraska
Nebraska's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 42°23′N 96°34′W / 42.39°N 96.56°W / 42.39; -96.56
Country	United States
State	Nebraska
Founded	March 7, 1855
Named for	Dakota people
Seat	Dakota City
Largest city	South Sioux City
Area
• Total	267 sq mi (690 km2)
• Land	264 sq mi (680 km2)
• Water	3.2 sq mi (8 km2)  1.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	21,582
• Density	76.5/sq mi (29.5/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd
Website	www.dakotacountyne.org

Dakota County is a county in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 21,582.^[1] Its county seat is Dakota City.^[2]

Dakota County is part of the Sioux City, IA–NE–SD Metropolitan Statistical Area.

In the Nebraska license plate system, Dakota County is represented by the prefix 70 (it had the 70th-largest number of vehicles registered in the county when the license plate system was established in 1922). In August 2009, the Dakota County Board of Commissioners reversed a decision to abandon this system for alphanumeric plates upon introduction of new license plates in 2011.^[3] Douglas, Lancaster, and Sarpy Counties remain the only counties with alphanumeric plates in the state.^[4]