
North Carolina · Census place 74020
Wilkesboro, NC population, income and ZIP codes
Quick answer
The population of the city of Wilkesboro, North Carolina (Wilkesboro, NC — Census place “Wilkesboro town”) is 3,664 residents, ranking #226 of 777 places in North Carolina. Median household income is $41,175, the median home is worth $197,600 and median gross rent runs $713 a month. Looking for the Wilkesboro North Carolina ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Wilkesboro, NC: 28697.
- Population
- 3,664Wilkesboro town residents
- Median household income
- $41,175Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
- Median home value
- $197,600Owner-occupied units
- Median gross rent
- $713Rent plus utilities, monthly
- Median age
- 44.2 yrsAll residents
- Homeownership rate
- 50.6%Owner-occupied households
Wilkesboro ZIP codes (North Carolina)
Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Wilkesboro.
The Wilkesboro 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 Wilkesboro town
Housing cost measured against local earnings.
A household earning the Wilkesboro town median would spend about 20.8% 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 4.8× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 18.7% of residents and 50.6% of households own their home.
Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year
Wilkesboro town, NC in context
How this area compares with national benchmarks.
Wilkesboro town is a small town in North Carolina, with 3,664 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #226 of 777 ranked by population — larger than 71% of them. The median age here is 44.2 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 Wilkesboro town earn a median of $41,175 a year, 47.6% below the national figure of $78,538 and 33% below 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 18.7% 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 Wilkesboro town is valued at $197,600, 34.9% below the national figure and 10% below the $219,800 peer median, while median gross rent runs $713 a month, 49.3% below the national figure, or roughly $8,556 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 20.8% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is within the standard affordability guideline. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 4.8×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is harder here than in the average US market. 50.6% 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.
No figure on this page is estimated by us; each one comes straight from the published ACS tables for this area. 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.
- Welcome CDP 3,649
- Eastover town 3,666
- Tyro CDP 3,635
- Rutherfordton town 3,669
- Buies Creek CDP 3,613
- Glen Raven CDP 3,684
- Brices Creek CDP 3,592
- Jamestown town 3,685
Keep going
More North Carolina coverage.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this area.
- What is the population of Wilkesboro town?
- Wilkesboro town has 3,664 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #226 of 777 in North Carolina.
- What is the median household income in Wilkesboro town?
- Median household income in Wilkesboro town is $41,175 a year, 47.6% below the national figure of $78,538.
- How much does it cost to rent or buy in Wilkesboro town?
- Median gross rent is $713 a month and the median home value is $197,600, so rent absorbs about 20.8% of median household income.
- Is Wilkesboro town affordable compared with the rest of the US?
- Homes cost about 4.8× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Wilkesboro town is less affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 20.8% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
- How current is this Wilkesboro 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.