Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature

Carteret County had the highest average annual temperature of 100 counties in 2015, at 64.7 °F. Avery County had the lowest, at 51.4 °F. The median was 60.6 °F and the figure for North Carolina was 60.5 °F. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest64.7Carteret County
Lowest51.4Avery County
Median60.6100 counties
North Carolina60.5History

Map of counties, 2015

Alamance County: 59.8 °FAlexander County: 58.8 °FAlleghany County: 53.4 °FAnson County: 63.4 °FAshe County: 52.1 °FAvery County: 51.4 °FBeaufort County: 63.5 °FBertie County: 61.4 °FBladen County: 63.5 °FBrunswick County: 64.6 °FBuncombe County: 55.5 °FBurke County: 58.8 °FCabarrus County: 61.3 °FCaldwell County: 58.3 °FCamden County: 61.2 °FCarteret County: 64.7 °FCaswell County: 59 °FCatawba County: 59.9 °FChatham County: 60.8 °FCherokee County: 56.4 °FChowan County: 61.8 °FClay County: 55.6 °FCleveland County: 60.5 °FColumbus County: 64.3 °FCraven County: 63.7 °FCumberland County: 63 °FCurrituck County: 61.4 °FDare County: 62.5 °FDavidson County: 60.1 °FDavie County: 59.7 °FDuplin County: 62.7 °FDurham County: 59.9 °FEdgecombe County: 61.4 °FForsyth County: 59.5 °FFranklin County: 60.2 °FGaston County: 61.3 °FGates County: 60.6 °FGraham County: 54.6 °FGranville County: 59.2 °FGreene County: 62.5 °FGuilford County: 59.7 °FHalifax County: 60.4 °FHarnett County: 62.1 °FHaywood County: 52.3 °FHenderson County: 56.7 °FHertford County: 60.5 °FHoke County: 63 °FHyde County: 63.7 °FIredell County: 59.5 °FJackson County: 53.6 °FJohnston County: 61.8 °FJones County: 63.3 °FLee County: 61.6 °FLenoir County: 62.8 °FLincoln County: 60.5 °FMcDowell County: 57.9 °FMacon County: 54.8 °FMadison County: 55.8 °FMartin County: 62 °FMecklenburg County: 61.8 °FMitchell County: 52.7 °FMontgomery County: 62.4 °FMoore County: 62.5 °FNash County: 60.8 °FNew Hanover County: 64.6 °FNorthampton County: 60.2 °FOnslow County: 63.7 °FOrange County: 59.5 °FPamlico County: 64.7 °FPasquotank County: 61.4 °FPender County: 63.8 °FPerquimans County: 61.5 °FPerson County: 58.7 °FPitt County: 62.5 °FPolk County: 60.5 °FRandolph County: 60.4 °FRichmond County: 63.6 °FRobeson County: 64 °FRockingham County: 59.1 °FRowan County: 60.2 °FRutherford County: 60.3 °FSampson County: 62.5 °FScotland County: 63.6 °FStanly County: 62 °FStokes County: 58.8 °FSurry County: 58.1 °FSwain County: 53 °FTransylvania County: 55.3 °FTyrrell County: 62.6 °FUnion County: 62.4 °FVance County: 59.3 °FWake County: 60.7 °FWarren County: 59.8 °FWashington County: 62.4 °FWatauga County: 52.2 °FWayne County: 62.4 °FWilkes County: 58 °FWilson County: 61.8 °FYadkin County: 58.8 °FYancey County: 52.6 °F
  • Under 57
  • 57 to 60
  • 60 to 61
  • 61 to 62
  • 62 to 63
  • 63 and over
°F, 2015. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2015

