Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2021
Updated on August 1, 2024.
Based on the US Census Vintage data estimates, in 2021, the Population for North Carolina was 10.57M. Among all North Carolina counties, Wake County had the highest population (1.15M), followed by Mecklenburg County (1.13M), and Guilford County (542.50K).
The chart below shows the top 10 counties, and the table below shows the ranking of all North Carolina counties.
You can see similar ranking information for related topics, and for other states. You can also see the ranking of all counties in the United States.
Related Topics: North Carolina Census Vintage Data Topic List.
Data Source: US Census Bureau (Vintage), 2021 Census.
See this for other years:
Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2021
Rank | County | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wake County | 1,152,301 |
| 2 | Mecklenburg County | 1,126,283 |
| 3 | Guilford County | 542,495 |
| 4 | Forsyth County | 386,376 |
| 5 | Cumberland County | 337,888 |
| 6 | Durham County | 329,849 |
| 7 | Buncombe County | 271,945 |
| 8 | Union County | 244,259 |
| 9 | Cabarrus County | 231,788 |
| 10 | Gaston County | 231,277 |
| 11 | New Hanover County | 230,019 |
| 12 | Johnston County | 227,302 |
| 13 | Onslow County | 206,018 |
| 14 | Iredell County | 192,186 |
| 15 | Alamance County | 173,968 |
| 16 | Pitt County | 172,235 |
| 17 | Davidson County | 170,717 |
| 18 | Catawba County | 161,675 |
| 19 | Orange County | 148,693 |
| 20 | Rowan County | 147,937 |
| 21 | Randolph County | 145,154 |
| 22 | Brunswick County | 144,843 |
| 23 | Harnett County | 135,586 |
| 24 | Henderson County | 117,155 |
| 25 | Wayne County | 116,857 |
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