Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2023
Updated on August 1, 2024.
Based on the US Census Vintage data estimates, in 2023, the Population for North Carolina was 10.84M. Among all North Carolina counties, Wake County had the highest population (1.19M), followed by Mecklenburg County (1.16M), and Guilford County (549.87K).
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), 2023 Census.
See this for other years:
Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population in 2023
Rank | County | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wake County | 1,190,275 |
| 2 | Mecklenburg County | 1,163,701 |
| 3 | Guilford County | 549,866 |
| 4 | Forsyth County | 392,921 |
| 5 | Cumberland County | 337,890 |
| 6 | Durham County | 336,892 |
| 7 | Buncombe County | 275,901 |
| 8 | Union County | 256,452 |
| 9 | Johnston County | 241,955 |
| 10 | Cabarrus County | 240,016 |
| 11 | New Hanover County | 238,852 |
| 12 | Gaston County | 237,242 |
| 13 | Onslow County | 213,676 |
| 14 | Iredell County | 199,710 |
| 15 | Alamance County | 179,165 |
| 16 | Pitt County | 175,119 |
| 17 | Davidson County | 174,804 |
| 18 | Catawba County | 164,645 |
| 19 | Brunswick County | 159,964 |
| 20 | Rowan County | 151,661 |
| 21 | Orange County | 150,626 |
| 22 | Randolph County | 147,458 |
| 23 | Harnett County | 141,477 |
| 24 | Henderson County | 119,230 |
| 25 | Wayne County | 118,686 |
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