Counties in North Carolina by land in farms

Sampson County had the highest land in farms of 97 counties in 2002, at 298,483 acres. Swain County had the lowest, at 7,121 acres. The median was 84,053 acres and the figure for North Carolina was 9,079,001 acres. Source: the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest298,483Sampson County
Lowest7,121Swain County
Median84,05397 counties
North Carolina9,079,001History

Map of counties, 2002

Alamance County: 97,793 acresAlexander County: 58,366 acresAlleghany County: 72,627 acresAnson County: 100,447 acresAshe County: 107,930 acresAvery County: 30,614 acresBeaufort County: 169,788 acresBertie County: 142,552 acresBladen County: 145,408 acresBrunswick County: 41,077 acresBuncombe County: 94,934 acresBurke County: 32,037 acresCabarrus County: 73,346 acresCaldwell County: 34,918 acresCarteret County: 59,755 acresCaswell County: 116,753 acresCatawba County: 78,516 acresChatham County: 118,752 acresCherokee County: 22,141 acresChowan County: 59,890 acresClay County: 13,434 acresCleveland County: 117,092 acresColumbus County: 160,128 acresCraven County: 78,910 acresCumberland County: 90,311 acresCurrituck County: 34,802 acresDavidson County: 104,797 acresDavie County: 76,295 acresDuplin County: 234,658 acresDurham County: 26,074 acresEdgecombe County: 163,587 acresForsyth County: 51,598 acresFranklin County: 128,412 acresGaston County: 41,827 acresGates County: 63,933 acresGraham County: 8,054 acresGranville County: 146,544 acresGreene County: 97,857 acresGuilford County: 111,382 acresHalifax County: 194,651 acresHarnett County: 114,361 acresHaywood County: 64,611 acresHenderson County: 48,619 acresHertford County: 79,810 acresHoke County: 63,356 acresHyde County: 103,089 acresIredell County: 146,556 acresJackson County: 16,399 acresJohnston County: 194,211 acresJones County: 76,025 acresLee County: 46,084 acresLenoir County: 121,520 acresLincoln County: 57,777 acresMcDowell County: 24,441 acresMacon County: 22,495 acresMadison County: 84,053 acresMartin County: 110,677 acresMecklenburg County: 25,442 acresMitchell County: 26,044 acresMontgomery County: 41,769 acresMoore County: 101,222 acresNash County: 160,187 acresNorthampton County: 150,666 acresOnslow County: 63,804 acresOrange County: 71,010 acresPamlico County: 52,340 acresPasquotank County: 99,432 acresPender County: 62,714 acresPerquimans County: 94,456 acresPerson County: 95,153 acresPitt County: 185,776 acresPolk County: 27,145 acresRandolph County: 156,704 acresRichmond County: 49,293 acresRobeson County: 286,704 acresRockingham County: 136,120 acresRowan County: 115,332 acresRutherford County: 67,856 acresSampson County: 298,483 acresScotland County: 58,313 acresStanly County: 107,549 acresStokes County: 107,358 acresSurry County: 129,090 acresSwain County: 7,121 acresTransylvania County: 18,171 acresTyrrell County: 73,608 acresUnion County: 190,704 acresVance County: 74,996 acresWake County: 92,803 acresWarren County: 75,469 acresWashington County: 114,423 acresWatauga County: 51,758 acresWayne County: 171,449 acresWilkes County: 124,189 acresWilson County: 114,564 acresYadkin County: 117,105 acresYancey County: 38,658 acres
  • Under 39K
  • 39K to 63K
  • 63K to 84K
  • 84K to 110K
  • 110K to 150K
  • 150K and over
  • No data
acres, 2002. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: USDA NASS, Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022) via Data Commons. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2002

