Vance County, North Carolina Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Vance 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 averageAmong the 5 least healthy counties in North Carolina
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D
Income Well below averageLess wealthy than 83% of counties in North Carolina
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F
Education Well below averageLess educated than 84% of counties in North Carolina
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Vance County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 42,305 | 10,724,323 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 157.4 | 199.1 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.62% | 0.97% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 38.9 | 37.7 | 37.3 |
| Households | 16,109 | 4,279,225 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Vance County declined by 1.6% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 42,305 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Vance County is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 21.1% of residents. That is 0.8 points below North Carolina as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 8,918 21.1% -0.8 pts
- Millennials 29–44 7,783 18.4% -3.0 pts
- Gen X 45–60 8,710 20.6% on par
- Boomers 61–79 7,927 18.7% +1.7 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 52.4% of the people living in Vance County and men 47.6%.
- Women 52.4% North Carolina 51.1%
- Men 47.6% North Carolina 48.9%
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Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Vance County
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Economy
Vance County has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Vance County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $50,361 | $72,438 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.61% | 5.20% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 8.2% | 4.6% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Vance County is about 30% lower than in North Carolina.
Housing
| Metric | Vance County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $134,971 | $278,288 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $882 | $1,227 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 60.1% | 66.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Vance County is about 12.7 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $882 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Vance County spend about 41 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 169 hours, about 7.1 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Vance County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 20.3 | 21.9 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 40.6 | 43.7 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 169 | 182 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,247 | $5,645 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 8.8% | 16.3% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 4,575 | 8,330 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 884 | 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 Vance County is 20 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
Vance County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Vance County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 16.6% | 31.1% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.58 | 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
Vance County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Vance County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 73.8 | 77.1 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 22.5% | 16.8% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 24.3% | 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).
Vance County, NC Compared With Nearby Counties
Vance County, NC is the 3rd largest of the 5 counties compared here, 42,305 residents against a local median of 50,207. Vance County, NC's median home price, at $134,971, runs 33% below the $202,952 typical of the counties around it.
Commute tells the same story from another angle: 20.3 min against a local median of 29.4 min, 31% below it. The picture is mixed rather than uniform: commute runs ahead of the neighbourhood while median household income runs behind it, so Vance County, NC is trading one against the other rather than simply out-performing what surrounds it. The counties themselves spread $2,002,501 on median home price, so Vance County, NC sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Vance County, NC has the 3rd highest median home price of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vance County, NC | 42,305 | $50,361 #5/5 | $134,971 #3/5 | 20.3 min #1/5 |
| Granville County, NC | 60,874 | $71,064 | $113,314 | 30.5 min |
| Franklin County, NC | 74,421 | $74,339 | $292,591 | 32.3 min |
| Mecklenburg County, VA | 30,516 | $56,858 | $24,285 | 21.2 min |
| Person County, NC | 39,541 | $64,160 | $2,026,786 | 28.3 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Vance County, North Carolina.
What is the population of Vance County, North Carolina?
About 42,305 people live in Vance County, North Carolina, in 16,109 households of 2.6 people on average. The median age is 38.9, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 2 years.
Is Vance County, North Carolina urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Vance County, North Carolina has 157 people per square mile, a density typical of a mix of suburbs, small towns and farmland. That is about 1.8 times the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Vance County, North Carolina?
The median home costs 2.7 times the median household income ($134,971 against $50,361), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $882 a month takes about 21% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How strong is the job market in Vance County, North Carolina?
Unemployment in Vance County, North Carolina is 8.2%, well above the U.S. rate of 5.2%, so job seekers may face more competition than elsewhere.
How educated are people in Vance County, North Carolina?
16.6% of adults in Vance 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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