List of municipalities in North Carolina

Most populous municipalities in North Carolina. Red dots represent top 10 municipalities; Green dots represent top 11-20 municipalities.

North Carolina is a state located in the Southern United States. According to the 2020 United States census, North Carolina is the 9th-most populous state with 10,439,388 inhabitants, while 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 551 municipalities consisting of cities, towns, or villages.[3] The three different terms have no legal distinction.

Most populous municipalities

 ‡  State capital and county seat
 †  County seat

Below is a list of the 50 most populous municipalities in North Carolina according to the 2020 census and 2025 census estimate.[4][5][6]

Name Population (2025) Population (2020) Change Type County
Charlotte† 964,784874,579+10.31% City Mecklenburg
Raleigh‡ 506,306467,665+8.26% City Wake (seat), Durham
Greensboro† 308,667299,035+3.22% City Guilford
Durham† 305,561283,506+7.78% City Durham (seat), Wake, Orange
Winston-Salem† 257,271249,545+3.10% City Forsyth
Fayetteville† 209,120208,501+0.30% City Cumberland
Cary 183,582174,721+5.07% Town Wake, Chatham, Durham
Wilmington† 126,809115,451+9.84% City New Hanover
High Point 120,571114,059+5.71% City Guilford, Randolph, Davidson, Forsyth
Concord† 114,598105,240+8.89% City Cabarrus
Greenville† 96,44387,521+10.19% City Pitt
Asheville† 93,52394,589−1.13% City Buncombe
Gastonia† 87,06780,411+8.28% City Gaston
Apex 80,41958,780+36.81% Town Wake
Jacksonville† 72,73272,723+0.01% City Onslow
Huntersville 68,53861,376+11.67% Town Mecklenburg
Chapel Hill 63,56561,960+2.59% Town Orange, Durham
Kannapolis 61,70853,114+16.18% City Cabarrus, Rowan
Burlington 61,49657,303+7.32% City Alamance
Wake Forest 58,14747,601+22.15% Town Wake, Franklin
Mooresville 55,84250,193+11.25% Town Iredell
Rocky Mount 55,12054,341+1.43% City Edgecombe, Nash
Holly Springs 50,28841,239+21.94% Town Wake
Wilson† 49,57247,851+3.60% City Wilson
Fuquay-Varina 48,53634,152+42.12% Town Wake
Hickory 45,97543,490+5.71% City Catawba, Burke, Caldwell
Indian Trail 44,30439,997+10.77% Town Union
Monroe† 42,64434,562+23.38% City Union
Garner 41,56231,159+33.39% Town Wake
Salisbury† 36,87935,540+3.77% City Rowan
Leland 35,73122,908+55.98% Town Brunswick
Cornelius 35,09431,412+11.72% Town Mecklenburg
Goldsboro† 35,01233,657+4.03% City Wayne
New Bern† 34,72431,291+10.97% City Craven
Sanford† 34,13830,261+12.81% City Lee
Matthews 32,76929,435+11.33% Town Mecklenburg
Clayton 32,63326,307+24.05% Town Johnston, Wake
Morrisville 32,46629,630+9.57% Town Wake, Durham
Statesville† 32,18128,419+13.24% City Iredell
Mint Hill 29,47626,450+11.44% Town Mecklenburg, Union
Kernersville 29,12826,449+10.13% Town Forsyth, Guilford
Asheboro† 27,99027,156+3.07% City Randolph
Thomasville 27,73327,183+2.02% City Davidson, Randolph
Shelby† 23,30921,918+6.35% City Cleveland
Knightdale 23,14419,435+19.08% Town Wake
Waxhaw 23,14020,534+12.69% Town Union
Clemmons 22,80821,163+7.77% Village Forsyth
Mebane 21,95217,797+23.35% City Alamance, Orange
Carrboro 20,96221,295−1.56% Town Orange
Harrisburg 20,74218,967+9.36% Town Cabarrus

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See also

References

  1. ↑ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: North Carolina". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  2. ↑ "North Carolina | Capital, Map, History, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  3. ↑ "How NC Cities Work". North Carolina League of Municipalities. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  4. ↑ "City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2025". United States Census Bureau, Population Division. Retrieved May 14, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ↑ Brinkhoff, Thomas (June 7, 2024). "USA: North Carolina". City Population. Retrieved January 12, 2026.
  6. ↑ Carney, Kristen (June 20, 2024). "North Carolina Cities by Population (2024)". www.northcarolina-demographics.com. Retrieved August 30, 2024.
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