Sampson County: 298,483 acresSampson County298,483Robeson County: 286,704 acresRobeson County286,704Duplin County: 234,658 acresDuplin County234,658Halifax County: 194,651 acresHalifax County194,651Johnston County: 194,211 acresJohnston County194,211Union County: 190,704 acresUnion County190,704Pitt County: 185,776 acresPitt County185,776Wayne County: 171,449 acresWayne County171,449Beaufort County: 169,788 acresBeaufort County169,788Edgecombe County: 163,587 acresEdgecombe County163,587Nash County: 160,187 acresNash County160,187Columbus County: 160,128 acresColumbus County160,128Randolph County: 156,704 acresRandolph County156,704Northampton County: 150,666 acresNorthampton County150,666Iredell County: 146,556 acresIredell County146,556Granville County: 146,544 acresGranville County146,544Bladen County: 145,408 acresBladen County145,408Bertie County: 142,552 acresBertie County142,552Rockingham County: 136,120 acresRockingham County136,120Surry County: 129,090 acresSurry County129,090Franklin County: 128,412 acresFranklin County128,412Wilkes County: 124,189 acresWilkes County124,189Lenoir County: 121,520 acresLenoir County121,520Chatham County: 118,752 acresChatham County118,752Yadkin County: 117,105 acresYadkin County117,105Cleveland County: 117,092 acresCleveland County117,092Caswell County: 116,753 acresCaswell County116,753Rowan County: 115,332 acresRowan County115,332Wilson County: 114,564 acresWilson County114,564Washington County: 114,423 acresWashington County114,423Harnett County: 114,361 acresHarnett County114,361Guilford County: 111,382 acresGuilford County111,382Martin County: 110,677 acresMartin County110,677Ashe County: 107,930 acresAshe County107,930Stanly County: 107,549 acresStanly County107,549Stokes County: 107,358 acresStokes County107,358Davidson County: 104,797 acresDavidson County104,797Hyde County: 103,089 acresHyde County103,089Moore County: 101,222 acresMoore County101,222Anson County: 100,447 acresAnson County100,447Sampson County: 298,483 acresSampson County298,483Robeson County: 286,704 acresRobeson County286,704Duplin County: 234,658 acresDuplin County234,658Halifax County: 194,651 acresHalifax County194,651Johnston County: 194,211 acresJohnston County194,211Union County: 190,704 acresUnion County190,704Pitt County: 185,776 acresPitt County185,776Wayne County: 171,449 acresWayne County171,449Beaufort County: 169,788 acresBeaufort County169,788Edgecombe County: 163,587 acresEdgecombe County163,587Nash County: 160,187 acresNash County160,187Columbus County: 160,128 acresColumbus County160,128Randolph County: 156,704 acresRandolph County156,704Northampton County: 150,666 acresNorthampton County150,666Iredell County: 146,556 acresIredell County146,556Granville County: 146,544 acresGranville County146,544Bladen County: 145,408 acresBladen County145,408Bertie County: 142,552 acresBertie County142,552Rockingham County: 136,120 acresRockingham County136,120Surry County: 129,090 acresSurry County129,090Franklin County: 128,412 acresFranklin County128,412Wilkes County: 124,189 acresWilkes County124,189Lenoir County: 121,520 acresLenoir County121,520Chatham County: 118,752 acresChatham County118,752Yadkin County: 117,105 acresYadkin County117,105Cleveland County: 117,092 acresCleveland County117,092Caswell County: 116,753 acresCaswell County116,753Rowan County: 115,332 acresRowan County115,332Wilson County: 114,564 acresWilson County114,564Washington County: 114,423 acresWashington County114,423Harnett County: 114,361 acresHarnett County114,361Guilford County: 111,382 acresGuilford County111,382Martin County: 110,677 acresMartin County110,677Ashe County: 107,930 acresAshe County107,930Stanly County: 107,549 acresStanly County107,549Stokes County: 107,358 acresStokes County107,358Davidson County: 104,797 acresDavidson County104,797Hyde County: 103,089 acresHyde County103,089Moore County: 101,222 acresMoore County101,222Anson County: 100,447 acresAnson County100,447
acres. Source: USDA NASS, Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022) via Data Commons. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Full ranking

