county

Columbus County, NC

Demographic and economic profile of Columbus County, NC, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Columbus County is a small, agriculture- and goods-producing rural county with a population of 50,453, a labor force participation rate of just 49.8%, and a median worker earnings figure of $35,723—reflecting a workforce that skews older (median age 42.6) and has limited college attainment, with only 15.1% holding a bachelor's degree or higher. Housing costs are low, with a median home value of $128,300 and median gross rent of $775/month, set against a median household income of $49,442 and an 18.8% poverty rate. The county has lost 10.4% of its population over the past five years, and a 4.7% unemployment rate alongside a GDP per capita of $29,426 point to a contracting, cost-competitive labor market with limited economic scale.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

50,453

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$49,442

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

42.6 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-10.4% since 2018

Columbus County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone29,839 (59.5%)
  • Black or African American Alone14,082 (28.1%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone2,036 (4.1%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races1,701 (3.4%)
  • Some Other Race Alone1,186 (2.4%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race1,008 (2.0%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish2,073
  2. 2.Other Indo-European87
  3. 3.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)36
  4. 4.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)32
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island32

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

20.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

58.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

20.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

3.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

2,668

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$29,426

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$26,755

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

4.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

18.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance4,295
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)2,667
  3. 3.Manufacturing (Group)2,065
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services2,042
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services1,803

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations6,500
  2. 2.Service Occupations3,939
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations3,753
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations3,350
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations2,249

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 2.05×)641
  2. 2.Retail Trade (LQ 1.38×)2,945
  3. 3.Manufacturing (LQ 1.16×)2,266
  4. 4.Construction (LQ 1.15×)1,556
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.05×)1,803

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$128,300

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$775/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

71.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,9991,918 (13.5%)
  • $100,000 to $124,9991,605 (11.3%)
  • $150,000 to $174,9991,225 (8.6%)
  • $300,000 to $399,9991,093 (7.7%)
  • $250,000 to $299,9991,067 (7.5%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999941 (6.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

15.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

86.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

49.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,723

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

29.3 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone16,092 (83.3%)
  • Carpooled1,714 (8.9%)
  • Worked At Home1,046 (5.4%)
  • Walked293 (1.5%)
  • Other104 (0.5%)
  • Bicycle62 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.