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CITY

Wake Forest

North Carolina · 58,147 residents (2025 est.) · 19.6 sq mi
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The short version

Wake Forest is a city of 52,844 people in North Carolina. The population has more than tripled since 2000, adding 40,256 people. This is an unusually credentialed place: 60% of adults have a four-year degree. Households here earn about 71% more than in North Carolina as a whole. Few US cities rank higher on income. The median household earns $123,802, about 51% above the national median.

At a glance
Wealthier
above the US median
US median: $82,259
Mid-age
median age 38.6
US median: 38.9
More educated
60% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 83%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
52,844
+320%since 2000
from 12,588 in 2000
58,147 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimate)
1990 – 2025
Population density
2,691 / sq mi
+116%since 2009
from 1,248 / sq mi in 2009
US average: 281
Median age
38.6
+23%since 2000
from 31.5 in 2000
US average: 38.9
Land area
19.6 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
1K15K29K43K58K19902000201020202024Wake Forest
202453K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2024
Under 56%(3,168)
US avg: 5.6%
5 to 97.5%(3,982)
US avg: 6%
10 to 147.6%(4,023)
US avg: 6.4%
15 to 198%(4,203)
US avg: 6.6%
20 to 244.2%(2,197)
US avg: 6.5%
25 to 3412.7%(6,700)
US avg: 13.7%
35 to 4414.8%(7,796)
US avg: 13.2%
45 to 5416.8%(8,855)
US avg: 12.2%
55 to 649.8%(5,154)
US avg: 12.7%
65 to 747.3%(3,866)
US avg: 10.2%
75 to 844.6%(2,408)
US avg: 5.1%
85 and over0.9%(492)
US avg: 1.9%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$123,802
+30%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $52,307 in 2000
US average: $82,259
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$51,709
+127%since 2000
from $22,746 in 2000
US average: $44,673
Households earning $100K+
70.3%
+24.7 ptssince 2009
from 45.6% in 2009
US average: 53.3%
Poverty rate
4.5%
−4.3 ptssince 2000
from 8.8% in 2000
US average: 12.5%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.391
−8%since 2010
from 0.424 in 2010
US average: 0.476
Workforce by industry, 2024
Information11.8%
US avg: 10.8%
Retail trade11%
US avg: 9.9%
Other services7.3%
US avg: 6.7%
Public administration5.2%
US avg: 4.8%
Finance & insurance3.6%
US avg: 5.9%
Wholesale trade3.2%
US avg: 6.9%
Professional, scientific, technical3%
US avg: 5.1%
Arts, entertainment, food2%
US avg: 1.9%
Transportation & warehousing1.7%
US avg: 2.2%
Education & health services0.6%
US avg: 0.9%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing0.2%
US avg: 1.6%
Construction0.2%
US avg: 1.2%
Manufacturing0%
US avg: 0.4%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$474,500
+83%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $142,100 in 2000
US average: $376,019
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$1,596
+34%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $652 in 2000
US average: $1,442
Owner-occupied
74.0%
+10.9 ptssince 2000
from 63.1% in 2000
26.0% rent
Vacancy rate
5.3%
−3.3 ptssince 2009
from 8.6% in 2009
US average: 10.0%
Persons per household
2.81 people
−1%since 2009
from 2.84 people in 2009
US average: 2.54
Owner cost-burdened
14.1%
−12.8 ptssince 2009
from 26.9% in 2009
US average: 22.9%
Renter cost-burdened
44.7%
+5.5 ptssince 2009
from 39.2% in 2009
US average: 47.4%
Afford Score
3.8
+14%since 2009
