Data / Rankings / Households / Counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina by households

Mecklenburg County had the highest households of 100 counties in 2022, at 446,584. Tyrrell County had the lowest, at 1,351. The median was 20,214 and the figure for North Carolina was 4.11 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest446,584Mecklenburg County
Lowest1,351Tyrrell County
Median20,214100 counties
North Carolina4,105,232History

Map of counties, 2022

Alamance County: 67,370 countAlexander County: 13,761 countAlleghany County: 4,937 countAnson County: 8,266 countAshe County: 11,823 countAvery County: 6,481 countBeaufort County: 18,972 countBertie County: 6,984 countBladen County: 11,386 countBrunswick County: 60,915 countBuncombe County: 102,921 countBurke County: 35,195 countCabarrus County: 76,880 countCaldwell County: 32,120 countCamden County: 3,871 countCarteret County: 30,414 countCaswell County: 8,507 countCatawba County: 64,442 countChatham County: 31,131 countCherokee County: 12,758 countChowan County: 6,216 countClay County: 4,892 countCleveland County: 36,567 countColumbus County: 19,185 countCraven County: 41,004 countCumberland County: 126,745 countCurrituck County: 11,108 countDare County: 16,081 countDavidson County: 67,684 countDavie County: 16,468 countDuplin County: 20,289 countDurham County: 135,469 countEdgecombe County: 19,350 countForsyth County: 153,096 countFranklin County: 26,473 countGaston County: 90,427 countGates County: 4,144 countGraham County: 3,179 countGranville County: 21,505 countGreene County: 6,793 countGuilford County: 212,825 countHalifax County: 20,139 countHarnett County: 47,870 countHaywood County: 26,481 countHenderson County: 49,494 countHertford County: 8,353 countHoke County: 18,481 countHyde County: 2,002 countIredell County: 72,296 countJackson County: 17,737 countJohnston County: 79,387 countJones County: 3,815 countLee County: 24,050 countLenoir County: 22,665 countLincoln County: 34,910 countMcDowell County: 18,184 countMacon County: 17,386 countMadison County: 8,447 countMartin County: 9,332 countMecklenburg County: 446,584 countMitchell County: 6,479 countMontgomery County: 9,505 countMoore County: 41,782 countNash County: 37,793 countNew Hanover County: 99,975 countNorthampton County: 7,463 countOnslow County: 71,009 countOrange County: 55,534 countPamlico County: 5,130 countPasquotank County: 15,422 countPender County: 23,258 countPerquimans County: 5,568 countPerson County: 16,139 countPitt County: 72,153 countPolk County: 8,541 countRandolph County: 55,894 countRichmond County: 16,605 countRobeson County: 42,509 countRockingham County: 38,710 countRowan County: 56,618 countRutherford County: 26,273 countSampson County: 21,395 countScotland County: 12,224 countStanly County: 23,773 countStokes County: 18,993 countSurry County: 28,990 countSwain County: 5,684 countTransylvania County: 14,353 countTyrrell County: 1,351 countUnion County: 80,271 countVance County: 16,123 countWake County: 430,497 countWarren County: 7,686 countWashington County: 4,897 countWatauga County: 21,194 countWayne County: 46,949 countWilkes County: 27,249 countWilson County: 32,287 countYadkin County: 14,850 countYancey County: 7,859 count
  • Under 7,000
  • 7,000 to 14K
  • 14K to 20K
  • 20K to 32K
  • 32K to 66K
  • 66K and over
count, 2022. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2022

