North Carolina is a state located in the Southern United States. According to the 2020 United States Census, North Carolina is the ninth most populous state with 10,439,388 inhabitants, but the 28th largest by land area spanning 53,819 square miles (139,390 km2) of land.[1][2] North Carolina is divided into 100 counties and contains 532 municipalities consisting of cities, towns, or villages.[3] The three different terms have no legal distinction.
Table of contents: Largest - - See also |
† County seat
†† State capital and county seat
Below is a list of the 50 largest municipalities in North Carolina according to the 2020 census.
Rank | Name | Population (2021) | Population (2020) | Change | Type | County |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Charlotte † | 879,709 | 874,579 | +0.59% | City | Mecklenburg |
2 | Raleigh †† | 469,124 | 467,665 | +0.31% | City | Wake (seat), Durham |
3 | Greensboro † | 298,263 | 299,035 | −0.26% | City | Guilford |
4 | Durham † | 285,527 | 283,506 | +0.71% | City | Durham (seat), Wake, Orange |
5 | Winston-Salem † | 250,320 | 249,545 | +0.31% | City | Forsyth |
6 | Fayetteville † | 208,778 | 208,501 | +0.13% | City | Cumberland |
7 | Cary | 176,987 | 174,721 | +1.30% | Town | Wake, Chatham |
8 | Wilmington † | 117,643 | 115,451 | +1.90% | City | New Hanover |
9 | High Point | 114,086 | 114,059 | +0.02% | City | Guilford, Randolph, Davidson, Forsyth |
10 | Concord † | 107,697 | 105,240 | +2.33% | City | Cabarrus |
11 | Asheville † | 94,067 | 94,589 | −0.55% | City | Buncombe |
12 | Greenville † | 88,728 | 87,521 | +1.38% | City | Pitt |
13 | Gastonia † | 81,161 | 80,411 | +0.93% | City | Gaston |
14 | Jacksonville † | 72,876 | 72,723 | +0.21% | City | Onslow |
15 | Apex | 62,911 | 58,780 | +7.03% | Town | Wake |
16 | Huntersville | 61,839 | 61,376 | +0.75% | Town | Mecklenburg |
17 | Chapel Hill | 61,128 | 61,960 | −1.34% | Town | Orange, Durham |
18 | Burlington | 58,818 | 55,481 | +6.01% | City | Alamance |
19 | Kannapolis | 54,446 | 53,114 | +2.51% | City | Cabarrus, Rowan |
20 | Rocky Mount | 53,957 | 54,341 | −0.71% | City | Edgecombe, Nash |
21 | Mooresville | 51,594 | 50,193 | +2.79% | Town | Iredell |
22 | Wake Forest | 49,657 | 47,601 | +4.32% | Town | Wake, Franklin |
23 | Wilson † | 47,731 | 47,851 | −0.25% | City | Wilson |
24 | Hickory | 43,532 | 43,490 | +0.10% | City | Catawba, Burke, Caldwell |
25 | Holly Springs | 43,524 | 41,239 | +5.54% | Town | Wake |
26 | Indian Trail | 40,953 | 39,997 | +2.39% | Town | Union |
27 | Fuquay-Varina | 36,736 | 34,152 | +7.57% | Town | Wake |
28 | Salisbury † | 35,760 | 35,540 | +0.62% | City | Rowan |
29 | Monroe † | 34,888 | 34,562 | +0.94% | City | Union |
30 | Goldsboro † | 32,749 | 33,657 | −2.70% | City | Wayne |
31 | Garner | 31,935 | 31,159 | +2.49% | Town | Wake |
32 | Cornelius | 31,650 | 31,412 | +0.76% | Town | Mecklenburg |
33 | New Bern † | 31,346 | 31,291 | +0.18% | City | Craven |
34 | Morrisville | 31,278 | 29,630 | +5.56% | Town | Wake, Durham |
35 | Sanford † | 30,678 | 30,261 | +1.38% | City | Lee |
36 | Matthews | 29,623 | 29,435 | +0.64% | Town | Mecklenburg |
37 | Statesville † | 28,844 | 28,419 | +1.50% | City | Iredell |
38 | Clayton | 28,306 | 26,307 | +7.60% | Town | Johnston, Wake |
39 | Thomasville | 27,203 | 27,183 | +0.07% | City | Davidson, Randolph |
40 | Asheboro † | 27,124 | 27,156 | −0.12% | City | Randolph |
41 | Kernersville | 26,793 | 26,449 | +1.30% | Town | Forsyth, Guilford |
42 | Mint Hill | 26,633 | 26,450 | +0.69% | Town | Mecklenburg, Union |
43 | Leland | 25,974 | 22,908 | +13.38% | Town | Brunswick |
44 | Shelby † | 21,947 | 21,918 | +0.13% | City | Cleveland |
45 | Waxhaw | 21,673 | 20,534 | +5.55% | Town | Union |
46 | Clemmons | 21,517 | 21,163 | +1.67% | Village | Forsyth |
47 | Carrboro | 21,312 | 21,295 | +0.08% | Town | Orange |
48 | Knightdale | 19,576 | 19,435 | +0.73% | Town | Wake |
49 | Kinston † | 19,546 | 19,900 | −1.78% | City | Lenoir |
50 | Lexington † | 19,516 | 19,632 | −0.59% | City | Davidson |