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List of Counties and Cities in North Carolina

Discover North Carolina population facts easily with our list of counties and cities. Find out how many people live in each area, from big cities to small towns, and see how North Carolina’s population is spread out across the state.

North Carolina Counties by Population

A county is an administrative subdivision of a US state or territory. As of 2022, North Carolina is divided into 100 counties. 

Wake County is the most populous county in North Carolina, and Tyrrell County is the least populated. Dare County is the largest county by Area in North Carolina and Clay county is the smallest.

read about the Population of North Carolina

#CountyPopulation 2021Area
(sq. miles)
1Wake County1,150,204857
2Mecklenburg County1,122,276546
3Guilford County542,410658
4Forsyth County385,523413
5Cumberland County335,508658
6Durham County326,126298
7Buncombe County271,534660
8Union County243,648640
9Cabarrus County231,278365
10Gaston County230,856364
11New Hanover County229,018328
12Johnston County226,504796
13Onslow County206,160909
14Iredell County191,968597
15Alamance County173,877435
16Pitt County172,169655
17Davidson County170,637567
18Catawba County161,723414
19Orange County148,884401
20Rowan County148,150524
21Randolph County145,172790
22Brunswick County144,215860
23Harnett County135,966601
24Wayne County116,835557
25Henderson County116,829375
26Robeson County116,328951
27Moore County102,763706
28Craven County100,674774
29Cleveland County100,359469
30Nash County95,176543
31Rockingham County91,266572
32Lincoln County89,670307
33Burke County87,611515
34Caldwell County80,463474
35Wilson County78,369374
36Chatham County77,889709
37Franklin County71,703495
38Surry County71,152538
39Carteret County68,5411,341
40Wilkes County65,806760
41Rutherford County64,586566
42Lee County64,138259
43Stanly County63,425404
44Pender County62,815933
45Haywood County62,476555
46Granville County61,986537
47Sampson County58,990947
48Lenoir County54,706402
49Watauga County54,234313
50Hoke County53,114392
51Columbus County50,092954
52Duplin County48,515819
53Edgecombe County48,359507
54Halifax County48,272731
55McDowell County44,717446
56Stokes County44,553456
57Beaufort County44,468959
58Davie County43,533267
59Jackson County43,410494
60Richmond County42,724480
61Vance County42,185270
62Pasquotank County40,821289
63Person County39,127404
64Dare County37,8261,562
65Macon County37,564519
66Yadkin County37,192337
67Alexander County36,644263
68Scotland County34,227321
69Transylvania County33,165381
70Currituck County29,653526
71Bladen County29,525887
72Cherokee County29,167497
73Ashe County26,711427
74Montgomery County25,798502
75Caswell County22,714428
76Anson County22,060537
77Martin County21,754461
78Madison County21,502452
79Hertford County21,278360
80Greene County20,417266
81Polk County19,656239
82Warren County18,762444
83Yancey County18,757313
84Avery County17,864247
85Bertie County17,505741
86Northampton County17,129551
87Mitchell County14,963222
88Swain County14,136541
89Chowan County13,722233
90Perquimans County13,130329
91Pamlico County12,344566
92Clay County11,309221
93Alleghany County11,049236
94Washington County10,892424
95Camden County10,835306
96Gates County10,366346
97Jones County9,255473
98Graham County8,043302
99Hyde County4,5081,424
100Tyrrell County3,254600

Source: US Census report 2021

read about the race and ethnicity in North Carolina

Top Cities in North Carolina by population

North Carolina is divided into 100 counties and contains 532 municipalities consisting of cities, towns, or villages. Charlotte with a population of close to 1 million is the largest city in North Carolina. Its followed by Raleigh and Greensboro. North Carolina has 10 cities with a population of more than 100 thousand. 

Let’s have a look at Top Cities in North Carolina by population

RankCity NameCountyPopulation (2021)
1CharlotteMecklenburg879,709
2RaleighWake , Durham469,124
3GreensboroGuilford298,263
4DurhamDurham, Wake, Orange285,527
5Winston-SalemForsyth250,320
6FayettevilleCumberland208,778
7CaryWake, Chatham176,987
8WilmingtonNew Hanover117,643
9High PointGuilford, Randolph, Davidson, Forsyth114,086
10ConcordCabarrus107,697
11AshevilleBuncombe94,067
12GreenvillePitt88,728
13GastoniaGaston81,161
14JacksonvilleOnslow72,876
15ApexWake62,911
16HuntersvilleMecklenburg61,839
17Chapel HillOrange, Durham61,128
18BurlingtonAlamance58,818
19KannapolisCabarrus, Rowan54,446
20Rocky MountEdgecombe, Nash53,957

Source: US Census 2020

Most Populous Counties in North Carolina

The most populous county in North Carolina is  Wake County with 1.15 million residents. It was followed by Mecklenburg County (1.12 million) and Guilford County (0.54 million)

Let’s have a look at the Top 10 most populous counties

#CountyPopulation 2021
1Wake County1,150,204
2Mecklenburg County1,122,276
3Guilford County542,410
4Forsyth County385,523
5Cumberland County335,508
6Durham County326,126
7Buncombe County271,534
8Union County243,648
9Cabarrus County231,278
10Gaston County230,856
Least Populated County in North Carolina

The least populous county is Tyrrell  County with 3,254 residents, it’s followed by Hyde and Graham County.

Let’s have a look at 5 least populated counties 

#CountyPopulation 2021
1Tyrrell County3,254
2Hyde County4,508
3Graham County8,043
4Jones County9,255
5Gates County10,366

source: US Census 2021

read about religion in North Carolina

Largest counties in North Carolina by area

The Largest county by Land Area in North Carolina is Dare County with an area of 1562 sq. miles. Hyde with an area of 1,424 sq. mi. comes next followed by Carteret County (1341 sq. mi.)

Let’s have a look at the Top 10 counties by Area

#CountyArea (sq. miles)
1Dare County1,562
2Hyde County1,424
3Carteret County1,341
4Beaufort County959
5Columbus County954
6Robeson County951
7Sampson County947
8Pender County933
9Onslow County909
10Bladen County887
Smallest County in North Carolina by area

The smallest county by area in North Carolina is Clay County with an area of 221 square miles.

#CountyArea (sq. miles)
1Clay County221
2Mitchell County222
3Chowan County233
4Alleghany County236
5Polk County239

source: US Census report 2021

Most Densely Populated Counties in North Carolina

The most densely populated county in North Carolina is Mecklenburg County, with 2,055.45 people per sq. mi. Next comes Wake County with 1,342.13 people per sq. mi followed by Durham County (1,094.38/ sq.mi)

Let’s have a look at the Top 10 densely populated counties

#CountyDensity (people/sq. mi)
1Mecklenburg County2,055.45
2Wake County1,342.13
3Durham County1,094.38
4Forsyth County933.47
5Guilford County824.33
6New Hanover County698.23
7Gaston County634.22
8Cabarrus County633.64
9Cumberland County509.89
10Buncombe County411.42
Least Densely Populated County in North Carolina
#CountyDensity (people/sq. mi)
1Hyde County3.17
2Tyrrell County5.42
3Jones County19.57
4Pamlico County21.81
5Bertie County23.62

source: US Census 2021

Sources

Religion in United States
Race and Ethnicity in US
US State by Population
List of Counties in North Carolina 2024 | Top Cities in North Carolina

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