Rocky Mount, North Carolina Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Rocky Mount, 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.
-
C
Health Below average
-
D
Income Well below average
-
D
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population
| Metric | Rocky Mount | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 37,766 | 10,724,323 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 830.9 | 199.1 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 0.64% | 0.97% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 37.9 | 37.7 | 37.3 |
| Households | 16,314 | 4,279,225 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Rocky Mount grew by 0.3% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 37,766 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Rocky Mount is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 21.4% of residents. That is 0.5 points below North Carolina as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 8,074 21.4% -0.5 pts
- Millennials 29–44 7,190 19.0% -2.4 pts
- Gen X 45–60 7,853 20.8% +0.2 pts
- Boomers 61–79 6,815 18.0% +1.0 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 53.4% of the people living in Rocky Mount and men 46.6%.
- Women 53.4% North Carolina 51.1%
- Men 46.6% North Carolina 48.9%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Rocky Mount
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Rocky Mount has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Rocky Mount | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $55,511 | $72,438 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.51% | 5.20% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 7.0% | 4.6% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Rocky Mount is about 23% lower than in North Carolina.
Housing
| Metric | Rocky Mount | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $84,518 | $278,288 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $970 | $1,227 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 46.7% | 66.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Rocky Mount is about 7.3 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $970 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Rocky Mount spend about 34 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 141 hours, about 5.9 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Rocky Mount | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 16.9 | 21.9 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 33.8 | 43.7 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 141 | 182 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $4,362 | $5,645 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 7.4% | 16.3% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 7,161 | 8,330 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 1,615 | 1,609 | 1,355 |
The average commute time in Rocky Mount is 17 minutes, shorter 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
Rocky Mount has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Rocky Mount | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 21.0% | 31.1% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.28 | 2.44 | 2.53 |
Health
Rocky Mount has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Rocky Mount | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 74.9 | 77.1 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 19.6% | 16.8% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 21.4% | 20.7% | 19.0% |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
How big is Rocky Mount, North Carolina by population?
About 37,766 people live in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, in 16,314 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 37.9, close to the U.S. median of 37.3.
Is Rocky Mount, North Carolina urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Rocky Mount, North Carolina has 831 people per square mile, a density typical of a mix of suburbs, small towns and farmland. That is about 9.6 times the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Rocky Mount, North Carolina?
The median home costs 1.5 times the median household income ($84,518 against $55,511), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $970 a month takes about 21% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
Is it hard to find a job in Rocky Mount, North Carolina?
Unemployment in Rocky Mount, North Carolina is 7.0%, well above the U.S. rate of 5.2%, so job seekers may face more competition than elsewhere.
How educated are people in Rocky Mount, North Carolina?
21.0% of adults in Rocky Mount, North Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 5), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
Analyze any area in the US
Get local demographics for any address, aggregated by drive time or radius, on the interactive map.
Explore the map →