Person County, North Carolina Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Person 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 average
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C
Income Below averageWealthier than 76% of counties in North Carolina
-
F
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Person County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 39,541 | 10,724,323 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 97.8 | 199.1 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 0.11% | 0.97% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 43.0 | 37.7 | 37.3 |
| Households | 16,063 | 4,279,225 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Person County grew by 6.0% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 39,541 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Person County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 22.2% of residents. That is 1.7 points above North Carolina as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 7,525 19.0% -2.8 pts
- Millennials 29–44 7,438 18.8% -2.6 pts
- Gen X 45–60 8,790 22.2% +1.7 pts
- Boomers 61–79 8,133 20.6% +3.6 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 51.9% of the people living in Person County and men 48.1%.
- Women 51.9% North Carolina 51.1%
- Men 48.1% North Carolina 48.9%
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100% of everyone living in Person County
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Economy
Person County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.
| Metric | Person County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $64,160 | $72,438 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.01% | 5.20% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.6% | 4.6% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Person County is about 11% lower than in North Carolina.
Housing
| Metric | Person County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $2,026,786 | $278,288 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $864 | $1,227 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 77.3% | 66.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Person County is about 195.6 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $864 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Person County spend about 57 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 236 hours, about 9.8 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Person County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 28.3 | 21.9 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 56.7 | 43.7 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 236 | 182 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $7,324 | $5,645 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 12.9% | 16.3% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 5,208 | 8,330 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 981 | 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 Person County is 28 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
Person County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Person County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 16.3% | 31.1% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.43 | 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
Person County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Person County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 76.4 | 77.1 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 17.1% | 16.8% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 21.1% | 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).
Person County, NC Compared With Nearby Counties
Person County, NC is the 4th largest of the 6 counties compared here, 39,541 residents against a local median of 60,874. The measure that sets Person County, NC apart most is median home price: $2,026,786, more than 6 times the local median of $290,354.
Commute tells the same story from another angle: 28.3 min against a local median of 21.4 min, 32% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is commute, and at 32% above the local median it puts Person County, NC at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves sit within $302,205 of each other on median home price, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Person County, NC, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Person County, NC has the highest median home price of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Person County, NC | 39,541 | $64,160 #4/6 | $2,026,786 #1/6 | 28.3 min #4/6 |
| Granville County, NC | 60,874 | $71,064 | $113,314 | 30.5 min |
| Orange County, NC | 149,658 | $88,923 | $271,999 | 21.4 min |
| Caswell County, NC | 22,375 | $59,654 | $311,572 | 28.9 min |
| Durham County, NC | 331,707 | $84,826 | $290,354 | 20.6 min |
| Halifax County, VA | 33,638 | $52,426 | $415,518 | 20.9 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Person County, North Carolina.
How big is Person County, North Carolina by population?
About 39,541 people live in Person County, North Carolina, in 16,063 households of 2.4 people on average. The median age is 43.0, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.
Is Person County, North Carolina urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Person County, North Carolina has 98 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is close to the U.S. average of 86.
How affordable is housing in Person County, North Carolina?
The median home costs 31.6 times the median household income ($2,026,786 against $64,160), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $864 a month takes about 16% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How common is a college degree in Person County, North Carolina?
16.3% of adults in Person County, North Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 6), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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