NC in Focus: Charlotte and Raleigh captured 27% of NC population growth between 2010 and 2015

In 2015, Charlotte and Raleigh were among both the top 50 largest cities in the United States and the top 50 in numeric population growth since 2010, according to recent estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. As of July 1, 2015:

• Charlotte (827,097) was the 17^th largest city in the United States, following Ft. Worth, TX, and ahead of Seattle, WA. It had the 9^th largest numeric growth between 2010 and 2015, gaining more than 91,000 new residents.
• Raleigh (451,066) was the 42^nd largest city in the nation, following Virginia Beach, VA, and ahead of Omaha, NE. With an increase of over 47,000 new residents between 2010 and 2015, Raleigh had the 21^st largest numeric increase in population among the nation’s cities.

Together, Charlotte and Raleigh contain just under 1.3 million residents, or 12.7% of the state’s total population. They have added nearly 140,000 new residents since 2010, representing 27.3% of North Carolina’s total population growth of 507,000. Charlotte’s growth alone accounted for 18% of the state’s growth; Raleigh’s accounted for 9.3%.

The 10 cities with the largest population increases between 2010 and 2015 contain 25% of the state’s total population but accounted for half of total population growth over this time period.