Data / Rankings / Housing units / Cities in North Carolina

Cities in North Carolina by housing units

Charlotte, NC had the highest housing units of 93 cities in 2021, at 374,123. Zebulon, NC had the lowest, at 2,781. The median was 9,615 and the figure for North Carolina was 4.67 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest374,123Charlotte, NC
Lowest2,781Zebulon, NC
Median9,61593 cities
North Carolina4,673,933History

Top 40 cities, 2021

Charlotte, NC: 374,123 countCharlotte, NC374,123Raleigh, NC: 206,766 countRaleigh, NC206,766Greensboro, NC: 132,010 countGreensboro, NC132,010Durham, NC: 126,044 countDurham, NC126,044Winston-Salem, NC: 111,293 countWinston-Salem, NC111,293Fayetteville, NC: 91,338 countFayetteville, NC91,338Cary, NC: 68,504 countCary, NC68,504Wilmington, NC: 58,694 countWilmington, NC58,694Asheville, NC: 47,939 countAsheville, NC47,939High Point, NC: 47,378 countHigh Point, NC47,378Greenville, NC: 43,088 countGreenville, NC43,088Concord, NC: 41,083 countConcord, NC41,083Gastonia, NC: 34,363 countGastonia, NC34,363Rocky Mount, NC: 26,496 countRocky Mount, NC26,496Burlington, NC: 25,781 countBurlington, NC25,781Jacksonville, NC: 24,484 countJacksonville, NC24,484Huntersville, NC: 23,313 countHuntersville, NC23,313Chapel Hill, NC: 22,369 countChapel Hill, NC22,369Wilson, NC: 22,142 countWilson, NC22,142Apex, NC: 21,846 countApex, NC21,846Kannapolis, NC: 21,357 countKannapolis, NC21,357Mooresville, NC: 19,839 countMooresville, NC19,839Hickory, NC: 19,421 countHickory, NC19,421Wake Forest, NC: 17,235 countWake Forest, NC17,235Goldsboro, NC: 16,575 countGoldsboro, NC16,575New Bern, NC: 16,114 countNew Bern, NC16,114Salisbury, NC: 15,017 countSalisbury, NC15,017Cornelius, NC: 13,799 countCornelius, NC13,799Holly Springs, NC: 13,648 countHolly Springs, NC13,648Indian Trail, NC: 13,219 countIndian Trail, NC13,219Garner, NC: 12,938 countGarner, NC12,938Statesville, NC: 12,483 countStatesville, NC12,483Monroe, NC: 12,447 countMonroe, NC12,447Kernersville, NC: 12,394 countKernersville, NC12,394Asheboro, NC: 12,229 countAsheboro, NC12,229Fuquay-Varina, NC: 12,037 countFuquay-Varina, NC12,037Sanford, NC: 11,933 countSanford, NC11,933Morrisville, NC: 11,565 countMorrisville, NC11,565Matthews, NC: 11,542 countMatthews, NC11,542Thomasville, NC: 11,416 countThomasville, NC11,416Charlotte, NC: 374,123 countCharlotte, NC374,123Raleigh, NC: 206,766 countRaleigh, NC206,766Greensboro, NC: 132,010 countGreensboro, NC132,010Durham, NC: 126,044 countDurham, NC126,044Winston-Salem, NC: 111,293 countWinston-Salem, NC111,293Fayetteville, NC: 91,338 countFayetteville, NC91,338Cary, NC: 68,504 countCary, NC68,504Wilmington, NC: 58,694 countWilmington, NC58,694Asheville, NC: 47,939 countAsheville, NC47,939High Point, NC: 47,378 countHigh Point, NC47,378Greenville, NC: 43,088 countGreenville, NC43,088Concord, NC: 41,083 countConcord, NC41,083Gastonia, NC: 34,363 countGastonia, NC34,363Rocky Mount, NC: 26,496 countRocky Mount, NC26,496Burlington, NC: 25,781 countBurlington, NC25,781Jacksonville, NC: 24,484 countJacksonville, NC24,484Huntersville, NC: 23,313 countHuntersville, NC23,313Chapel Hill, NC: 22,369 countChapel Hill, NC22,369Wilson, NC: 22,142 countWilson, NC22,142Apex, NC: 21,846 countApex, NC21,846Kannapolis, NC: 21,357 countKannapolis, NC21,357Mooresville, NC: 19,839 countMooresville, NC19,839Hickory, NC: 19,421 countHickory, NC19,421Wake Forest, NC: 17,235 countWake Forest, NC17,235Goldsboro, NC: 16,575 countGoldsboro, NC16,575New Bern, NC: 16,114 countNew Bern, NC16,114Salisbury, NC: 15,017 countSalisbury, NC15,017Cornelius, NC: 13,799 countCornelius, NC13,799Holly Springs, NC: 13,648 countHolly Springs, NC13,648Indian Trail, NC: 13,219 countIndian Trail, NC13,219Garner, NC: 12,938 countGarner, NC12,938Statesville, NC: 12,483 countStatesville, NC12,483Monroe, NC: 12,447 countMonroe, NC12,447Kernersville, NC: 12,394 countKernersville, NC12,394Asheboro, NC: 12,229 countAsheboro, NC12,229Fuquay-Varina, NC: 12,037 countFuquay-Varina, NC12,037Sanford, NC: 11,933 countSanford, NC11,933Morrisville, NC: 11,565 countMorrisville, NC11,565Matthews, NC: 11,542 countMatthews, NC11,542Thomasville, NC: 11,416 countThomasville, NC11,416
