County · North Carolina

Beaufort County, North Carolina

Beaufort County, North Carolina. Beaufort County had 44,670 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, about level with 2020, slower than North Carolina (+7.2%). It holds 11 places (7 cities, villages and boroughs and 4 census-designated) and 13 census tracts. GEOID 37013.

Beaufort County is the county of the Washington, NC micropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

44,670

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 44,652 · ACS 2020-2024: 44,499

Median household income

$58,357

±$3,205 (90% margin)
North Carolina: $72,388

Median home value

$192,700

±$9,447 (90% margin)
North Carolina: $288,900

Median gross rent

$871

±$41 (90% margin)
North Carolina: $1,228

How many people live in Beaufort County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 44,652 residents in Beaufort County. The Census Bureau estimates 44,670 for July 1, 2025, about level with 2020, slower than North Carolina (+7.2%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 44,499 over 833 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −197 (44,497)
2021→2022 −139 (44,358)
2022→2023 +150 (44,508)
2023→2024 +222 (44,730)
2024→2025 −60 (44,670)

Beaufort County in North Carolina. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Beaufort County	North Carolina	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	44,499	10,730,404	−2,669
Households	19,385±464	4,282,345	no clear change
Average household size	2.27±0.05	2.44	−0.10
Housing units	24,526±33	4,895,668	−1,555

Beaufort County's population since 2000

From 44,958 in 2000 to 44,670 in 2025: down 0.6%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 44,958
2005 (estimate) 46,059
2010 Census 47,759
2015 (estimate) 47,403
2020 Census 44,652
2025 (estimate) 44,670

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Beaufort County?

Beaufort County holds 11 places: 7 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 4 census-designated places. The largest is Washington with 9,910 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Beaufort County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Washington	city	9,875	9,726±33	$40,186	$206,800	23.1%	100%
River Road	CDP	4,048	3,366±471	$46,352	$232,800	22.3%	100%
Belhaven	town	1,410	1,577±264	$32,644	$103,000	40.3%	100%
Cypress LandingGEOID 3716084	CDP	1,257	1,044±272	$83,785	$440,000	0.5%	100%
Chocowinity	town	722	903±279	$41,382	$114,300	26.9%	100%
Aurora	town	455	560±169	$46,131	$87,300	26.2%	100%
Washington Park	town	392	456±151	$88,750	$315,500	16.4%	100%
BayviewGEOID 3704040	CDP	298	253±130	$113,333	$328,100	3.6%	100%
Bath	town	245	391±159	$103,611	$382,400	10.0%	100%
PantegoGEOID 3750080	town	164	493±223	$60,417	$111,900	5.7%	100%
PinetownGEOID 3752160	CDP	147	19±36	not published	not published	0.0%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Beaufort County?

The median resident of Beaufort County is 47.7 years old; 19.1% are under 18 and 25.6% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 66.3%, then non-Hispanic Black residents at 22.8%. 3.6% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Beaufort County	North Carolina	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	47.7±0.6	39.1	+1.5
Under 18 years	19.1%±0.1 pts	21.8%	–
65 years and over	25.6%±0.2 pts	17.2%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	7.9%	11.3%	+0.1 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	66.3%±0.2 pts	60.0%	+0.5 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	22.8%±0.7 pts	20.0%	−2.1 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.2 pts	3.3%	–
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.8%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.1%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	2.5%±0.7 pts	4.1%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.2 pts	0.5%	–
Born outside the United States	3.6%±0.6 pts	9.1%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	6.2%±1.0 pts	13.5%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	9.3%±1.2 pts	7.4%	–
With a disability	17.1%±1.2 pts	13.6%	–
No health insurance coverage	9.0%±1.1 pts	9.9%	−3.0 pts
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	89.3%±1.5 pts	90.1%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	21.2%±1.8 pts	35.7%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	7.1%±0.9 pts	13.5%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.3%±0.6 pts	3.0%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Beaufort County earn?

Half of Beaufort County's 19,385 households earn less than $58,357 a year (±$3,205), against $72,388 in North Carolina. In 2015-2019 it was $55,642 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 17.8% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Beaufort County	North Carolina	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$58,357±$3,205	$72,388	no clear change
Mean household income	$78,141±$3,567	$101,208	–
Per capita income	$34,495±$1,552	$41,385	no clear change
People below the poverty line	17.8%±1.8 pts	13.0%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	27.9%±4.2 pts	17.7%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	16.7%±1.8 pts	12.8%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	87.5%±1.9 pts	90.1%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Beaufort County?

