Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population Aged 25 years and above with an Educational attainment of High School Graduate or Equivalent in 2021 (ACS-5Yrs)

Updated on September 3, 2025.

Based on the US Census ACS-5Yrs estimates, in 2021, the population of North Carolina (aged 25 years and above) who had an educational attainment of High School Graduate or Equivalent was 1,787,594. Among all North Carolina counties, Mecklenburg County had the highest population (aged 25 years and above) with an educational attainment of High School Graduate or Equivalent (123,146), followed by Wake County (108,711), and Guilford County (82,609).

The chart below shows the top 10 North Carolina counties, and the table below shows the ranking of all North Carolina counties.

You can see similar information for other educational attainments.

You can also see similar information for other states and for the United States.

Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population (Aged 25yrs+) with an Educational Attainment of High School Graduate or Equivalent in 2021
Mecklenburg County
Wake County
Guilford County
Forsyth County
Cumberland County
Gaston County
Buncombe County
Johnston County
Durham County
Davidson County
Ranking of North Carolina Counties By Population (Aged 25yrs+) with an Educational Attainment of High School Graduate or Equivalent in 2021
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Rank County Number of People
1 Mecklenburg County 123146
2 Wake County 108711
3 Guilford County 82609
4 Forsyth County 64200
5 Cumberland County 55060
6 Gaston County 47150
7 Buncombe County 45409
8 Johnston County 38991
9 Durham County 38304
10 Davidson County 38289
11 Cabarrus County 37076
12 Union County 35054
13 Randolph County 34866
14 Iredell County 34436
15 Rowan County 33154
16 Catawba County 32965
17 Alamance County 32480
18 Onslow County 32215
19 New Hanover County 29894
20 Brunswick County 29757
21 Robeson County 25587
22 Pitt County 25535
23 Harnett County 25222
24 Cleveland County 23769
25 Wayne County 23258
26 Rockingham County 22272
27 Henderson County 21705
28 Nash County 21484
29 Burke County 20051
30 Caldwell County 19073
31 Lincoln County 18770
32 Wilson County 17705
33 Craven County 17560
34 Wilkes County 15451
35 Rutherford County 15031
36 Surry County 14503
37 Stanly County 14259
38 Moore County 14206
39 Franklin County 14166
40 Sampson County 13975
41 Stokes County 13280
42 Columbus County 13275
43 Lenoir County 13199
44 Granville County 13189
45 Edgecombe County 13184
46 Halifax County 12996
47 Haywood County 12517
48 Carteret County 12350
49 Orange County 11847
50 Lee County 11309
51 Pender County 11156
52 Chatham County 10851
53 Duplin County 10695
54 McDowell County 10663
55 Beaufort County 10453
56 Alexander County 10424
57 Vance County 10281
58 Davie County 9872
59 Hoke County 9580
60 Person County 9554
61 Yadkin County 9419
62 Richmond County 9264
63 Macon County 8834
64 Jackson County 8087
65 Pasquotank County 8012
66 Scotland County 7788
67 Cherokee County 7249
68 Bladen County 6966
69 Watauga County 6686
70 Anson County 6566
71 Ashe County 6342
72 Currituck County 6175
73 Dare County 6115
74 Transylvania County 6105
75 Montgomery County 6089
76 Caswell County 5863
77 Martin County 5561
78 Hertford County 5519
79 Warren County 5460
80 Bertie County 4990
81 Yancey County 4852
82 Madison County 4794
83 Greene County 4782
84 Northampton County 4630
85 Avery County 4023
86 Polk County 3874
87 Mitchell County 3422
88 Chowan County 3300
89 Gates County 3173
90 Swain County 3114
91 Pamlico County 3002
92 Washington County 2854
93 Perquimans County 2835
94 Alleghany County 2610
95 Jones County 2493
96 Camden County 2239
97 Clay County 2111
98 Graham County 2091
99 Hyde County 1264
100 Tyrrell County 1018