County profile

Horry County

South 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
383,016
Median household income
$66,880
People below poverty
13.2%
Median home value
$287,700

Income

The median income of households in Horry County, South Carolina was $66,880. An estimated 5.2% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 6.6% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 5.2
$10,000 to $14,999 3.3
$15,000 to $24,999 7.5
$25,000 to $34,999 8.3
$35,000 to $49,999 13.2
$50,000 to $74,999 18.1
$75,000 to $99,999 14.3
$100,000 to $149,999 16.8
$150,000 to $199,999 6.8
$200,000 or more 6.6

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

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Dollars
Male 52043
Female 46040

An estimated 66% of households received earnings. An estimated 45.4% of households received Social Security and an estimated 36.1 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $27,431. 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 Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 66
Social Security 45.4
Retirement income 36.1
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 5.4
Cash public assistance income 1.2

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 13.2 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 21.2% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 8.4% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 13.1% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 13.2
Children under 18 years below poverty 21.2
People 65 years old and over below poverty 8.4
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 13.1

In 2020-2024, 7.5 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 51.1% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 39.9% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 40.2% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024, 88.3% had health insurance coverage and 11.7% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 61.7% and public coverage was 45.6%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 7.2%.


In 2020-2024, Horry County, South Carolina had a total population of 383,016 - 197,559 (51.6%) females and 185,457 (48.4%) males. The median age was 48.7 years. An estimated 17% of the population was under 18 years, 25.9% was 19 to 44 years, 27.8% was 45 to 64 years, and 26.4 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 8275 7852
5 to 9 8580 8317
10 to 14 10078 9719
15 to 19 12078 11688
20 to 24 9184 9155
25 to 29 9483 9538
30 to 34 10126 10702
35 to 39 9635 9947
40 to 44 10336 11145
45 to 49 10095 10854
50 to 54 11632 12458
55 to 59 12599 14563
60 to 64 15635 18363
65 to 69 15514 18026
70 to 74 15241 16328
75 to 79 9514 10553
80 to 84 4654 4402
85 and over 2798 3949

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 76.6% were White; 11.8% were Black or African American; 15.8% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 1.4% were Asian; 3% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 7.5% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 7.3% of the people in Horry County, South Carolina were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 75.5% of the people in Horry County, South Carolina were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 158,779 households in Horry County, South Carolina. The average household size was 2.37 people.

Married-couple households made up 49.8% of the households in Horry County, South Carolina while cohabiting couple households made up 6.3% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 27.9% of all households, while 16% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 12.2% of households were male householders living alone, and 17.1% were female householders living alone, for a total of 29.3% of all households.

In Horry County, South Carolina, 22.6% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 43.2% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 49.8
Cohabiting Couples 6.3
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
16
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
27.9

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 52.7% of males and 48.8% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 31.4 25.8
Now married, except separated 52.7 48.8
Separated 1.8 2.1
Widowed 3.6 10.4
Divorced 10.5 12.9

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Horry County, South Carolina, 6,766 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 39.8% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 93.3% of the people living in Horry County, South Carolina were U.S. natives. 33% of the Horry County, South Carolina population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 6.7% of Horry County, South Carolina residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 50.2% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 66.9 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Horry County, South 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 Horry County, South Carolina.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 53.2
Asia 16
Europe 21.7
Africa 4.3
Northern America 4.3
Oceania 0.4

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024, 8.9 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 5.5% of people at least five years old; 3.1% 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 Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 5.5
Other Indo-European languages 2.1
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 0.8
Other languages 0.3

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 87.1 % of the people at least one year old living in Horry County, South Carolina were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 87.1
Different house, same county 5.9
Different county, same state 1.4
Different state 5.3
Abroad 0.3

Education

In 2020-2024, 91.9 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 27.1% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 8% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Horry County, South Carolina was 72,206 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 2,807 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 49,336. College or graduate school enrollment was 20,063.

Educational Attainment of People in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 8
High school diploma or equivalency 31.1
Some college, no degree 22.8
Associate's degree 10.9
Bachelor's degree 17.6
Graduate or professional degree 9.6

Disability

In Horry County, South Carolina, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 18.8 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 6.5% of people under 18 years old, to 16.3% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 32% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Horry County, South Carolina, 50.7 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 46.6% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 79.1% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 12.8% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 8 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 130,719 79.1
Federal, state, or local government workers 21,094 12.8
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 13,194 8

Industries

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

Percent by Industry in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 0.6
Construction 9
Manufacturing 5.2
Wholesale trade 1.5
Retail trade 14.9
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 3.9
Information 1.5
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 7.4
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 10.9
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 20.7
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 15.7
Other Services, except public administration 5.3
Public administration 3.2

Occupations

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

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 58,333 35.3
Service occupations 34,645 21
Sales and office occupations 40,653 24.6
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 16,040 9.7
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 15,688 9.5

Commuting to Work

An estimated 76.9% of Horry County, South Carolina workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 8% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 23.1 minutes to get to work.

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

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 76.9
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 8
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 0.5
Walked 0.8
Other means 2.7
Worked from home 11

In 2020-2024, Horry County, South Carolina had a total of 217,419 housing units. Of these housing units, 57.7% 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"). 29.2% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 12.9% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 57.7
Apartments in multi-unit structures 29.2
Mobile homes 12.9
Boat, RV, van, etc 0.1

24.3% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 0.7% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Horry County, South Carolina was 5.3 rooms, and of these housing units 67% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Horry County, South Carolina had 158,779 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 58,640 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 77.3% while renters occupied 22.7%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.34 and in renter-occupied houses it was 2.47.

4.9% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 4.9% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 4.8% and another 17.7% had three or more vehicles available for use.

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

House Heating Fuel Used in Horry County, South Carolina in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 12.2
Electricity 86.4
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 0.1
All other fuels 0.3
No fuel used 0.9

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Horry County, South Carolina was $287,700.

Of the owner-occupied households, 55.2 % had a mortgage. 44.8% 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 $1,446 and for owners without a mortgage it was $481.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Horry County, South Carolina was $1,255. 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.