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COUNTY · 2010 ACS

Lincoln County

North Carolina · 78,265 residents · 296 sq mi
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The short version

With 78,265 people, Lincoln County is a county in North Carolina. 18% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Owners hold 76% of the housing stock. At a median age of 40.4, this is an older place than the country as a whole. Growth has run 23% since 2000, or 14,485 more people. Home values have risen by half since 2000, reaching $146,700.

At a glance
Lower income
below the US median
US median: $52,703
Older
median age 40.4
US median: 37.2
Less educated
18% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 28%
Less affordable
home values up 25%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $225,659
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
78,265
+23%since 2000
from 63,780 in 2000
1990 – 2025
Median age
40.4
+11%since 2000
from 36.4 in 2000
US average: 37.2
Land area
296 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
46K59K72K84K97K19902000201020202024Lincoln County
202493K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2010
Under 55.9%(4,617)
US avg: 6.5%
5 to 96.6%(5,190)
US avg: 6.6%
10 to 146.8%(5,353)
US avg: 6.7%
15 to 196.6%(5,196)
US avg: 7.1%
20 to 245.1%(3,959)
US avg: 7%
25 to 3410.8%(8,490)
US avg: 13.3%
35 to 4415.3%(11,981)
US avg: 13.3%
45 to 5416.2%(12,659)
US avg: 14.6%
55 to 6413.4%(10,459)
US avg: 11.8%
65 to 748.1%(6,345)
US avg: 7%
75 to 843.9%(3,058)
US avg: 4.2%
85 and over1.2%(958)
US avg: 1.8%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$47,450
−10%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $41,421 in 2000
US average: $52,703
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$23,560
+25%since 2000
from $18,877 in 2000
US average: $27,286
Households earning $100K+
27.3%
+0.8 ptssince 2009
from 26.4% in 2009
US average: 33.3%
Poverty rate
13.8%
+4.6 ptssince 2000
from 9.2% in 2000
US average: 13.8%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.429
US average: 0.461
Workforce by industry, 2010
Retail trade20.1%
US avg: 10.9%
Information11.9%
US avg: 11.5%
Wholesale trade9%
US avg: 7.2%
Finance & insurance7.4%
US avg: 5.1%
Other services6.2%
US avg: 7%
Professional, scientific, technical4.8%
US avg: 4.2%
Public administration4.3%
US avg: 4.9%
Transportation & warehousing3.7%
US avg: 3.1%
Education & health services2.7%
US avg: 0.9%
Arts, entertainment, food1.5%
US avg: 2.4%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing1.3%
US avg: 1.9%
Construction1.3%
US avg: 1.4%
Manufacturing0%
US avg: 0.5%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$146,700
+25%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $92,500 in 2000
US average: $225,659
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$631
+3%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $482 in 2000
US average: $853
Owner-occupied
76.0%
−2.5 ptssince 2000
from 78.5% in 2000
24.0% rent
Vacancy rate
10.1%
+0.3 ptssince 2009
from 9.8% in 2009
US average: 12.1%
Persons per household
2.53 people
−1%since 2009
from 2.56 people in 2009
US average: 2.60
Owner cost-burdened
23.6%
+0.9 ptssince 2009
from 22.7% in 2009
US average: 30.9%
Renter cost-burdened
43.6%
−0.3 ptssince 2009
from 43.8% in 2009
US average: 46.8%
Afford Score
3.1
+8%since 2009
from 2.9 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.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic86.7%(55,290)
Black6.4%(4,067)
Hispanic / Latino5.7%(3,656)
Asian0.3%(188)
Other0%
2010
White, non-Hispanic85.8%(67,139)
Black5.5%(4,269)
Hispanic / Latino6.7%(5,238)
Asian0.5%(415)
Other1.4%(1,083)

No data for the years selected.

Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Hispanic origin
Mexican4%(3,017)
Central American1.9%(1,419)
Costa Rican1.6%(1,177)
Puerto Rican0.5%(344)
Argentine0.2%(177)
Peruvian0.2%(126)
Honduran0.1%(110)
Cuban0.1%(70)
Guatemalan0.1%(64)
Nicaraguan0.1%(58)
+ 4 more hispanic origin groups with data
Dominican0%(12)
Uruguayan0%(12)
Bolivian0%(11)
Ancestry
German20.4%(15,465)
American14.8%(11,238)
Irish13.2%(10,000)
English11.2%(8,480)
Scotch-Irish3.7%(2,829)
Dutch2.8%(2,096)
Italian2.7%(2,018)
Scottish2.4%(1,844)
French1.7%(1,271)
Polish1.3%(961)
Welsh0.5%(364)
+ 29 more ancestry groups with data
Norwegian0.3%(196)
Canadian0.3%(192)
Finnish0.2%(184)
Swedish0.2%(175)
Russian0.2%(174)
Czech0.2%(172)
Swiss0.2%(166)
British0.2%(128)
Portuguese0.2%(124)
Greek0.1%(99)
Hungarian0.1%(86)
Turkish0.1%(64)
Arab0.1%(51)
Austrian0.1%(49)
Danish0.1%(47)
Belgian0.1%(41)
Lithuanian0.1%(39)
Croatian0%(27)
Ukrainian0%(25)
Slovak0%(24)
Romanian0%(21)
Lebanese0%(18)
Armenian0%(15)
Serbian0%(15)
Iranian0%(13)
Bulgarian0%(10)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
17.8%
+4.8 ptssince 2000
from 13.0% in 2000
US average: 27.9%
High school or higher
79.5%
+7.8 ptssince 2000
from 71.7% in 2000
US average: 84.9%
Graduate degree
4.4%
+1.1 ptssince 2000
from 3.4% in 2000
US average: 10.2%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
28.8 min
+51%since 2000
from 19.0 min in 2000
US average: 25.2
Drive alone to work
83.9%
−0.3 ptssince 2009
from 84.2% in 2009
US average: 76.2%
Carpooled to work
11.0%
+0.6 ptssince 2009
from 10.4% in 2009
US average: 10.4%
Public transit
0.3%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 0.3% in 2009
US average: 4.7%
Worked from home
3.0%
+0.3 ptssince 2009
from 2.8% in 2009
US average: 4.1%
Walked to work
0.7%
−0.4 ptssince 2009
from 1.1% in 2009
US average: 2.8%
Biked to work
0.1%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 0.1% in 2009
US average: 0.5%
No vehicle available
3.5%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 3.4% in 2009
US average: 8.7%
Section 07

Work & employment

Self-employed
11.3%
+0.6 ptssince 2009
from 10.7% in 2009
US average: 12.9%
Management & professional
28.1%
+0.7 ptssince 2009
from 27.3% in 2009
US average: 35.2%
Section 08

People & community

Male
49.8%
+0.2 ptssince 2009
from 49.6% in 2009
Female
50.2%
−0.2 ptssince 2009
from 50.4% in 2009
Foreign born
5.2%
−0.8 ptssince 2009
from 6.0% in 2009
US average: 12.8%
Veterans
10.7%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 10.1% in 2009
US average: 9.9%
Marital status (2024)
Men 15+
Never married26.7%(10,218)
Married60.9%(23,265)
Widowed3.3%(1,270)
Divorced9.1%(3,476)
Women 15+
Never married20.8%(8,115)
Married59.1%(23,027)
Widowed8.3%(3,235)
Divorced11.7%(4,571)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Showing 2024 (the nearest year with coverage data).

Uninsured
8.7%
−7.9 ptssince 2013
from 16.6% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
50.7%
−5.1 ptssince 2020
from 55.8% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
18.4%
+2.9 ptssince 2020
from 15.5% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
20.8%
+1.1 ptssince 2020
from 19.7% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
16.5%
Unchangedsince 2020
from 16.5% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
2.3%
−0.6 ptssince 2020
from 2.9% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
67.4%
−1.9 ptssince 2020
from 69.3% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
34.9%
+0.7 ptssince 2020
from 34.2% 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)24.9%(1,179)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)25.5%(1,208)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era37.2%(1,763)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War5.6%(265)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.4%(21)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 4,741 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
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Head to head

Compare Lincoln County to nearby counties

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LINCOLN COUNTY VS
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LINCOLN COUNTY VS
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LINCOLN COUNTY VS
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Frequently asked

How many people live in Lincoln County, North Carolina?

Lincoln County, North Carolina has about 78,265 residents according to the 2010 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Lincoln County, North Carolina?

The typical household in Lincoln County, North Carolina earns about $47,450 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Lincoln County, North Carolina expensive?

In Lincoln County, North Carolina, the median home is worth about $146,700, and the typical rent is about $631 a month.

How educated are people in Lincoln County, North Carolina?

About 17.8% of adults age 25 and over in Lincoln County, North Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Lincoln County, North Carolina?

About 13.8% of people in Lincoln County, North Carolina live below the federal poverty line.

Has Lincoln County, North Carolina grown since 1990?

Yes, Lincoln County, North Carolina has grown since 1990. The population has added about 27,946 residents, a change of about 56 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 →