Data / Rankings / Establishment entry rate / Counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate

Currituck County had the highest establishment entry rate of 99 counties in 2019, at 12.069%. Hertford County had the lowest, at 2.67%. The median was 8.333% and the figure for North Carolina was 9.392%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest12.069Currituck County
Lowest2.67Hertford County
Median8.33399 counties
North Carolina9.392History

Map of counties, 2019

Alamance County: 8.537 %Alexander County: 7.212 %Alleghany County: 8.389 %Anson County: 9.053 %Ashe County: 7.831 %Avery County: 6.635 %Beaufort County: 6.873 %Bertie County: 7.914 %Bladen County: 9.073 %Brunswick County: 10.364 %Buncombe County: 11.056 %Burke County: 6.669 %Cabarrus County: 11.196 %Caldwell County: 6.707 %Camden County: 9.137 %Carteret County: 8.557 %Caswell County: 8.676 %Catawba County: 7.392 %Chatham County: 10.694 %Cherokee County: 8.545 %Chowan County: 5.588 %Clay County: 11.736 %Cleveland County: 6.543 %Columbus County: 6.117 %Craven County: 8.571 %Cumberland County: 8.05 %Currituck County: 12.069 %Dare County: 9.91 %Davidson County: 9.247 %Davie County: 8.871 %Duplin County: 8.349 %Durham County: 9.353 %Edgecombe County: 8.916 %Forsyth County: 8.295 %Franklin County: 10.794 %Gaston County: 9.695 %Gates County: 3.687 %Graham County: 8.054 %Granville County: 8.437 %Greene County: 8.214 %Guilford County: 8.363 %Halifax County: 5.93 %Harnett County: 9.359 %Haywood County: 8.178 %Henderson County: 10.273 %Hertford County: 2.67 %Hoke County: 7.238 %Hyde County: 7.942 %Iredell County: 9.851 %Jackson County: 9.95 %Johnston County: 10.172 %Jones County: 8.943 %Lee County: 6.469 %Lenoir County: 6.32 %Lincoln County: 10.422 %McDowell County: 9.873 %Macon County: 8.545 %Madison County: 10.41 %Martin County: 8.076 %Mecklenburg County: 11.473 %Mitchell County: 6.801 %Montgomery County: 4.555 %Moore County: 8.854 %Nash County: 6.202 %New Hanover County: 9.232 %Northampton County: 4.564 %Onslow County: 9.758 %Orange County: 9.624 %Pamlico County: 9.091 %Pasquotank County: 6.671 %Pender County: 11.65 %Perquimans County: 11.014 %Person County: 6.854 %Pitt County: 7.52 %Polk County: 9.041 %Randolph County: 7.492 %Richmond County: 6.109 %Robeson County: 6.104 %Rockingham County: 7.42 %Rowan County: 7.73 %Rutherford County: 7.121 %Sampson County: 8.329 %Scotland County: 6.301 %Stanly County: 7.705 %Stokes County: 8.333 %Surry County: 7.559 %Swain County: 11.146 %Transylvania County: 11.447 %Union County: 11.256 %Vance County: 7.174 %Wake County: 10.835 %Warren County: 7.925 %Washington County: 5.783 %Watauga County: 8.213 %Wayne County: 7.457 %Wilkes County: 7.654 %Wilson County: 7.329 %Yadkin County: 9.043 %Yancey County: 6.874 %
  • Under 6.7
  • 6.7 to 7.5
  • 7.5 to 8.3
  • 8.3 to 9
  • 9 to 10
  • 10 and over
  • No data
%, 2019. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2019

