Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2022

Updated on August 1, 2024.

Based on the US Census Vintage data estimates, in 2022, the Population for North Carolina was 10.70M. Among all North Carolina counties, Wake County had the highest population (1.17M), followed by Mecklenburg County (1.14M), and Guilford County (546.46K).

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.

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Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2022
Wake
1.17M
Mecklenburg
1.14M
Guilford
546.46K
Forsyth
389.66K
Cumberland
336.78K
Durham
333.29K
Buncombe
273.79K
Union
249.17K
Cabarrus
235.91K
New Hanover
235.78K
Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2022
Rank
County
Population
1 Wake County 1,170,778
2 Mecklenburg County 1,144,075
3 Guilford County 546,457
4 Forsyth County 389,661
5 Cumberland County 336,781
6 Durham County 333,292
7 Buncombe County 273,790
8 Union County 249,172
9 Cabarrus County 235,909
10 New Hanover County 235,784
11 Johnston County 234,902
12 Gaston County 233,970
13 Onslow County 209,031
14 Iredell County 195,874
15 Alamance County 176,618
16 Pitt County 173,610
17 Davidson County 172,380
18 Catawba County 163,167
19 Brunswick County 152,908
20 Orange County 150,253
21 Rowan County 149,673
22 Randolph County 146,196
23 Harnett County 138,478
24 Henderson County 118,298
25 Wayne County 117,449
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