Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024
Zebulon, NC had the highest mean travel time to work of 93 cities in 2024, at 33.4 minutes. Jacksonville, NC had the lowest, at 15 minutes. The median was 23.5 minutes and the figure for North Carolina was 25.1 minutes. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.
Top 40 cities, 2024
Full ranking
| Rank | Cities | 2024 | Change on 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zebulon, NC Estimated | 33.4 | +1.7 |
| 2 | Fuquay-Varina, NC Estimated | 33.1 | +1.2 |
| 3 | Waxhaw, NC Estimated | 32 | +0.6 |
| 4 | Rolesville, NC Estimated | 31.5 | -1.9 |
| 5 | Clayton, NC Estimated | 31.1 | -0.9 |
| 6 | Wake Forest, NC Estimated | 30.9 | 0 |
| 7 | Monroe, NC Estimated | 30.1 | +0.2 |
| 8 | Mebane, NC Estimated | 29.9 | -0.6 |
| 9 | Harrisburg, NC Estimated | 29.6 | -0.4 |
| 10 | Wendell, NC Estimated | 29 | -0.5 |
| 11 | Holly Springs, NC Estimated | 28.8 | +0.3 |
| 12 | Mint Hill, NC Estimated | 28.6 | +0.3 |
| 13 | Stallings, NC Estimated | 28.4 | -0.5 |
| 14 | Indian Trail, NC Estimated | 28.2 | +0.3 |
| 15 | Weddington, NC Estimated | 28 | +0.9 |
| 16 | Summerfield, NC Estimated | 27.8 | +1.4 |
| 17 | Mount Holly, NC Estimated | 27.5 | -0.2 |
| 18 | Hope Mills, NC Estimated | 27.3 | +0.6 |
| 19 | Aberdeen, NC Estimated | 27.2 | -0.5 |
| 20 | Huntersville, NC Estimated | 27.1 | -0.1 |
| 21 | Concord, NC Estimated | 26.9 | -0.9 |
| 22 | Gastonia, NC Estimated | 26.8 | +1.1 |
| 23 | Belmont, NC Estimated | 26.5 | +1 |
| 24 | Elizabeth City, NC Estimated | 26.4 | +4.3 |
| 25 | Garner, NC Estimated | 26.2 | -1.2 |
| 25 | Kannapolis, NC Estimated | 26.2 | +0.3 |
| 27 | Lewisville, NC Estimated | 25.7 | +0.9 |
| 28 | Graham, NC Estimated | 25.6 | +1.2 |
| 29 | Lexington, NC Estimated | 25.5 | +3.1 |
| 30 | Cornelius, NC Estimated | 25.4 | +0.4 |
| 31 | Apex, NC Estimated | 25.2 | +1.1 |
| 31 | Kings Mountain, NC Estimated | 25.2 | +0.9 |
| 31 | Matthews, NC Estimated | 25.2 | -0.5 |
| 34 | Lincolnton, NC Estimated | 25 | +0.8 |
| 35 | Eden, NC Estimated | 24.9 | -0.1 |
| 36 | Lenoir, NC Estimated | 24.8 | +1.2 |
| 37 | Charlotte, NC Estimated | 24.7 | -0.3 |
| 37 | Leland, NC Estimated | 24.7 | +0.2 |
| 37 | Mooresville, NC Estimated | 24.7 | +0.8 |
| 40 | Davidson, NC Estimated | 24.2 | +0.9 |
| 41 | Albemarle, NC Estimated | 24.1 | -1.9 |
| 41 | Smithfield, NC Estimated | 24.1 | +0.1 |
| 43 | Knightdale, NC Estimated | 24 | -2 |
| 43 | Reidsville, NC Estimated | 24 | +1.1 |
| 45 | Burlington, NC Estimated | 23.7 | -0.6 |
| 45 | Pinehurst, NC Estimated | 23.7 | -2.6 |
| 47 | Pineville, NC Estimated | 23.5 | -1.2 |
| 48 | Sanford, NC Estimated | 23.3 | +0.3 |
| 49 | Carrboro, NC Estimated | 23.1 | -0.1 |
| 50 | Raleigh, NC Estimated | 23 | -0.4 |
| 51 | Southern Pines, NC Estimated | 22.8 | -1.2 |
| 52 | Archdale, NC Estimated | 22.6 | +1.2 |
| 52 | Kernersville, NC Estimated | 22.6 | -0.7 |
| 54 | Cary, NC Estimated | 22.5 | -0.2 |
| 55 | Asheboro, NC Estimated | 22.3 | +0.2 |
| 55 | Durham, NC Estimated | 22.3 | -0.4 |
| 57 | Clemmons, NC Estimated | 22.1 | -0.9 |
| 58 | Morrisville, NC Estimated | 21.8 | +1.5 |
| 58 | Roanoke Rapids, NC Estimated | 21.8 | +1.3 |
| 58 | Salisbury, NC Estimated | 21.8 | +1 |
| 61 | Greensboro, NC Estimated | 21.7 | -0.3 |
| 61 | Newton, NC Estimated | 21.7 | +0.6 |
| 63 | Winston-Salem, NC Estimated | 21.5 | -0.3 |
| 64 | Wilson, NC Estimated | 21.3 | 0 |
| 65 | Hickory, NC Estimated | 21.1 | +1 |
| 66 | Henderson, NC Estimated | 20.8 | -1.1 |
| 66 | Tarboro, NC Estimated | 20.8 | +1.6 |
| 68 | High Point, NC Estimated | 20.7 | -0.5 |
| 68 | Kinston, NC Estimated | 20.7 | +0.6 |
| 70 | Rocky Mount, NC Estimated | 20.6 | -0.8 |
| 70 | Winterville, NC Estimated | 20.6 | -3.7 |
| 72 | Thomasville, NC Estimated | 20.4 | -0.7 |
| 73 | Shelby, NC Estimated | 20.2 | -1.5 |
| 74 | Elon, NC Estimated | 20.1 | -1.1 |
| 74 | Statesville, NC Estimated | 20.1 | +0.5 |