Carteret County: 64.7 °FCarteret County64.7Pamlico County: 64.7 °FPamlico County64.7Brunswick County: 64.6 °FBrunswick County64.6New Hanover County: 64.6 °FNew Hanover County64.6Columbus County: 64.3 °FColumbus County64.3Robeson County: 64 °FRobeson County64Pender County: 63.8 °FPender County63.8Craven County: 63.7 °FCraven County63.7Hyde County: 63.7 °FHyde County63.7Onslow County: 63.7 °FOnslow County63.7Richmond County: 63.6 °FRichmond County63.6Scotland County: 63.6 °FScotland County63.6Beaufort County: 63.5 °FBeaufort County63.5Bladen County: 63.5 °FBladen County63.5Anson County: 63.4 °FAnson County63.4Jones County: 63.3 °FJones County63.3Cumberland County: 63 °FCumberland County63Hoke County: 63 °FHoke County63Lenoir County: 62.8 °FLenoir County62.8Duplin County: 62.7 °FDuplin County62.7Tyrrell County: 62.6 °FTyrrell County62.6Dare County: 62.5 °FDare County62.5Greene County: 62.5 °FGreene County62.5Moore County: 62.5 °FMoore County62.5Pitt County: 62.5 °FPitt County62.5Sampson County: 62.5 °FSampson County62.5Montgomery County: 62.4 °FMontgomery County62.4Union County: 62.4 °FUnion County62.4Washington County: 62.4 °FWashington County62.4Wayne County: 62.4 °FWayne County62.4Harnett County: 62.1 °FHarnett County62.1Martin County: 62 °FMartin County62Stanly County: 62 °FStanly County62Chowan County: 61.8 °FChowan County61.8Johnston County: 61.8 °FJohnston County61.8Mecklenburg County: 61.8 °FMecklenburg County61.8Wilson County: 61.8 °FWilson County61.8Lee County: 61.6 °FLee County61.6Perquimans County: 61.5 °FPerquimans County61.5Bertie County: 61.4 °FBertie County61.4Carteret County: 64.7 °FCarteret County64.7Pamlico County: 64.7 °FPamlico County64.7Brunswick County: 64.6 °FBrunswick County64.6New Hanover County: 64.6 °FNew Hanover County64.6Columbus County: 64.3 °FColumbus County64.3Robeson County: 64 °FRobeson County64Pender County: 63.8 °FPender County63.8Craven County: 63.7 °FCraven County63.7Hyde County: 63.7 °FHyde County63.7Onslow County: 63.7 °FOnslow County63.7Richmond County: 63.6 °FRichmond County63.6Scotland County: 63.6 °FScotland County63.6Beaufort County: 63.5 °FBeaufort County63.5Bladen County: 63.5 °FBladen County63.5Anson County: 63.4 °FAnson County63.4Jones County: 63.3 °FJones County63.3Cumberland County: 63 °FCumberland County63Hoke County: 63 °FHoke County63Lenoir County: 62.8 °FLenoir County62.8Duplin County: 62.7 °FDuplin County62.7Tyrrell County: 62.6 °FTyrrell County62.6Dare County: 62.5 °FDare County62.5Greene County: 62.5 °FGreene County62.5Moore County: 62.5 °FMoore County62.5Pitt County: 62.5 °FPitt County62.5Sampson County: 62.5 °FSampson County62.5Montgomery County: 62.4 °FMontgomery County62.4Union County: 62.4 °FUnion County62.4Washington County: 62.4 °FWashington County62.4Wayne County: 62.4 °FWayne County62.4Harnett County: 62.1 °FHarnett County62.1Martin County: 62 °FMartin County62Stanly County: 62 °FStanly County62Chowan County: 61.8 °FChowan County61.8Johnston County: 61.8 °FJohnston County61.8Mecklenburg County: 61.8 °FMecklenburg County61.8Wilson County: 61.8 °FWilson County61.8Lee County: 61.6 °FLee County61.6Perquimans County: 61.5 °FPerquimans County61.5Bertie County: 61.4 °FBertie County61.4
°F. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2015
°F
Change on 2014
1Carteret County64.7+2.4%
1Pamlico County64.7+3.4%
3Brunswick County64.6+3.5%
3New Hanover County64.6+3.7%
5Columbus County64.3+3.9%
6Robeson County64+3.9%
7Pender County63.8+3.9%
8Craven County63.7+3.1%
8Hyde County63.7+2.7%
8Onslow County63.7+3.4%
11Richmond County63.6+3.9%
11Scotland County63.6+3.9%
13Beaufort County63.5+3.6%
13Bladen County63.5+3.8%
15Anson County63.4+3.6%
16Jones County63.3+3.4%
17Cumberland County63+3.4%
17Hoke County63+4%
19Lenoir County62.8+3.8%
20Duplin County62.7+4%
21Tyrrell County62.6+3%
22Dare County62.5+2.6%
22Greene County62.5+3.8%
22Moore County62.5+3.8%
22Pitt County62.5+3.8%
22Sampson County62.5+3.6%
27Montgomery County62.4+3.5%
27Union County62.4+3.8%
27Washington County62.4+3.3%
27Wayne County62.4+3.8%
31Harnett County62.1+3.7%
32Martin County62+3.9%
32Stanly County62+3%
34Chowan County61.8+3.3%
34Johnston County61.8+3.9%
34Mecklenburg County61.8+4.2%
34Wilson County61.8+4%
38Lee County61.6+3.4%
39Perquimans County61.5+3.2%
40Bertie County61.4+3.4%
40Currituck County61.4+3%
40Edgecombe County61.4+4.4%
40Pasquotank County61.4+3.2%
