With 873 people, Oriental is a city in North Carolina. At a median age of 69.6, this is an older place than the country as a whole. 84% of homes are owner-occupied. 51% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, against 36% nationally. That trails the North Carolina median by roughly 20%. The foreign-born share is 7%.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $57,880, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 69.6
US median: 38.9
More educated
51% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 38%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Unique to this place
What stands out about Oriental
What changed most since 1990
White share87.2% → 91.1%(+3.9 pts)US over the same years: −17.8 pts
Median age50.9 → 69.6(+18.7 years)US over the same years: +6.0 years
Black share12.8% → 0.8%(−12.0 pts)US over the same years: +0.2 pts
Oriental's population equals 7.0% of Pamlico County's. Its number of foreign-born residents equals 18% of the county's. Its number of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher equals 17% of the county's.
Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.
Section 09 · Service history
Veterans
Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)7.1%(13)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)25%(46)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era56%(103)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War8.7%(16)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0%(0)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 184 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Over time
Oriental, decade by decade
Oriental population, inflation-adjusted income and home value, education, and diversity by year
Year
Population
Median household income
Median home value
Bachelor's degree+
Diversity score
1990
804
$63,215
$249,607
30.8%
27.9
2000
875
$68,848
$307,495
35.2%
21.9
2010
900
$92,199
$598,158
51.0%
19.9
2020
880
$76,036
$382,519
52.0%
23.1
2024
873
$57,880
$422,900
51.0%
20.8
Census years come from the decennial census and the latest year from the American Community Survey, so part of any change between those two rows can reflect the different surveys. Dollar figures are adjusted for inflation to 2024 dollars; a figure ending in "+" was at the Census Bureau's reporting cap that year. The diversity score runs from 0 to 100; see how it's calculated.
