Source: Rebecca Tippett, NC DEMOGRAPHY, 8/12/21 


This post will be updated as we get data up and analyzed.
We’re looking at the redistricting data file that was released on August 12, 2021.

Between 2010 and 2020, North Carolina’s population grew from 9,535,483 to 10,439,483, an increase of 903,905 or 9.5%. Over this same period, 51 North Carolina counties lost population (for a total combined loss of 147,224) and 49 counties gained population (a total combined gain of 1,051,129).

What are the most populous counties in North Carolina?
Wake County officially surpassed Mecklenburg to become the most populous county in North Carolina. Otherwise, the five largest counties in North Carolina in 2020 were also the five largest in 2010:
• Wake: 1,129,410
• Mecklenburg: 1,115,482
• Guilford: 541,299
• Forsyth: 382,590
• Cumberland: 334,728

Both Wake and Mecklenburg are more than twice as populous as Guilford, the state’s third largest county. Wake, Mecklenburg, and Guilford grew faster than the state over the decade while Forsyth and Cumberland grew more slowly.

For more of this story, click here.