44Cabarrus County61.3+3.7%
44Gaston County61.3+4.1%
46Camden County61.2+3.2%
47Chatham County60.8+3.4%
47Nash County60.8+4.1%
49Wake County60.7+3.4%
50Gates County60.6+3.4%
51Cleveland County60.5+4.1%
51Hertford County60.5+3.4%
51Lincoln County60.5+4%
51Polk County60.5+4%
55Halifax County60.4+3.8%
55Randolph County60.4+3.4%
57Rutherford County60.3+4%
58Franklin County60.2+3.6%
58Northampton County60.2+3.6%
58Rowan County60.2+3.8%
61Davidson County60.1+3.8%
62Catawba County59.9+3.6%
62Durham County59.9+3.5%
64Alamance County59.8+3.3%
64Warren County59.8+3.6%
66Davie County59.7+4.2%
66Guilford County59.7+3.6%
68Forsyth County59.5+4.4%
68Iredell County59.5+3.8%
68Orange County59.5+3.3%
71Vance County59.3+3.3%
72Granville County59.2+3.1%
73Rockingham County59.1+3.9%
74Caswell County59+3.1%
75Alexander County58.8+3.3%
75Burke County58.8+3.9%
75Stokes County58.8+4.4%
75Yadkin County58.8+4.3%
79Person County58.7+2.8%
80Caldwell County58.3+3.7%
81Surry County58.1+4.5%
82Wilkes County58+4.3%
83McDowell County57.9+3.8%
84Henderson County56.7+4.4%
85Cherokee County56.4+2.5%
86Madison County55.8+4.5%
87Clay County55.6+3.7%
88Buncombe County55.5+4.5%
89Transylvania County55.3+4.3%
90Macon County54.8+4.6%
91Graham County54.6+3.2%
92Jackson County53.6+4.3%
93Alleghany County53.4+4.7%
94Swain County53+3.9%
95Mitchell County52.7+4.4%
96Yancey County52.6+4.4%
97Haywood County52.3+4.6%
98Watauga County52.2+4.8%
99Ashe County52.1+4.8%
100Avery County51.4+4.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Mean air temperature from January to December, in degrees Fahrenheit: the average of the 12 monthly mean temperatures. NOAA computes it from its climate divisional dataset (nClimDiv): station readings interpolated onto a 5 km grid and averaged over the area.

Values are area averages, so a county with mountains and valleys has one value for very different local climates. NOAA revises the last two years every month.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. (2026). NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties (Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature, 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping

MLA 9

NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties, Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature, 2015. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, 6 Oct. 2026, https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/north-carolina-counties?period=2015. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. 2026. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature, 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/north-carolina-counties?period=2015.

Harvard

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (2026) NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties, Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/north-carolina-counties?period=2015 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{noaa_counties_in_north_carolina_2015,
  author = {{NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information}},
  title = {{NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties: Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature, 2015}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/north-carolina-counties?period=2015. Publisher attribution: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
TI  - NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties: Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature, 2015
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/06
PB  - NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/north-carolina-counties?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/average-annual-temperature/north-carolina-counties?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Rank Counties in North Carolina by average annual temperature using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest average annual temperature?

Carteret County, with 64.7 °F in 2015, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Which county has the lowest average annual temperature?

Avery County, with 51.4 °F in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December average temperature, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Average annual temperature: other rankings

Counties in North Carolina: more rankings