Size of Non-NC Native Population by County

To follow up on Monday’s post, here’s a look at the size of the population born outside of North Carolina by county.

In general, these follow total population patterns: Mecklenburg is the most populous county in the state, followed closely by Wake. Similarly, Mecklenburg has the largest population of individuals born outside of North Carolina; Wake has the second largest population of non-native NC residents. In both counties, more than half a million residents were born outside of the state.

Among the top 10 for total population and the top 10 for non-native NC population, there are only two major shifts:

• Gaston County was 8th in total population in the 2012 American Community Survey but 15th in population born outside of North Carolina (31% non-native residents, much lower than the state’s average of 42%).
• Onslow County was 12th in total population in 2012 but 7th in population born outside of North Carolina (65% non-native residents).

In two smaller counties, the differences in relative ranking is even larger: in Dare County was 68th in total population but 39th in non-native born population, while Currituck was 77th in total population but 50th in size of non-native born population.