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2021
count
1Charlotte, NC374,123
2Raleigh, NC206,766
3Greensboro, NC132,010
4Durham, NC126,044
5Winston-Salem, NC111,293
6Fayetteville, NC91,338
7Cary, NC68,504
8Wilmington, NC58,694
9Asheville, NC47,939
10High Point, NC47,378
11Greenville, NC43,088
12Concord, NC41,083
13Gastonia, NC34,363
14Rocky Mount, NC26,496
15Burlington, NC25,781
16Jacksonville, NC24,484
17Huntersville, NC23,313
18Chapel Hill, NC22,369
19Wilson, NC22,142
20Apex, NC21,846
21Kannapolis, NC21,357
22Mooresville, NC19,839
23Hickory, NC19,421
24Wake Forest, NC17,235
25Goldsboro, NC16,575
26New Bern, NC16,114
27Salisbury, NC15,017
28Cornelius, NC13,799
29Holly Springs, NC13,648
30Indian Trail, NC13,219
31Garner, NC12,938
32Statesville, NC12,483
33Monroe, NC12,447
34Kernersville, NC12,394
35Asheboro, NC12,229
36Fuquay-Varina, NC12,037
37Sanford, NC11,933
38Morrisville, NC11,565
39Matthews, NC11,542
40Thomasville, NC11,416
41Shelby, NC11,273
42Kinston, NC10,738
43Mint Hill, NC10,606
44Leland, NC10,418
45Clayton, NC9,778
46Carrboro, NC9,705
47Pinehurst, NC9,615
48Lexington, NC9,322
49Clemmons, NC9,034
50Lenoir, NC8,493
51Lumberton, NC8,461
52Hendersonville, NC8,362
53Elizabeth City, NC8,073
54Southern Pines, NC7,784
55Graham, NC7,783
56Albemarle, NC7,715
57Knightdale, NC7,595
58Eden, NC7,508
59Reidsville, NC7,409
60Morganton, NC7,287
61Mount Holly, NC7,250
62Mebane, NC7,185
63Roanoke Rapids, NC6,975
64Henderson, NC6,961
65Hope Mills, NC6,798
66Laurinburg, NC6,416
67Boone, NC6,209
68Waxhaw, NC6,203
69Morehead City, NC6,153
70Havelock, NC5,952
71Davidson, NC5,845
72Belmont, NC5,810
73Stallings, NC5,804
74Newton, NC5,748
75Waynesville, NC5,601
76Mount Airy, NC5,521
77Harrisburg, NC5,465
78Smithfield, NC5,301
79Tarboro, NC5,166
80Archdale, NC5,118
81Lewisville, NC5,101
82Lincolnton, NC5,041
83Spring Lake, NC5,020
84Pineville, NC4,611
85Kings Mountain, NC4,489
86Winterville, NC4,366
87Weddington, NC4,278
88Summerfield, NC4,129
89Wendell, NC3,781
90Aberdeen, NC3,689
91Elon, NC3,406
92Rolesville, NC2,998
93Zebulon, NC2,781

Other periods

About this ranking

All housing units, occupied and vacant: houses, apartments, mobile homes and rooms intended as separate living quarters. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

A survey estimate averaged over five years, not a count on one date.

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

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.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 B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more) (Cities in North Carolina by housing units, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat

MLA 9

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more), Cities in North Carolina by housing units, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Cities in North Carolina by housing units, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more), Cities in North Carolina by housing units, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_north_carolina_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more): Cities in North Carolina by housing units, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more): Cities in North Carolina by housing units, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/01/29
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which city has the highest housing units?

Charlotte, NC, with 374,123 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which city has the lowest housing units?

Zebulon, NC, with 2,781 in 2021.

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 B25001: total housing units, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Housing units: other rankings

Cities in North Carolina: more rankings