RankCounties2002
acres
1Sampson County298,483
2Robeson County286,704
3Duplin County234,658
4Halifax County194,651
5Johnston County194,211
6Union County190,704
7Pitt County185,776
8Wayne County171,449
9Beaufort County169,788
10Edgecombe County163,587
11Nash County160,187
12Columbus County160,128
13Randolph County156,704
14Northampton County150,666
15Iredell County146,556
16Granville County146,544
17Bladen County145,408
18Bertie County142,552
19Rockingham County136,120
20Surry County129,090
21Franklin County128,412
22Wilkes County124,189
23Lenoir County121,520
24Chatham County118,752
25Yadkin County117,105
26Cleveland County117,092
27Caswell County116,753
28Rowan County115,332
29Wilson County114,564
30Washington County114,423
31Harnett County114,361
32Guilford County111,382
33Martin County110,677
34Ashe County107,930
35Stanly County107,549
36Stokes County107,358
37Davidson County104,797
38Hyde County103,089
39Moore County101,222
40Anson County100,447
41Pasquotank County99,432
42Greene County97,857
43Alamance County97,793
44Person County95,153
45Buncombe County94,934
46Perquimans County94,456
47Wake County92,803
48Cumberland County90,311
49Madison County84,053
50Hertford County79,810
51Craven County78,910
52Catawba County78,516
53Davie County76,295
54Jones County76,025
55Warren County75,469
56Vance County74,996
57Tyrrell County73,608
58Cabarrus County73,346
59Alleghany County72,627
60Orange County71,010
61Rutherford County67,856
62Haywood County64,611
63Gates County63,933
64Onslow County63,804
65Hoke County63,356
66Pender County62,714
67Chowan County59,890
68Carteret County59,755
69Alexander County58,366
70Scotland County58,313
71Lincoln County57,777
72Pamlico County52,340
73Watauga County51,758
74Forsyth County51,598
75Richmond County49,293
76Henderson County48,619
77Lee County46,084
78Gaston County41,827
79Montgomery County41,769
80Brunswick County41,077
81Yancey County38,658
82Caldwell County34,918
83Currituck County34,802
84Burke County32,037
85Avery County30,614
86Polk County27,145
87Durham County26,074
88Mitchell County26,044
89Mecklenburg County25,442
90McDowell County24,441
91Macon County22,495
92Cherokee County22,141
93Transylvania County18,171
94Jackson County16,399
95Clay County13,434
96Graham County8,054
97Swain County7,121

Other periods

About this ranking

Land operated by farms in the census year, in acres, including cropland, pasture, woodland and land under farm buildings, as counted by the USDA Census of Agriculture every five years.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 3 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2002 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

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. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service. (2026). Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022) (Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2002) [Data set]. Data Commons. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/

MLA 9

Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022), Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2002. U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, 11 Oct. 2026, https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Data Commons, https://datacommons.org. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2002. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service. 2026. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2002. Dataset. Distributed by Data Commons. Accessed October 11, 2026. https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2002.

Harvard

U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service (2026) Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022), Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2002 [Dataset]. Via Data Commons. Available at: https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2002 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{department_counties_in_north_carolina_2002,
  author = {{U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service}},
  title = {{Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022): Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2002}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  publisher = {Data Commons},
  url = {https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/},
  urldate = {2026-10-11},
  note = {Retrieved through Data Commons (https://datacommons.org). Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2002. Publisher attribution: Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service
TI  - Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022): Counties in North Carolina by land in farms, 2002
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/11
PB  - Data Commons
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2002
Y2  - 2026/10/11
N1  - Retrieved through Data Commons (https://datacommons.org).
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/north-carolina-counties?period=2002.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest land in farms?

Sampson County, with 298,483 acres in 2002, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Which county has the lowest land in farms?

Swain County, with 7,121 acres in 2002.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved 2026-10-11. 3 counties have no value for 2002 and are not ranked.

Land in farms: other rankings

Counties in North Carolina: more rankings