from 3.4 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Years of local income it takes to buy a local home, on a scale of about 0 to 15. Lower is more affordable.
Gentrification Score
75
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means faster recent growth in incomes, home values, and college degrees.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic78.6%(9,897)
Black15.7%(1,978)
Hispanic / Latino2.1%(262)
Asian2%(255)
Other0%
2024
White, non-Hispanic64.6%(34,160)
Black19.5%(10,323)
Hispanic / Latino9%(4,744)
Asian2.9%(1,554)
Other3.9%(2,063)
Diversity Score
67
+56%since 2009
from 43 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means a more even mix of racial and ethnic groups.
Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Hispanic origin
Puerto Rican2.4%(1,288)
Mexican1.8%(963)
Colombian0.8%(441)
Salvadoran0.8%(415)
Venezuelan0.8%(402)
Cuban0.7%(391)
Spaniard0.4%(220)
Nicaraguan0.2%(86)
Argentine0.1%(65)
Ecuadorian0.1%(56)
+ 4 more hispanic origin groups with data
Dominican0.1%(37)
Peruvian0%(15)
Asian origin
Korean0.7%(349)
Nepalese0.4%(186)
Vietnamese0.3%(147)
Chinese0.2%(94)
Thai0.1%(73)
Bangladeshi0.1%(53)
Pakistani0.1%(45)
Filipino0.1%(37)
Pacific Islander origin
Ancestry
English17%(8,997)
German10.7%(5,628)
Irish10.3%(5,454)
Italian5.9%(3,134)
American4.3%(2,283)
Scottish3.6%(1,909)
Polish2.5%(1,313)
West Indian1.9%(1,018)
French1.7%(920)
Scotch-Irish1.4%(729)
Ukrainian1.2%(628)
+ 37 more ancestry groups with data
Norwegian1.1%(587)
Haitian1%(539)
Dutch1%(512)
Welsh0.8%(399)
Swedish0.8%(397)
Russian0.7%(389)
Jamaican0.7%(370)
Hungarian0.5%(277)
Arab0.5%(273)
Canadian0.4%(224)
British0.4%(212)
Nigerian0.3%(151)
Brazilian0.3%(150)
Romanian0.3%(142)
Greek0.2%(112)
Portuguese0.2%(109)
Czech0.2%(101)
Lithuanian0.2%(97)
Swiss0.2%(90)
Jordanian0.2%(89)
Slovak0.2%(87)
Somali0.2%(83)
Egyptian0.1%(75)
Lebanese0.1%(72)
Croatian0.1%(68)
Austrian0.1%(62)
Danish0.1%(47)
Kenyan0.1%(30)
Ethiopian0%(24)
Serbian0%(19)
Finnish0%(18)
Syrian0%(16)
Slovene0%(16)
Iranian0%(15)
Belgian0%(10)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
59.5%
+16.5 ptssince 2000
from 43.0% in 2000
US average: 35.6%
High school or higher
96.4%
+7.1 ptssince 2000
from 89.3% in 2000
US average: 89.6%
Graduate degree
23.7%
+13.0 ptssince 2000
from 10.7% in 2000
US average: 14.0%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
30.9 min
+41%since 2000
from 22.0 min in 2000
US average: 26.5
Drive alone to work
64.5%
−16.4 ptssince 2009
from 80.9% in 2009
US average: 68.9%
Carpooled to work
5.1%
−5.0 ptssince 2009
from 10.1% in 2009
US average: 8.5%
Public transit
0.0%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 0.0% in 2009
US average: 3.2%
Worked from home
28.7%
+21.0 ptssince 2009
from 7.7% in 2009
US average: 15.0%
Walked to work
1.1%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 0.9% in 2009
US average: 2.4%
Biked to work
0.0%
−0.2 ptssince 2009
from 0.2% in 2009
US average: 0.4%
No vehicle available
3.2%
−1.2 ptssince 2009
from 4.4% in 2009
US average: 8.3%
Section 07

Work & employment

Unemployment rate
4.0%
−2.4 ptssince 2011
from 6.4% in 2011
US average: 5.2%
Labor force participation
70.0%
−1.1 ptssince 2011
from 71.1% in 2011
US average: 63.5%
Women 20-64 in the labor force
78.7%
+1.3 ptssince 2020
from 77.4% in 2020
US average: 74.6%
Self-employed
14.5%
+0.6 ptssince 2009
from 13.9% in 2009
US average: 13.1%
Management & professional
64.2%
+16.2 ptssince 2009
from 48.0% in 2009
US average: 42.5%
Section 08