Mecklenburg County: 446,584 countMecklenburg County446,584Wake County: 430,497 countWake County430,497Guilford County: 212,825 countGuilford County212,825Forsyth County: 153,096 countForsyth County153,096Durham County: 135,469 countDurham County135,469Cumberland County: 126,745 countCumberland County126,745Buncombe County: 102,921 countBuncombe County102,921New Hanover County: 99,975 countNew Hanover County99,975Gaston County: 90,427 countGaston County90,427Union County: 80,271 countUnion County80,271Johnston County: 79,387 countJohnston County79,387Cabarrus County: 76,880 countCabarrus County76,880Iredell County: 72,296 countIredell County72,296Pitt County: 72,153 countPitt County72,153Onslow County: 71,009 countOnslow County71,009Davidson County: 67,684 countDavidson County67,684Alamance County: 67,370 countAlamance County67,370Catawba County: 64,442 countCatawba County64,442Brunswick County: 60,915 countBrunswick County60,915Rowan County: 56,618 countRowan County56,618Randolph County: 55,894 countRandolph County55,894Orange County: 55,534 countOrange County55,534Henderson County: 49,494 countHenderson County49,494Harnett County: 47,870 countHarnett County47,870Wayne County: 46,949 countWayne County46,949Robeson County: 42,509 countRobeson County42,509Moore County: 41,782 countMoore County41,782Craven County: 41,004 countCraven County41,004Rockingham County: 38,710 countRockingham County38,710Nash County: 37,793 countNash County37,793Cleveland County: 36,567 countCleveland County36,567Burke County: 35,195 countBurke County35,195Lincoln County: 34,910 countLincoln County34,910Wilson County: 32,287 countWilson County32,287Caldwell County: 32,120 countCaldwell County32,120Chatham County: 31,131 countChatham County31,131Carteret County: 30,414 countCarteret County30,414Surry County: 28,990 countSurry County28,990Wilkes County: 27,249 countWilkes County27,249Haywood County: 26,481 countHaywood County26,481Mecklenburg County: 446,584 countMecklenburg County446,584Wake County: 430,497 countWake County430,497Guilford County: 212,825 countGuilford County212,825Forsyth County: 153,096 countForsyth County153,096Durham County: 135,469 countDurham County135,469Cumberland County: 126,745 countCumberland County126,745Buncombe County: 102,921 countBuncombe County102,921New Hanover County: 99,975 countNew Hanover County99,975Gaston County: 90,427 countGaston County90,427Union County: 80,271 countUnion County80,271Johnston County: 79,387 countJohnston County79,387Cabarrus County: 76,880 countCabarrus County76,880Iredell County: 72,296 countIredell County72,296Pitt County: 72,153 countPitt County72,153Onslow County: 71,009 countOnslow County71,009Davidson County: 67,684 countDavidson County67,684Alamance County: 67,370 countAlamance County67,370Catawba County: 64,442 countCatawba County64,442Brunswick County: 60,915 countBrunswick County60,915Rowan County: 56,618 countRowan County56,618Randolph County: 55,894 countRandolph County55,894Orange County: 55,534 countOrange County55,534Henderson County: 49,494 countHenderson County49,494Harnett County: 47,870 countHarnett County47,870Wayne County: 46,949 countWayne County46,949Robeson County: 42,509 countRobeson County42,509Moore County: 41,782 countMoore County41,782Craven County: 41,004 countCraven County41,004Rockingham County: 38,710 countRockingham County38,710Nash County: 37,793 countNash County37,793Cleveland County: 36,567 countCleveland County36,567Burke County: 35,195 countBurke County35,195Lincoln County: 34,910 countLincoln County34,910Wilson County: 32,287 countWilson County32,287Caldwell County: 32,120 countCaldwell County32,120Chatham County: 31,131 countChatham County31,131Carteret County: 30,414 countCarteret County30,414Surry County: 28,990 countSurry County28,990Wilkes County: 27,249 countWilkes County27,249Haywood County: 26,481 countHaywood County26,481
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2022
count		Change on 2021
1Mecklenburg County446,584+2.5%
2Wake County430,497+2%
3Guilford County212,825+1.5%
4Forsyth County153,096+1.6%
5Durham County135,469+2%
6Cumberland County126,745+1.3%
7Buncombe County102,921-0.6%
8New Hanover County99,975+2.2%
9Gaston County90,427+1.9%
10Union County80,271+2.3%
11Johnston County79,387+4.3%
12Cabarrus County76,880+2.6%
13Iredell County72,296+2.3%
14Pitt County72,153+1.4%
