County profile

Brunswick County

North Carolina · ACS 2020–2024

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Latest estimates

At a glance

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Total population
152,568
Median household income
$77,024
People below poverty
9.2%
Median home value
$349,800

Income

The median income of households in Brunswick County, North Carolina was $77,024. An estimated 4% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 7.8% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 4
$10,000 to $14,999 3
$15,000 to $24,999 6.1
$25,000 to $34,999 6.4
$35,000 to $49,999 10.3
$50,000 to $74,999 19.1
$75,000 to $99,999 15
$100,000 to $149,999 18.5
$150,000 to $199,999 10
$200,000 or more 7.8

Median Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Workers by Sex in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Dollars
Male 60627
Female 49196

An estimated 62% of households received earnings. An estimated 50.7% of households received Social Security and an estimated 43 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $29,138. These income sources are not mutually exclusive; that is, some households received income from more than one source.

Proportion of Households with Various Income Sources in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 62
Social Security 50.7
Retirement income 43
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 4.2
Cash public assistance income 1.5

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 9.2 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 13.1% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 5.7% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 10.5% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 9.2
Children under 18 years below poverty 13.1
People 65 years old and over below poverty 5.7
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 10.5

In 2020-2024, 8.5 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 48.9% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 38.1% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 27% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024, 92.5% had health insurance coverage and 7.5% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 69.6% and public coverage was 48.1%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 5.3%.


In 2020-2024, Brunswick County, North Carolina had a total population of 152,568 - 79,228 (51.9%) females and 73,340 (48.1%) males. The median age was 56.4 years. An estimated 14% of the population was under 18 years, 22.7% was 19 to 44 years, 28.2% was 45 to 64 years, and 33.8 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 2823 2655
5 to 9 3243 2501
10 to 14 3032 3303
15 to 19 2964 2815
20 to 24 3156 2923
25 to 29 3331 3386
30 to 34 3519 3651
35 to 39 3858 4247
40 to 44 3162 3332
45 to 49 3359 3562
50 to 54 4060 4450
55 to 59 5040 6152
60 to 64 7326 9114
65 to 69 7939 8958
70 to 74 8035 8831
75 to 79 4694 5440
80 to 84 2443 2266
85 and over 1356 1642

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 81.7% were White; 8.4% were Black or African American; 13.4% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 0.7% were Asian; 4.8% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 6.1% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 5.6% of the people in Brunswick County, North Carolina were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 80.8% of the people in Brunswick County, North Carolina were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 69,124 households in Brunswick County, North Carolina. The average household size was 2.19 people.

Married-couple households made up 57% of the households in Brunswick County, North Carolina while cohabiting couple households made up 6.2% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 24.4% of all households, while 12.4% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 8.9% of households were male householders living alone, and 16.1% were female householders living alone, for a total of 25% of all households.

In Brunswick County, North Carolina, 18.8% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 49.8% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 57
Cohabiting Couples 6.2
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
12.4
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
24.4

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 65.1% of males and 58% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 21.6 17.5
Now married, except separated 65.1 58
Separated 1.1 1.6
Widowed 4 10.5
Divorced 8.2 12.3

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Brunswick County, North Carolina, 2,740 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 56.2% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 96.4% of the people living in Brunswick County, North Carolina were U.S. natives. 41.1% of the Brunswick County, North Carolina population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 3.6% of Brunswick County, North Carolina residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 58.6% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 85.1 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Brunswick County, North Carolina come from different parts of the world. The bar graph below displays the percentage of foreign-born from each world region of birth in 2020-2024 for Brunswick County, North Carolina.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 51.1
Asia 18
Europe 24.6
Africa 2
Northern America 4
Oceania 0.4

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024, 5 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 3.6% of people at least five years old; 2.1% reported that they did not speak English "very well."

Percentage of the Population 5 years and over who Speak a Language other than English in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 3.6
Other Indo-European languages 1
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 0.2
Other languages 0.1

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 89.1 % of the people at least one year old living in Brunswick County, North Carolina were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 89.1
Different house, same county 3.6
Different county, same state 3.6
Different state 3.5
Abroad 0.1

Education

In 2020-2024, 93.5 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 34.7% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 6.5% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Brunswick County, North Carolina was 21,824 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 1,158 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 15,507. College or graduate school enrollment was 5,159.

Educational Attainment of People in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 6.5
High school diploma or equivalency 25.8
Some college, no degree 21.2
Associate's degree 11.8
Bachelor's degree 21.9
Graduate or professional degree 12.7

Disability

In Brunswick County, North Carolina, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 15.6 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 9.3% of people under 18 years old, to 12.1% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 23.8% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Brunswick County, North Carolina, 46.7 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 50.9% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 78.4% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 14.4% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 7.2 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 48,983 78.4
Federal, state, or local government workers 8,974 14.4
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 4,468 7.2

Industries

In 2020-2024, the civilian employed population 16 years and older in Brunswick County, North Carolina worked in the following industries:

Percent by Industry in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 0.9
Construction 9.8
Manufacturing 7.1
Wholesale trade 1.8
Retail trade 13
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 7.2
Information 2
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 6.1
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 11.9
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 20.9
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 9.2
Other Services, except public administration 4.4
Public administration 5.6

Occupations

Occupations for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and over in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 23,997 38.4
Service occupations 11,011 17.6
Sales and office occupations 13,701 21.9
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 6,684 10.7
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 7,086 11.3

Commuting to Work

An estimated 74.5% of Brunswick County, North Carolina workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 7.8% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 25.7 minutes to get to work.

Percent of Workers 16 and over Commuting by Mode in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 74.5
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 7.8
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 0.6
Walked 0.9
Other means 1.4
Worked from home 14.7

In 2020-2024, Brunswick County, North Carolina had a total of 99,077 housing units. Of these housing units, 73.6% were single-family houses either not attached to any other structure or attached to one or more structures (commonly referred to as "townhouses" or "row houses"). 9.2% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 17.2% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 73.6
Apartments in multi-unit structures 9.2
Mobile homes 17.2
Boat, RV, van, etc 0

28.3% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 1.1% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Brunswick County, North Carolina was 5.5 rooms, and of these housing units 79.1% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Brunswick County, North Carolina had 69,124 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 29,953 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 84.6% while renters occupied 15.4%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.19 and in renter-occupied houses it was 2.21.

3.9% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 5.7% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 2.4% and another 21.6% had three or more vehicles available for use.

The following chart provides the primary fuel used to heat houses in Brunswick County, North Carolina:

House Heating Fuel Used in Brunswick County, North Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 11.3
Electricity 86.7
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 0.4
All other fuels 0.7
No fuel used 0.8

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Brunswick County, North Carolina was $349,800.

Of the owner-occupied households, 57 % had a mortgage. 43% owned their houses "free and clear," that is without a primary mortgage or loan on the house. The median monthly housing costs for owners with a mortgage was $1,673 and for owners without a mortgage it was $589.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Brunswick County, North Carolina was $1,351. Gross rent includes the monthly contract rent and any monthly payments made for electricity, gas, water and sewer, and any other fuels to heat the house.