county

Transylvania County, NC

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

AI Overview

Transylvania County is a small western North Carolina county of 33,243 residents with a median age of 51.6 years and a labor force participation rate of just 52.0%, reflecting a notably older population base. The available workforce is moderately educated—38.6% hold a bachelor's degree or higher—with median worker earnings of $35,316 and an unemployment rate of 3.6%. Population has edged down 0.8% over five years, while a median home value of $336,100 and median gross rent of $909/month indicate relatively high housing costs relative to local earnings.

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

Population

33,243

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$66,184

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

51.6 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-0.8% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone29,769 (88.4%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race1,305 (3.9%)
  • Black or African American Alone1,207 (3.6%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races805 (2.4%)
  • Some Other Race Alone316 (0.9%)
  • Asian Alone229 (0.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish499
  2. 2.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)119
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic43
  4. 4.Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)42
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island41

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

15.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

53.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

30.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

4.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

2,785

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$56,836

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$38,899

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

3.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

14.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance3,054
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)1,905
  3. 3.Construction (Group)1,490
  4. 4.Manufacturing (Group)1,453
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services1,336

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations5,204
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations3,303
  3. 3.Service Occupations2,518
  4. 4.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations1,500
  5. 5.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,286

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Construction (LQ 1.45×)1,441
  2. 2.Other Services (LQ 1.42×)956
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.20×)1,510
  4. 4.Finance, Insurance, & Real Estate (LQ 1.15×)1,102
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 1.07×)1,670

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$336,100

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$909/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

74.7%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $500,000 to $749,9992,025 (18.6%)
  • $400,000 to $499,9991,778 (16.3%)
  • $300,000 to $399,9991,636 (15.0%)
  • $200,000 to $249,9991,093 (10.0%)
  • $250,000 to $299,9991,010 (9.3%)
  • $750,000 to $999,999754 (6.9%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

38.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

93.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

52.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,316

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

21.9 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

4.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone9,719 (73.6%)
  • Worked At Home1,646 (12.5%)
  • Carpooled1,453 (11.0%)
  • Walked267 (2.0%)
  • Bicycle63 (0.5%)
  • Other53 (0.4%)

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.