15Onslow County71,009+2.5%
16Davidson County67,684+1%
17Alamance County67,370+1.6%
18Catawba County64,442+1.7%
19Brunswick County60,915+5.4%
20Rowan County56,618+2%
21Randolph County55,894+0.2%
22Orange County55,534+1.4%
23Henderson County49,494+2%
24Harnett County47,870+1.7%
25Wayne County46,949+0.4%
26Robeson County42,509+0.6%
27Moore County41,782+2.9%
28Craven County41,004+1.4%
29Rockingham County38,710+2.1%
30Nash County37,793+0.8%
31Cleveland County36,567-0.3%
32Burke County35,195+2.4%
33Lincoln County34,910+3.1%
34Wilson County32,287+1%
35Caldwell County32,120+0.9%
36Chatham County31,131+3.3%
37Carteret County30,414+1.1%
38Surry County28,990+1.4%
39Wilkes County27,249-0.1%
40Haywood County26,481+0.3%
41Franklin County26,473+3.9%
42Rutherford County26,273+1.3%
43Lee County24,050+1.1%
44Stanly County23,773+0.6%
45Pender County23,258+2.7%
46Lenoir County22,665-0.4%
47Granville County21,505+1.8%
48Sampson County21,395+0.5%
49Watauga County21,194+1.9%
50Duplin County20,289+2.3%
51Halifax County20,139+0.4%
52Edgecombe County19,350+0.5%
53Columbus County19,185-0.2%
54Stokes County18,993+1.2%
55Beaufort County18,972+2.1%
56Hoke County18,481+4.4%
57McDowell County18,184-0.1%
58Jackson County17,737+4.9%
59Macon County17,386+1.3%
60Richmond County16,605+1.9%
61Davie County16,468+0.9%
62Person County16,139+1.3%
63Vance County16,123+0.4%
64Dare County16,081+1.6%
65Pasquotank County15,422+2.4%
66Yadkin County14,850+0.1%
67Transylvania County14,353+1.7%
68Alexander County13,761+2%
69Cherokee County12,758+3.1%
70Scotland County12,224+0.1%
71Ashe County11,823+0.9%
72Bladen County11,386-0.9%
73Currituck County11,108+3.8%
74Montgomery County9,505+4.3%
75Martin County9,332+0.8%
76Polk County8,541-0.6%
77Caswell County8,507-1%
78Madison County8,447+2%
79Hertford County8,353+1.3%
80Anson County8,266-1.4%
81Yancey County7,859+3.2%
82Warren County7,686-0.7%
83Northampton County7,463+0.9%
84Bertie County6,984-2.8%
85Greene County6,793+0.2%
86Avery County6,481+1.6%
87Mitchell County6,479+0.6%
88Chowan County6,216-0.9%
89Swain County5,684+3.3%
90Perquimans County5,568-2.9%
91Pamlico County5,130+0.2%
92Alleghany County4,937+3.5%
93Washington County4,897-0.8%
94Clay County4,892-5%
95Gates County4,144+0.1%
96Camden County3,871+2.1%
97Jones County3,815+1%
98Graham County3,179+0.9%
99Hyde County2,002+0.1%
100Tyrrell County1,351-4.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of households, which equals the number of occupied housing units. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

People living in group quarters, such as college dormitories, nursing homes and prisons, are not in households.

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

U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat. 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. (2026). American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households) (Counties in North Carolina by households, 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat

MLA 9

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households), Counties in North Carolina by households, 2022. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/north-carolina-counties?period=2022. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Counties in North Carolina by households, 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households), Counties in North Carolina by households, 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/north-carolina-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_north_carolina_2022,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households): Counties in North Carolina by households, 2022}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/north-carolina-counties?period=2022. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households): Counties in North Carolina by households, 2022
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/01/29
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/north-carolina-counties?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest households?

Mecklenburg County, with 446,584 in 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest households?

Tyrrell County, with 1,351 in 2022.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Households: other rankings

Counties in North Carolina: more rankings