
North Carolina · Census place 20620
Elkin, NC population, income and ZIP codes
Quick answer
The population of the city of Elkin, North Carolina (Elkin, NC — Census place “Elkin town”) is 4,025 residents, ranking #205 of 777 places in North Carolina. Median household income is $60,434, the median home is worth $187,200 and median gross rent runs $765 a month. Looking for the Elkin North Carolina ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Elkin, NC: 28621.
- Population
- 4,025Elkin town residents
- Median household income
- $60,434Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
- Median home value
- $187,200Owner-occupied units
- Median gross rent
- $765Rent plus utilities, monthly
- Median age
- 41.3 yrsAll residents
- Homeownership rate
- 62.4%Owner-occupied households
Elkin ZIP codes (North Carolina)
Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Elkin.
The Elkin NC ZIP code list below covers 1 ZIP code. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.
What the numbers mean in Elkin town
Housing cost measured against local earnings.
A household earning the Elkin town median would spend about 15.2% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 3.1× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 23% of residents and 62.4% of households own their home.
Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year
Elkin town, NC in context
How this area compares with national benchmarks.
Elkin town is a small town in North Carolina, with 4,025 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #205 of 777 ranked by population — larger than 73% of them. The median age here is 41.3 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly older profile than the country as a whole. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.
Households in Elkin town earn a median of $60,434 a year, 23.1% below the national figure of $78,538 and within a couple of points of the $61,228 median for the 459 North Carolina cities we cover. Household income here is measured before tax and pooled across everyone at the address, which is why it reads higher than typical individual earnings in the same area. Poverty reaches 23% of residents here, well above the 12.4% national rate, which is the single clearest signal in this dataset that median income here is carried by a narrow band of households.
The typical owner-occupied home in Elkin town is valued at $187,200, 38.3% below the national figure and 15% below the $219,800 peer median, while median gross rent runs $765 a month, 45.6% below the national figure, or roughly $9,180 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 15.2% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is cheap relative to what people here earn. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 3.1×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 62.4% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans more heavily on renters. Rent is reported gross — contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities — which is why it runs above the advertised price on a listing for the same unit.
Every value on this page is published directly by the Census for this area — nothing is modelled or interpolated. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.
Compare with nearby places
Places of similar size in North Carolina.
- Stanley town 4,014
- Trent Woods town 4,086
- Bethlehem CDP 3,928
- Forest Oaks CDP 4,095
- Emerald Isle town 3,915
- Southport city 4,143
- Swansboro town 3,887
- Benson town 4,144
Keep going
More North Carolina coverage.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this area.
- What is the population of Elkin town?
- Elkin town has 4,025 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #205 of 777 in North Carolina.
- What is the median household income in Elkin town?
- Median household income in Elkin town is $60,434 a year, 23.1% below the national figure of $78,538.
- How much does it cost to rent or buy in Elkin town?
- Median gross rent is $765 a month and the median home value is $187,200, so rent absorbs about 15.2% of median household income.
- Is Elkin town affordable compared with the rest of the US?
- Homes cost about 3.1× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Elkin town is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 15.2% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
- How current is this Elkin town data?
- All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.