People & community

Male
48.2%
+1.1 ptssince 2009
from 47.2% in 2009
Female
51.8%
−1.1 ptssince 2009
from 52.8% in 2009
Foreign born
9.5%
+3.8 ptssince 2009
from 5.7% in 2009
US average: 14.1%
Veterans
7.7%
−2.8 ptssince 2009
from 10.4% in 2009
US average: 6.2%
With a disability
10.0%
+4.2 ptssince 2012
from 5.8% in 2012
US average: 13.3%
Uninsured
4.7%
−3.2 ptssince 2013
from 7.9% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Broadband at home
97.8%
+7.6 ptssince 2017
from 90.2% in 2017
US average: 91.0%
Computer in household
98.3%
+1.1 ptssince 2020
from 97.2% in 2020
US average: 95.5%
Same house as last year
84.0%
+7.1 ptssince 2020
from 76.9% in 2020
US average: 87.7%
English only at home
89.5%
−2.6 ptssince 2016
from 92.1% in 2016
US average: 77.7%
Spanish at home
4.7%
+0.2 ptssince 2016
from 4.5% in 2016
US average: 13.6%
Marital status
Men 15+
Never married30.1%(6,063)
Married62%(12,506)
Widowed1.2%(236)
Divorced6.7%(1,355)
Women 15+
Never married24.6%(5,289)
Married58.2%(12,517)
Widowed4.8%(1,034)
Divorced12.4%(2,671)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Uninsured
4.7%
−3.2 ptssince 2013
from 7.9% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
67.4%
−1.0 ptssince 2020
from 68.4% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
15.6%
−3.1 ptssince 2020
from 18.7% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
13.2%
+1.9 ptssince 2020
from 11.3% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
10.3%
+0.2 ptssince 2020
from 10.1% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
2.0%
+0.4 ptssince 2020
from 1.6% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
82.9%
−2.9 ptssince 2020
from 85.8% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
23.1%
+1.9 ptssince 2020
from 21.2% in 2020
US average: 36.7%

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)28.1%(836)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)37.5%(1,117)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era25.9%(771)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War2.7%(81)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0%(0)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 2,975 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
Drill deeper

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Pop 59,643
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Pop 51,792
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Wellington
Pop 62,662
Places similar to Wake Forest
Head to head

Compare Wake Forest to nearby cities

WAKE FOREST VS
Rolesville
Income$149,565+21%
Home value$535,000+13%
Population12,839−78%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
WAKE FOREST VS
Raleigh
Income$85,395−31%
Home value$415,800−12%
Population506,306+771%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
WAKE FOREST VS
Knightdale
Income$103,220−17%
Home value$380,100−20%
Population23,144−60%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
WAKE FOREST VS
Zebulon
Income$79,112−36%
Home value$320,700−32%
Population11,933−79%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in Wake Forest, North Carolina?

Wake Forest, North Carolina has about 52,844 residents according to the 2024 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Wake Forest, North Carolina?

The typical household in Wake Forest, North Carolina earns about $123,802 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Wake Forest, North Carolina expensive?

In Wake Forest, North Carolina, the median home is worth about $474,500, and the typical rent is about $1,596 a month.

How educated are people in Wake Forest, North Carolina?

About 59.5% of adults age 25 and over in Wake Forest, North Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Wake Forest, North Carolina?

About 4.5% of people in Wake Forest, North Carolina live below the federal poverty line.

Has Wake Forest, North Carolina grown since 1990?

Yes, Wake Forest, North Carolina has grown since 1990. The population has added about 47,075 residents, a change of about 816 percent over that period.

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DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR + DECENNIAL CENSUS · UPDATED 2024

How we source and harmonize this data →

Wake Forest, North Carolina: demographics, income & housing data · CensusEasy