Owners occupy 69.5% of Beaufort County's occupied homes and renters 30.5%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $192,700 by its owner (±$9,447). The median renter pays $871 a month including utilities, and 41.2% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Beaufort County	North Carolina	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$192,700±$9,447	$288,900	+$29,264
Median gross rent	$871±$41	$1,228	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	41.2%±7.7 pts	39.6%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,459±$85	$1,631	–
Owner-occupied homes	69.5%±2.2 pts	66.6%	no clear change
Housing units	24,526±33	4,895,668	−1,555
Homeowner vacancy rate	1.1%±0.7 pts	1.3%	–
Rental vacancy rate	4.2%±2.4 pts	7.1%	–
Single-family detached homes	67.5%±2.6 pts	65.3%	–
Mobile homes	21.7%±2.1 pts	11.0%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.7%±0.3 pts	3.0%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	8.4%±1.5 pts	4.9%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Beaufort County building?

Builders took permits for 119 new housing units across Beaufort County in 2025 (119 single-family), 2.7 per 1,000 residents.

2019 162 units
2020 168 units
2021 229 units
2022 245 units
2023 248 units
2024 216 units
2025 119 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Beaufort County get to work?

82.4% of Beaufort County's workers drive alone and 8.9% work from home. The average trip to work takes 24.8 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 3.9%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Beaufort County	North Carolina	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	55.2%±1.6 pts	62.8%	–
Unemployment rate	3.9%±1.1 pts	4.7%	−3.2 pts
Drove alone to work	82.4%±2.5 pts	71.5%	–
Carpooled	6.2%±1.6 pts	8.5%	–
Public transportation	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.7%	–
Walked	1.2%±0.5 pts	1.6%	–
Worked from home	8.9%±1.8 pts	16.3%	+4.4 pts
Mean travel time to work	24.8 min±1.4	25.1 min	no clear change

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Beaufort County's census tracts?

Beaufort County is divided into 13 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $33,173 (Tract 9301.02) to $92,391 (Tract 9306).

Census tracts of Beaufort County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 9301.0137013930101	Pantego (8%)	2,889	3,020±506	$71,875	$178,100	$1,000	9.7%
Tract 9301.0237013930102	Belhaven (75%)	1,756	1,754±258	$33,173	$110,500	$922	37.8%
Tract 930237013930200	Washington (12%)	5,898	5,126±699	$55,100	$176,300	$964	14.4%
Tract 930337013930300	Washington (86%)	3,892	4,287±502	$33,691	$177,600	$804	31.6%
Tract 930437013930400	Washington (87%)	5,128	4,881±651	$54,646	$228,800	$924	16.3%
Tract 9305.0137013930501	River Road (67%)	4,440	3,822±487	$48,217	$246,600	$823	21.6%
Tract 9305.0237013930502	Washington (26%)	3,422	3,444±370	$78,528	$182,300	$781	1.8%
Tract 930637013930600	Pinetown (5%)	3,259	3,160±506	$92,391	$274,800	$786	7.6%
Tract 930737013930700	Bath (10%)	2,663	2,531±372	$85,032	$351,400	$1,265	9.7%
Tract 930837013930800	Aurora (18%)	2,016	2,152±385	$45,809	$117,000	$935	33.0%
Tract 930937013930900	Cypress Landing (5%)	3,875	3,699±492	$78,056	$318,200	$829	8.2%
Tract 9310.0137013931001	Chocowinity (5%)	2,599	3,383±515	$65,230	$82,900	$835	27.9%
Tract 9310.0237013931002	Chocowinity (23%)	2,815	3,240±520	$59,569	$136,700	$823	22.8%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Beaufort County compare with North Carolina's other counties?

Beaufort County's rank among North Carolina's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	57th of 100
Growth 2020-2025	86th of 100
Residents per square mile	79th of 100
Median household income	60th of 100
Median home value	64th of 100
Median gross rent	54th of 100
Poverty rate	29th of 100
Bachelor's degree or higher	62nd of 100
Median age	21st of 100

Every county in North Carolina

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Beaufort County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.