Bladen County, North Carolina Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Bladen County, NC Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
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C
Health Below averageLess healthy than 83% of counties in North Carolina
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D
Income Well below averageLess wealthy than 85% of counties in North Carolina
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F
Education Well below averageLess educated than 77% of counties in North Carolina
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Bladen County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 29,571 | 10,724,323 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 33.3 | 199.1 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -1.84% | 0.97% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 43.7 | 37.7 | 37.3 |
| Households | 11,826 | 4,279,225 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Bladen County declined by 9.2% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 29,571 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Bladen County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 22.2% of residents. That is 5.2 points above North Carolina as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 5,556 18.8% -3.1 pts
- Millennials 29–44 5,281 17.9% -3.6 pts
- Gen X 45–60 6,398 21.6% +1.1 pts
- Boomers 61–79 6,572 22.2% +5.2 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below North Carolina, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 51.7% of the people living in Bladen County and men 48.3%.
- Women 51.7% North Carolina 51.1%
- Men 48.3% North Carolina 48.9%
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100% of everyone living in Bladen County
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Economy
Bladen County has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Bladen County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $41,756 | $72,438 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 4.10% | 5.20% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.4% | 4.6% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Bladen County is about 42% lower than in North Carolina.
Housing
| Metric | Bladen County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $121,527 | $278,288 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $772 | $1,227 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 69.2% | 66.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Bladen County is about 13.1 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $772 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Bladen County spend about 47 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 197 hours, about 8.2 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Bladen County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 23.7 | 21.9 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 47.4 | 43.7 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 197 | 182 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $6,118 | $5,645 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 8.1% | 16.3% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 6,188 | 8,330 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 883 | 1,609 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
North Carolina:
Macon County (17.2 min), Watauga County (17.2 min), Dare County (17.4 min).
Slowest:
Gates County (35.9 min), Currituck County (33.9 min), Tyrrell County (33.6 min).
The average commute time in Bladen County is 24 minutes, longer than the 22 minutes in North Carolina.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Bladen County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Bladen County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 18.4% | 31.1% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.46 | 2.44 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
North Carolina:
Orange County (0.5), Wake County (0.4), Durham County (0.4).
Lowest:
Hyde County (0.2), Greene County (0.2), Tyrrell County (0.2).
Health
Bladen County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Bladen County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 76.9 | 77.1 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 20.8% | 16.8% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 23.6% | 20.7% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
North Carolina:
Orange County (0.8), Wake County (0.8), Watauga County (0.8).
Lowest:
Robeson County (0.8), Lenoir County (0.8), Halifax County (0.8).
Bladen County, NC Compared With Nearby Counties
Bladen County, NC is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 29,571 residents against a local median of 116,854. Bladen County, NC's median household income, at $41,756, runs 21% below the $52,596 typical of the counties around it. That is the weaker end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves spread $34,656 on median household income, so Bladen County, NC sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Bladen County, NC has the 6th highest median household income of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bladen County, NC | 29,571 | $41,756 #6/6 | $121,527 #3/6 | 23.7 min #5/6 |
| Columbus County, NC | 50,166 | $49,633 | $81,071 | 25.4 min |
| Sampson County, NC | 59,467 | $52,596 | $187,677 | 22.5 min |
| Cumberland County, NC | 338,542 | $61,555 | $116,419 | 18.7 min |
| Robeson County, NC | 116,854 | $42,419 | $94,967 | 21.4 min |
| Brunswick County, NC | 152,554 | $77,075 | $286,445 | 22.1 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Bladen County, North Carolina.
How big is Bladen County, North Carolina by population?
About 29,571 people live in Bladen County, North Carolina, in 11,826 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 43.7, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.
Is Bladen County, North Carolina mostly urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Bladen County, North Carolina has 33 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 39% of the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Bladen County, North Carolina?
The median home costs 2.9 times the median household income ($121,527 against $41,756), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $772 a month takes about 22% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How educated are people in Bladen County, North Carolina?
18.4% of adults in Bladen County, North Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 5), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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