North Carolina · Census place 37760
Lenoir, NC population, income and ZIP codes
Quick answer
The population of the city of Lenoir, North Carolina (Lenoir, NC — Census place “Lenoir city”) is 18,282 residents, ranking #56 of 777 places in North Carolina. Median household income is $48,889, the median home is worth $165,200 and median gross rent runs $671 a month. Looking for the Lenoir North Carolina ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Lenoir, NC: 28645.
- Population
- 18,282Lenoir city residents
- Median household income
- $48,889Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
- Median home value
- $165,200Owner-occupied units
- Median gross rent
- $671Rent plus utilities, monthly
- Median age
- 43.5 yrsAll residents
- Homeownership rate
- 61.1%Owner-occupied households
Lenoir ZIP codes (North Carolina)
Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Lenoir.
The Lenoir 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 Lenoir city
Housing cost measured against local earnings.
A household earning the Lenoir city median would spend about 16.5% 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 3.4× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 12.9% of residents and 61.1% of households own their home.
Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year
Lenoir city, NC in context
How this area compares with national benchmarks.
Lenoir city is a mid-size town in North Carolina, with 18,282 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #56 of 777 ranked by population — larger than 92% of them. The median age here is 43.5 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly older profile than the country as a whole. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.
Households in Lenoir city earn a median of $48,889 a year, 37.8% below the national figure of $78,538 and 20% below the $61,228 median for the 459 North Carolina cities we cover. The median is the midpoint household, not an average, so a handful of very high earners cannot drag it upward the way they distort a mean. Poverty reaches 12.9% of residents here, above the 12.4% national rate.
The typical owner-occupied home in Lenoir city is valued at $165,200, 45.6% below the national figure and 25% below the $219,800 peer median, while median gross rent runs $671 a month, 52.3% below the national figure, or roughly $8,052 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 16.5% 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 3.4×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 61.1% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans more heavily on renters. Gross rent folds in the utilities a tenant pays separately, so it is closer to the real monthly outlay than a headline rent figure.
All values below were released by the Census for this exact geography, with no gap-filling on our side. 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.
- Pinehurst village 17,992
- Elizabeth City city 18,740
- Mount Holly city 17,928
- Mebane city 18,899
- Hope Mills town 17,823
- Harrisburg town 19,203
- Morganton city 17,541
- Lumberton city 19,220
Keep going
More North Carolina coverage.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this area.
- What is the population of Lenoir city?
- Lenoir city has 18,282 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #56 of 777 in North Carolina.
- What is the median household income in Lenoir city?
- Median household income in Lenoir city is $48,889 a year, 37.8% below the national figure of $78,538.
- How much does it cost to rent or buy in Lenoir city?
- Median gross rent is $671 a month and the median home value is $165,200, so rent absorbs about 16.5% of median household income.
- Is Lenoir city affordable compared with the rest of the US?
- Homes cost about 3.4× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Lenoir city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 16.5% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
- How current is this Lenoir city data?
- All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.