Map of the United States with North Carolina highlighted

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

Largest municipalities

 †  County seat
 ††  State capital and county seat

Below is a list of the 50 largest municipalities in North Carolina according to the 2020 census.

2020 Rank Name Population (2022) Population (2020) Change Type County
1 Charlotte † 897,720 874,579 +2.65% City Mecklenburg
2 Raleigh †† 476,587 467,665 +1.91% City Wake (seat), Durham
3 Greensboro † 301,115 299,035 +0.70% City Guilford
4 Durham † 291,928 283,506 +2.97% City Durham (seat), Wake, Orange
5 Winston-Salem † 251,350 249,545 +0.72% City Forsyth
6 Fayetteville † 208,873 208,501 +0.18% City Cumberland
7 Cary 180,388 174,721 +3.24% Town Wake, Chatham
8 Wilmington † 120,324 115,451 +4.22% City New Hanover
9 High Point 115,067 114,059 +0.88% City Guilford, Randolph, Davidson, Forsyth
10 Concord † 109,896 105,240 +4.42% City Cabarrus
11 Asheville † 93,776 94,589 −0.86% City Buncombe
12 Greenville † 89,233 87,521 +1.96% City Pitt
13 Gastonia † 82,653 80,411 +2.79% City Gaston
14 Jacksonville † 70,420 72,723 −3.17% City Onslow
15 Apex 71,065 58,780 +20.90% Town Wake
16 Huntersville 63,035 61,376 +2.70% Town Mecklenburg
17 Chapel Hill 62,098 61,960 +0.22% Town Orange, Durham
18 Burlington 59,287 55,481 +6.86% City Alamance
19 Kannapolis 55,448 53,114 +4.39% City Cabarrus, Rowan
20 Rocky Mount 54,013 54,341 −0.60% City Edgecombe, Nash
21 Mooresville 52,656 50,193 +4.91% Town Iredell
22 Wake Forest 51,113 47,601 +7.38% Town Wake, Franklin
23 Wilson † 47,606 47,851 −0.51% City Wilson
24 Hickory 44,084 43,490 +1.37% City Catawba, Burke, Caldwell
25 Holly Springs 45,945 41,239 +11.41% Town Wake
26 Indian Trail 41,724 39,997 +4.32% Town Union
27 Fuquay-Varina 40,810 34,152 +19.50% Town Wake
28 Salisbury † 35,808 35,540 +0.75% City Rowan
29 Monroe † 36,018 34,562 +4.21% City Union
30 Goldsboro † 33,215 33,657 −1.31% City Wayne
31 Garner 33,669 31,159 +8.06% Town Wake
32 Cornelius 32,294 31,412 +2.81% Town Mecklenburg
33 New Bern † 31,539 31,291 +0.79% City Craven
34 Morrisville 31,493 29,630 +6.29% Town Wake, Durham
35 Sanford † 31,224 30,261 +3.18% City Lee
36 Matthews 30,124 29,435 +2.34% Town Mecklenburg
37 Statesville † 29,681 28,419 +4.44% City Iredell
38 Clayton 29,445 26,307 +11.93% Town Johnston, Wake
39 Thomasville 27,399 27,183 +0.79% City Davidson, Randolph
40 Asheboro † 27,482 27,156 +1.20% City Randolph
41 Kernersville 27,763 26,449 +4.97% Town Forsyth, Guilford
42 Mint Hill 27,143 26,450 +2.62% Town Mecklenburg, Union
43 Leland 28,591 22,908 +24.81% Town Brunswick
44 Shelby † 21,855 21,918 −0.29% City Cleveland
45 Waxhaw 22,533 20,534 +9.74% Town Union
46 Clemmons 21,823 21,163 +3.12% Village Forsyth
47 Carrboro 21,298 21,295 +0.01% Town Orange
48 Knightdale 19,703 19,435 +1.38% Town Wake
49 Kinston † 19,365 19,900 −2.69% City Lenoir
50 Lexington † 19,679 19,632 +0.24% City Davidson

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See also

References

  1. ^ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: North Carolina". www.census.gov. US Department of Commerce. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  2. ^ "North Carolina | Capital, Map, History, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  3. ^ "North Carolina: 2010 Population and Housing Unit Counts 2010 Census of Population and Housing" (PDF). 2010 census. United States Census Bureau. September 2012. p. 18. Retrieved August 7, 2016.


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