Currituck County: 12.069 %Currituck County12.069Clay County: 11.736 %Clay County11.736Pender County: 11.65 %Pender County11.65Mecklenburg County: 11.473 %Mecklenburg County11.473Transylvania County: 11.447 %Transylvania County11.447Union County: 11.256 %Union County11.256Cabarrus County: 11.196 %Cabarrus County11.196Swain County: 11.146 %Swain County11.146Buncombe County: 11.056 %Buncombe County11.056Perquimans County: 11.014 %Perquimans County11.014Wake County: 10.835 %Wake County10.835Franklin County: 10.794 %Franklin County10.794Chatham County: 10.694 %Chatham County10.694Lincoln County: 10.422 %Lincoln County10.422Madison County: 10.41 %Madison County10.41Brunswick County: 10.364 %Brunswick County10.364Henderson County: 10.273 %Henderson County10.273Johnston County: 10.172 %Johnston County10.172Jackson County: 9.95 %Jackson County9.95Dare County: 9.91 %Dare County9.91McDowell County: 9.873 %McDowell County9.873Iredell County: 9.851 %Iredell County9.851Onslow County: 9.758 %Onslow County9.758Gaston County: 9.695 %Gaston County9.695Orange County: 9.624 %Orange County9.624Harnett County: 9.359 %Harnett County9.359Durham County: 9.353 %Durham County9.353Davidson County: 9.247 %Davidson County9.247New Hanover County: 9.232 %New Hanover County9.232Camden County: 9.137 %Camden County9.137Pamlico County: 9.091 %Pamlico County9.091Bladen County: 9.073 %Bladen County9.073Anson County: 9.053 %Anson County9.053Yadkin County: 9.043 %Yadkin County9.043Polk County: 9.041 %Polk County9.041Jones County: 8.943 %Jones County8.943Edgecombe County: 8.916 %Edgecombe County8.916Davie County: 8.871 %Davie County8.871Moore County: 8.854 %Moore County8.854Caswell County: 8.676 %Caswell County8.676Currituck County: 12.069 %Currituck County12.069Clay County: 11.736 %Clay County11.736Pender County: 11.65 %Pender County11.65Mecklenburg County: 11.473 %Mecklenburg County11.473Transylvania County: 11.447 %Transylvania County11.447Union County: 11.256 %Union County11.256Cabarrus County: 11.196 %Cabarrus County11.196Swain County: 11.146 %Swain County11.146Buncombe County: 11.056 %Buncombe County11.056Perquimans County: 11.014 %Perquimans County11.014Wake County: 10.835 %Wake County10.835Franklin County: 10.794 %Franklin County10.794Chatham County: 10.694 %Chatham County10.694Lincoln County: 10.422 %Lincoln County10.422Madison County: 10.41 %Madison County10.41Brunswick County: 10.364 %Brunswick County10.364Henderson County: 10.273 %Henderson County10.273Johnston County: 10.172 %Johnston County10.172Jackson County: 9.95 %Jackson County9.95Dare County: 9.91 %Dare County9.91McDowell County: 9.873 %McDowell County9.873Iredell County: 9.851 %Iredell County9.851Onslow County: 9.758 %Onslow County9.758Gaston County: 9.695 %Gaston County9.695Orange County: 9.624 %Orange County9.624Harnett County: 9.359 %Harnett County9.359Durham County: 9.353 %Durham County9.353Davidson County: 9.247 %Davidson County9.247New Hanover County: 9.232 %New Hanover County9.232Camden County: 9.137 %Camden County9.137Pamlico County: 9.091 %Pamlico County9.091Bladen County: 9.073 %Bladen County9.073Anson County: 9.053 %Anson County9.053Yadkin County: 9.043 %Yadkin County9.043Polk County: 9.041 %Polk County9.041Jones County: 8.943 %Jones County8.943Edgecombe County: 8.916 %Edgecombe County8.916Davie County: 8.871 %Davie County8.871Moore County: 8.854 %Moore County8.854Caswell County: 8.676 %Caswell County8.676
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2019 (%)Change on 2018
1Currituck County12.069+2.63 pts
2Clay County11.736+2.69 pts
3Pender County11.65-0.07 pts
4Mecklenburg County11.473+0.2 pts
5Transylvania County11.447+1.45 pts
6Union County11.256-0.4 pts
7Cabarrus County11.196+1.41 pts
8Swain County11.146+0.96 pts
9Buncombe County11.056+0.1 pts
10Perquimans County11.014+4.97 pts
11Wake County10.835-0.01 pts
12Franklin County10.794+1.27 pts
13Chatham County10.694-1.33 pts
14Lincoln County10.422+0.07 pts
15Madison County10.41-0.56 pts
16Brunswick County10.364-1.04 pts
17Henderson County10.273+0.9 pts
18Johnston County10.172-1.66 pts
19Jackson County9.95-0.2 pts
20Dare County9.91-0.48 pts
21McDowell County9.873+0.6 pts
22Iredell County9.851-0.02 pts
23Onslow County9.758+1.36 pts
24Gaston County9.695+0.13 pts
25Orange County9.624+0.08 pts
26Harnett County9.359+0.4 pts
27Durham County9.353-1.09 pts
