Data / Rankings / Population / Cities in North Carolina

Cities in North Carolina by population

Charlotte, NC had the highest population of 93 cities in 2021, at 882,504. Zebulon, NC had the lowest, at 7,967. The median was 21,186 and the figure for North Carolina was 10.57 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest882,504Charlotte, NC
Lowest7,967Zebulon, NC
Median21,18693 cities
North Carolina10,565,503History

Top 40 cities, 2021

Charlotte, NC: 882,504 personsCharlotte, NC882,504Raleigh, NC: 471,981 personsRaleigh, NC471,981Greensboro, NC: 297,879 personsGreensboro, NC297,879Durham, NC: 286,599 personsDurham, NC286,599Winston-Salem, NC: 250,449 personsWinston-Salem, NC250,449Fayetteville, NC: 212,223 personsFayetteville, NC212,223Cary, NC: 176,907 personsCary, NC176,907Wilmington, NC: 118,026 personsWilmington, NC118,026High Point, NC: 115,071 personsHigh Point, NC115,071Concord, NC: 107,034 personsConcord, NC107,034Asheville, NC: 94,245 personsAsheville, NC94,245Greenville, NC: 91,676 personsGreenville, NC91,676Gastonia, NC: 81,409 personsGastonia, NC81,409Jacksonville, NC: 70,395 personsJacksonville, NC70,395Apex, NC: 68,296 personsApex, NC68,296Huntersville, NC: 61,935 personsHuntersville, NC61,935Chapel Hill, NC: 61,729 personsChapel Hill, NC61,729Burlington, NC: 59,298 personsBurlington, NC59,298Kannapolis, NC: 56,364 personsKannapolis, NC56,364Rocky Mount, NC: 54,516 personsRocky Mount, NC54,516Mooresville, NC: 51,742 personsMooresville, NC51,742Wake Forest, NC: 50,923 personsWake Forest, NC50,923Wilson, NC: 48,686 personsWilson, NC48,686Hickory, NC: 43,824 personsHickory, NC43,824Holly Springs, NC: 43,477 personsHolly Springs, NC43,477Indian Trail, NC: 41,162 personsIndian Trail, NC41,162Fuquay-Varina, NC: 36,798 personsFuquay-Varina, NC36,798Salisbury, NC: 35,110 personsSalisbury, NC35,110Monroe, NC: 35,088 personsMonroe, NC35,088Goldsboro, NC: 34,166 personsGoldsboro, NC34,166Garner, NC: 32,182 personsGarner, NC32,182New Bern, NC: 31,833 personsNew Bern, NC31,833Cornelius, NC: 31,715 personsCornelius, NC31,715Morrisville, NC: 31,440 personsMorrisville, NC31,440Sanford, NC: 30,557 personsSanford, NC30,557Matthews, NC: 29,598 personsMatthews, NC29,598Statesville, NC: 29,231 personsStatesville, NC29,231Clayton, NC: 28,356 personsClayton, NC28,356Asheboro, NC: 27,408 personsAsheboro, NC27,408Leland, NC: 27,346 personsLeland, NC27,346Charlotte, NC: 882,504 personsCharlotte, NC882,504Raleigh, NC: 471,981 personsRaleigh, NC471,981Greensboro, NC: 297,879 personsGreensboro, NC297,879Durham, NC: 286,599 personsDurham, NC286,599Winston-Salem, NC: 250,449 personsWinston-Salem, NC250,449Fayetteville, NC: 212,223 personsFayetteville, NC212,223Cary, NC: 176,907 personsCary, NC176,907Wilmington, NC: 118,026 personsWilmington, NC118,026High Point, NC: 115,071 personsHigh Point, NC115,071Concord, NC: 107,034 personsConcord, NC107,034Asheville, NC: 94,245 personsAsheville, NC94,245Greenville, NC: 91,676 personsGreenville, NC91,676Gastonia, NC: 81,409 personsGastonia, NC81,409Jacksonville, NC: 70,395 personsJacksonville, NC70,395Apex, NC: 68,296 personsApex, NC68,296Huntersville, NC: 61,935 personsHuntersville, NC61,935Chapel Hill, NC: 61,729 personsChapel Hill, NC61,729Burlington, NC: 59,298 personsBurlington, NC59,298Kannapolis, NC: 56,364 personsKannapolis, NC56,364Rocky Mount, NC: 54,516 personsRocky Mount, NC54,516Mooresville, NC: 51,742 personsMooresville, NC51,742Wake Forest, NC: 50,923 personsWake Forest, NC50,923Wilson, NC: 48,686 personsWilson, NC48,686Hickory, NC: 43,824 personsHickory, NC43,824Holly Springs, NC: 43,477 personsHolly Springs, NC43,477Indian Trail, NC: 41,162 personsIndian Trail, NC41,162Fuquay-Varina, NC: 36,798 personsFuquay-Varina, NC36,798Salisbury, NC: 35,110 personsSalisbury, NC35,110Monroe, NC: 35,088 personsMonroe, NC35,088Goldsboro, NC: 34,166 personsGoldsboro, NC34,166Garner, NC: 32,182 personsGarner, NC32,182New Bern, NC: 31,833 personsNew Bern, NC31,833Cornelius, NC: 31,715 personsCornelius, NC31,715Morrisville, NC: 31,440 personsMorrisville, NC31,440Sanford, NC: 30,557 personsSanford, NC30,557Matthews, NC: 29,598 personsMatthews, NC29,598Statesville, NC: 29,231 personsStatesville, NC29,231Clayton, NC: 28,356 personsClayton, NC28,356Asheboro, NC: 27,408 personsAsheboro, NC27,408Leland, NC: 27,346 personsLeland, NC27,346
persons. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2021
persons		Change on 2020
1Charlotte, NC882,504+0.9%
2Raleigh, NC471,981+1.2%
3Greensboro, NC297,879+0.7%
4Durham, NC286,599+1.7%
5Winston-Salem, NC250,449+0.5%
6Fayetteville, NC212,223+0.7%
7Cary, NC176,907+1.2%
8Wilmington, NC118,026+1.8%
9High Point, NC115,071+0.3%
10Concord, NC107,034+2%
11Asheville, NC94,245-0.1%
12Greenville, NC91,676+0.8%
13Gastonia, NC81,409+1%
14Jacksonville, NC70,395-3.8%
15Apex, NC68,296+4.7%
16Huntersville, NC61,935+0.5%
17Chapel Hill, NC61,729+8.2%
18Burlington, NC59,298+3%
19Kannapolis, NC56,364+1.8%
20Rocky Mount, NC54,516-0.7%
21Mooresville, NC51,742+2.3%
22Wake Forest, NC50,923+2.4%
23Wilson, NC48,686-0.6%
24Hickory, NC43,824+0.3%
25Holly Springs, NC43,477+4.6%
26Indian Trail, NC41,162+2%
27Fuquay-Varina, NC36,798+6.4%
28Salisbury, NC35,110-0.3%
29Monroe, NC35,088+1.1%
30Goldsboro, NC34,166-0.8%
31Garner, NC32,182+2.2%
32New Bern, NC31,833+1.6%
33Cornelius, NC31,715+0.6%
34Morrisville, NC31,440+4.4%
35Sanford, NC30,557+1.1%
36Matthews, NC29,598+0.3%
37Statesville, NC29,231+2.1%
38Clayton, NC28,356+6.3%
39Asheboro, NC27,408+0.6%
40Leland, NC27,346+8.8%
41Thomasville, NC27,168+0.3%
42Kernersville, NC26,877+1.2%
43Mint Hill, NC26,677+0.6%
44Shelby, NC21,902-0.2%
45Waxhaw, NC21,722+4.5%
46Clemmons, NC21,527+1.4%
47Carrboro, NC21,186-0.4%
48Boone, NC20,121+2.9%
49Knightdale, NC19,619+0.6%
50Lexington, NC19,552+0.2%
51Kinston, NC19,513-1.3%
52Harrisburg, NC19,332+2.1%
53Elizabeth City, NC18,969+1.1%
54Lumberton, NC18,860-0.2%
55Mebane, NC18,826+3.1%
56Lenoir, NC18,308-0.2%
57Pinehurst, NC18,109+2.4%
58Mount Holly, NC17,967+1.3%
59Havelock, NC17,954+0.3%
60Hope Mills, NC17,913+0.4%
61Morganton, NC17,423-0.5%
62Graham, NC17,292+0.7%
63Stallings, NC16,503+1.9%
64Albemarle, NC16,479+0.4%
65Southern Pines, NC16,126+2.7%
66Belmont, NC15,328+1.1%
67Eden, NC15,316-0.7%
68Hendersonville, NC15,278+0.4%
69Davidson, NC15,262+2.5%
70Roanoke Rapids, NC15,082-0.8%
71Laurinburg, NC14,975-0.8%
72Henderson, NC14,932-1.4%
73Reidsville, NC14,544-0.3%
74Lewisville, NC13,626+1.5%
75Weddington, NC13,503+1.9%
76Newton, NC13,197+0.4%
77Archdale, NC11,956+0.4%
78Smithfield, NC11,787+3.6%
79Wendell, NC11,588+15.9%
80Spring Lake, NC11,516-0%
81Kings Mountain, NC11,482+1.5%
82Lincolnton, NC11,439+2.8%
83Summerfield, NC10,988+0.3%
84Elon, NC10,778-1.5%
85Pineville, NC10,698+0.6%
86Winterville, NC10,659+1.4%
87Mount Airy, NC10,624-0.4%
88Tarboro, NC10,551-1.3%
89Waynesville, NC10,281+0.5%
90Rolesville, NC10,225+5.2%
91Morehead City, NC9,733+1.5%
92Aberdeen, NC9,119+5.7%
93Zebulon, NC7,967+13.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Resident population.

