Income

These Are the Richest Counties in North Carolina

Asheville, North Carolina, USA at twilight.
Sean Pavone / Shutterstock.com

No economy has generated as much wealth for as many people as that of the United States. According to the 2023 Global Wealth Report from the Swiss investment bank UBS, most adults worldwide have less than $10,000 in total wealth. Meanwhile, the typical American adult is worth nearly $108,000. The same report found that the U.S. is home to 38% of the world’s millionaires, many times more than any other country — and incomes in the U.S. are currently rising at a historic pace.

The latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey shows that the typical American household earned nearly $75,000 in 2022, up from about $69,700 in 2021. The 7.2% increase was the largest recorded year-over-year since at least the mid-1990s.

In North Carolina, a state home to 13 Fortune 500 companies, the typical household earns $66,186 annually. And in some parts of the state, household incomes exceed that amount by tens of thousands of dollars.

Using five-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified the 22 richest counties in North Carolina. Counties in the state are ranked on median household income. Supplemental data on population, unemployment, and median home values are also five-year estimates from the 2022 ACS.

Among the counties on this list, median household incomes are anywhere from about $350 to $30,500 above what the typical North Carolina household earns. In many of these counties, high incomes are underpinned by a strong job market. According to the ACS, the five-year average jobless rate in all but five of North Carolina’s richest counties is below the 5.0% statewide average.

Home values are often a reflection of what residents can afford, and high incomes in these counties are often evidenced by the local real estate markets. In most counties on this list, the typical home is worth more than the $234,900 median home value across the state.

These are the richest counties in North Carolina.

22. Buncombe County

AppalachianViews / Getty Images
  • Median household income: $66,531
  • Median home value: $328,900
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 3.6%
  • Population: 269,449

21. Carteret County

Eifel Kreutz / iStock via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $66,965
  • Median home value: $277,400
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.8%
  • Population: 68,353

20. New Hanover County

Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $67,515
  • Median home value: $320,000
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.7%
  • Population: 228,134

19. Granville County

dougtone / Flickr
  • Median household income: $68,079
  • Median home value: $208,600
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.6%
  • Population: 61,161

18. Davie County

Zachary Corriher / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $69,105
  • Median home value: $219,400
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.5%
  • Population: 43,030

17. Franklin County

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $70,493
  • Median home value: $209,500
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 5.9%
  • Population: 69,680

16. Brunswick County

  • Median household income: $71,193
  • Median home value: $284,100
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 5.0%
  • Population: 139,721

15. Iredell County

J. Michael Jones / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $73,103
  • Median home value: $261,200
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.6%
  • Population: 187,839

14. Pender County

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $74,538
  • Median home value: $240,800
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 6.3%
  • Population: 61,592

13. Durham County

Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $74,927
  • Median home value: $311,300
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.3%
  • Population: 325,101

12. Johnston County

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $75,288
  • Median home value: $240,100
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 3.7%
  • Population: 219,042

11. Lincoln County

Washuotaku / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $75,672
  • Median home value: $241,200
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.4%
  • Population: 87,933

10. Moore County

Sidewalk through the village of Pinehurst in North Carolina
bettsb / Shutterstock.com
  • Median household income: $77,981
  • Median home value: $284,000
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.2%
  • Population: 100,759

9. Camden County

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $79,120
  • Median home value: $261,000
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 5.6%
  • Population: 10,547

8. Mecklenburg County

  • Median household income: $79,265
  • Median home value: $334,700
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.5%
  • Population: 1,115,403

7. Dare County

John Stanton / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $79,742
  • Median home value: $386,600
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 5.1%
  • Population: 37,160

6. Currituck County

jfbenning / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $82,793
  • Median home value: $314,100
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 3.1%
  • Population: 28,616

5. Cabarrus County

Rick Lanier / iStock via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $83,828
  • Median home value: $281,600
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.9%
  • Population: 226,396

4. Chatham County

dougtone / Flickr
  • Median household income: $84,222
  • Median home value: $373,300
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 2.8%
  • Population: 76,754

3. Orange County

Mx. Granger / Getty Images
  • Median household income: $85,785
  • Median home value: $395,600
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 3.9%
  • Population: 145,919

2. Union County

Beckycafferylepage / Wikimedia Commons
  • Median household income: $95,533
  • Median home value: $336,600
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.3%
  • Population: 240,109

1. Wake County

Kruck20 / iStock via Getty Images
  • Median household income: $96,734
  • Median home value: $385,700
  • 5-yr. avg. unemployment rate: 4.2%
  • Population: 1,132,103
Rank County Median household income ($) Median home value ($) Unemployment rate (%)
1 Wake, North Carolina 96,734 385,700 4.2
2 Union, North Carolina 95,533 336,600 4.3
3 Orange, North Carolina 85,785 395,600 3.9
4 Chatham, North Carolina 84,222 373,300 2.8
5 Cabarrus, North Carolina 83,828 281,600 4.9
6 Currituck, North Carolina 82,793 314,100 3.1
7 Dare, North Carolina 79,742 386,600 5.1
8 Mecklenburg, North Carolina 79,265 334,700 4.5
9 Camden, North Carolina 79,120 261,000 5.6
10 Moore, North Carolina 77,981 284,000 4.2
11 Lincoln, North Carolina 75,672 241,200 4.4
12 Johnston, North Carolina 75,288 240,100 3.7
13 Durham, North Carolina 74,927 311,300 4.3
14 Pender, North Carolina 74,538 240,800 6.3
15 Iredell, North Carolina 73,103 261,200 4.6
16 Brunswick, North Carolina 71,193 284,100 5.0
17 Franklin, North Carolina 70,493 209,500 5.9
18 Davie, North Carolina 69,105 219,400 4.5
19 Granville, North Carolina 68,079 208,600 4.6
20 New Hanover, North Carolina 67,515 320,000 4.7
21 Carteret, North Carolina 66,965 277,400 4.8
22 Buncombe, North Carolina 66,531 328,900 3.6

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