county

Catawba County, NC

Demographic and economic profile of Catawba County, NC, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Catawba County has a population of 167,054 and grew 3.4% over five years, with a median household income of $67,864 and a median home value of $218,100 that reflects relatively low housing costs alongside a median gross rent of $891 per month. The labor force participation rate stands at 61.3% with an unemployment rate of 4.2%, and 24.9% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher against an 87.5% high school attainment rate, pointing to a workforce concentrated in trades and technical occupations. Median worker earnings of $40,808 and a GDP per capita of $55,565 indicate meaningful output per worker, while a 72.7% homeownership rate and 23.4-minute mean commute suggest a stable, largely settled resident workforce.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

167,054

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Household Income

$67,864

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

42.1 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+3.4% since 2018

Catawba County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone122,021 (74.6%)
  • Black or African American Alone12,945 (7.9%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race8,206 (5.0%)
  • Asian Alone6,962 (4.3%)
  • Some Other Race Alone6,677 (4.1%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races5,738 (3.5%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish12,964
  2. 2.Other Asian and Pacific Island4,215
  3. 3.Other Indo-European860
  4. 4.Vietnamese333
  5. 5.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)309

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

21.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

59.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

18.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

6.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

8,114

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$55,565

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$36,025

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

4.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

12.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Manufacturing (Group)20,340
  2. 2.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance14,722
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)8,802
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services5,897
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services5,627

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations27,928
  2. 2.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations18,106
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations14,791
  4. 4.Service Occupations10,331
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations6,122

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Manufacturing (LQ 2.67×)20,426
  2. 2.Other Services (LQ 1.25×)4,517
  3. 3.Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.24×)2,200
  4. 4.Retail Trade (LQ 1.04×)8,754
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 0.92×)6,227

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$218,100

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$891/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

72.2%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,9997,118 (14.9%)
  • $300,000 to $399,9996,798 (14.2%)
  • $250,000 to $299,9995,213 (10.9%)
  • $400,000 to $499,9994,564 (9.5%)
  • $150,000 to $174,9993,636 (7.6%)
  • $500,000 to $749,9993,592 (7.5%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

24.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

87.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

61.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$40,808

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

23.4 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone60,504 (79.8%)
  • Carpooled7,936 (10.5%)
  • Worked At Home6,241 (8.2%)
  • Other508 (0.7%)
  • Walked375 (0.5%)
  • Public Transit127 (0.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.