More on how it is measured
  • Spain and the EU: 1 January, with Spanish figures from the official municipal register (Padrón).
  • Norway: Statistics Norway, 1 January.
  • Iceland and its municipalities: Statistics Iceland, 1 January.
  • United States: Census Bureau population estimates for 1 July.
  • United Kingdom regions and local authorities: Office for National Statistics estimates for 30 June.
  • Other countries and the World: World Bank mid-year estimates, which count all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.
  • UN World Population Prospects estimates for 1 July cover the years before 1960 and the areas the World Bank does not publish, such as Taiwan.

The World Bank series exists for every country, so use it (through compare) to rank countries on one basis.

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. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. 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). Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals) (Cities in North Carolina by population, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/

MLA 9

Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals), Cities in North Carolina by population, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 14 May 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/north-carolina-cities?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Cities in North Carolina by population, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/north-carolina-cities?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals), Cities in North Carolina by population, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/north-carolina-cities?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_north_carolina_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals): Cities in North Carolina by population, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/north-carolina-cities?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals): Cities in North Carolina by population, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/14
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/north-carolina-cities?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/north-carolina-cities?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Cities in North Carolina by population using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which city has the highest population?

Charlotte, NC, with 882,504 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which city has the lowest population?

Zebulon, NC, with 7,967 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, Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Population: other rankings

Cities in North Carolina: more rankings