| 76 | Waynesville, NC Estimated | 19.7 | +1 |
| 77 | Chapel Hill, NC Estimated | 19.5 | -0.1 |
| 77 | Lumberton, NC Estimated | 19.5 | +0.6 |
| 79 | Hendersonville, NC Estimated | 19.2 | +0.7 |
| 79 | Laurinburg, NC Estimated | 19.2 | -1.2 |
| 81 | Fayetteville, NC Estimated | 19.1 | +0.2 |
| 82 | Spring Lake, NC Estimated | 18.9 | -0.8 |
| 83 | Greenville, NC Estimated | 18.8 | +0.6 |
| 83 | New Bern, NC Estimated | 18.8 | +0.6 |
| 85 | Wilmington, NC Estimated | 18.5 | 0 |
| 86 | Goldsboro, NC Estimated | 18.3 | +0.8 |
| 87 | Asheville, NC Estimated | 18.2 | +0.2 |
| 87 | Havelock, NC Estimated | 18.2 | +1 |
| 89 | Morehead City, NC Estimated | 18.1 | 0 |
| 90 | Mount Airy, NC Estimated | 17.8 | -0.9 |
| 91 | Morganton, NC Estimated | 17.7 | -1.7 |
| 92 | Boone, NC Estimated | 15.8 | |
| 93 | Jacksonville, NC Estimated | 15 | +0.3 |
Other periods
About this ranking
Mean one-way travel time to work in minutes for workers aged 16 and over who did not work from home.
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: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.Citation styles
APA 7
U.S. Census Bureau. (2026). American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more) (Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
MLA 9
American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more), Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/mean-travel-time-to-work/north-carolina-cities. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/mean-travel-time-to-work/north-carolina-cities.
Harvard
U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more), Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/mean-travel-time-to-work/north-carolina-cities (Accessed: 12 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_north_carolina_2024,
author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more): Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/},
urldate = {2026-10-12},
note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/mean-travel-time-to-work/north-carolina-cities. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - U.S. Census Bureau
TI - American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more): Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work, 2024
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/01/29
PB - U.S. Census Bureau
DB - Invokely
UR - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/mean-travel-time-to-work/north-carolina-cities
Y2 - 2026/10/12
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/mean-travel-time-to-work/north-carolina-cities.
N1 - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
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Rank Cities in North Carolina by mean travel time to work using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"mean_travel_time_to_work","level":"municipality","within":"North Carolina","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=mean_travel_time_to_work&level=municipality&within=North%20Carolina&limit=10Questions
Which city has the highest mean travel time to work?
Zebulon, NC, with 33.4 minutes in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Which city has the lowest mean travel time to work?
Jacksonville, NC, with 15 minutes in 2024.
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: mean travel time to work, B08135 aggregate minutes divided by B08303 workers not working at home, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Retrieved 2026-10-12.
Mean travel time to work: other rankings
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Cities in North Carolina: more rankings
- Unemployment rate (US five-year survey estimate)
- Employed residents
- Labor force participation rate (US five-year survey estimate)
- Unemployed people
- Asian population share
- Poverty rate (US five-year survey estimate)
- Residents who moved from another county in the past year
- Bachelor's degree or higher, population 25 and over