28Davidson County9.247+1.76 pts
29New Hanover County9.232-1.35 pts
30Camden County9.137+3.26 pts
31Pamlico County9.091+4.01 pts
32Bladen County9.073+2.08 pts
33Anson County9.053+3.08 pts
34Yadkin County9.043+0.05 pts
35Polk County9.041+0.71 pts
36Jones County8.943+3.39 pts
37Edgecombe County8.916+1.29 pts
38Davie County8.871-0.46 pts
39Moore County8.854-0.63 pts
40Caswell County8.676+0.95 pts
41Craven County8.571+0.28 pts
42Carteret County8.557+0.34 pts
43Cherokee County8.545+0.48 pts
43Macon County8.545-0.5 pts
45Alamance County8.537-0.33 pts
46Granville County8.437-1.04 pts
47Alleghany County8.389-1.74 pts
48Guilford County8.363-0.57 pts
49Duplin County8.349+0.5 pts
50Stokes County8.333-1.58 pts
51Sampson County8.329+2.28 pts
52Forsyth County8.295-0.55 pts
53Greene County8.214+1.98 pts
54Watauga County8.213-1.84 pts
55Haywood County8.178-0.77 pts
56Martin County8.076+0.86 pts
57Graham County8.054-0.64 pts
58Cumberland County8.05-0.92 pts
59Hyde County7.942+1.32 pts
60Warren County7.925+1.45 pts
61Bertie County7.914+4.03 pts
62Ashe County7.831-1.09 pts
63Rowan County7.73+0.14 pts
64Stanly County7.705+1.31 pts
65Wilkes County7.654+1.46 pts
66Surry County7.559+0.97 pts
67Pitt County7.52-0.41 pts
68Randolph County7.492-0.43 pts
69Wayne County7.457+0.6 pts
70Rockingham County7.42+0.69 pts
71Catawba County7.392-1.05 pts
72Wilson County7.329+1.23 pts
73Hoke County7.238-2.85 pts
74Alexander County7.212-0.38 pts
75Vance County7.174-0.47 pts
76Rutherford County7.121-1.64 pts
77Yancey County6.874-0.7 pts
78Beaufort County6.873-0.27 pts
79Person County6.854-3.7 pts
80Mitchell County6.801-0.21 pts
81Caldwell County6.707-0.25 pts
82Pasquotank County6.671-1.42 pts
83Burke County6.669-1.99 pts
84Avery County6.635-3.84 pts
85Cleveland County6.543+0.84 pts
86Lee County6.469-1.96 pts
87Lenoir County6.32-0.51 pts
88Scotland County6.301+0.76 pts
89Nash County6.202-0.39 pts
90Columbus County6.117-1.23 pts
91Richmond County6.109-1.71 pts
92Robeson County6.104-1.35 pts
93Halifax County5.93-0.22 pts
94Washington County5.783+0.07 pts
95Chowan County5.588-3.65 pts
96Northampton County4.564-4.15 pts
97Montgomery County4.555-2.85 pts
98Gates County3.687-0.74 pts
99Hertford County2.67-3.57 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Establishments that opened during the year (employees in March of the year and none a year earlier), as a percentage of the average number of establishments in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

An establishment is a single physical location, so a new branch of an existing firm counts as an entry: this is not the rate of new firms. Not comparable with enterprise_birth_rate, which counts new enterprises in Europe. The year is the twelve months to March: 2023 compares March 2022 with March 2023.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 1 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2019 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. 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

U.S. Census Bureau. (2025). Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate, 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate, 2019. U.S. Census Bureau, 25 Sept. 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2019. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate, 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2019.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate, 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2019,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate, 2019}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2019. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in North Carolina by establishment entry rate, 2019
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/09/25
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-entry-rate/north-carolina-counties?period=2019.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest establishment entry rate?

Currituck County, with 12.069% in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest establishment entry rate?

Hertford County, with 2.67% in 2019.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment entry rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 1 counties have no value for 2019 and are not ranked.

Establishment entry rate: other rankings

Counties in North Carolina: more rankings