ZIP Code Tabulation Area

28501

Kinston, NC · ACS 2020–2024

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Latest estimates

At a glance

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

Total population
17,642
Median household income
$35,118
People below poverty
29.4%
Median home value
$79,000

Income

The median income of households in 28501 was $35,118. An estimated 11% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 3.1% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 11
$10,000 to $14,999 8.9
$15,000 to $24,999 15.4
$25,000 to $34,999 14.5
$35,000 to $49,999 13.4
$50,000 to $74,999 13.3
$75,000 to $99,999 12.2
$100,000 to $149,999 5.8
$150,000 to $199,999 2.3
$200,000 or more 3.1

Median Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Workers by Sex in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Dollars
Male 44446
Female 43058

An estimated 60.4% of households received earnings. An estimated 43.7% of households received Social Security and an estimated 28.1 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $16,696. 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 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 60.4
Social Security 43.7
Retirement income 28.1
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 11.4
Cash public assistance income 4.4

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 29.4 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 42.3% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 22.4% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 26.5% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 29.4
Children under 18 years below poverty 42.3
People 65 years old and over below poverty 22.4
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 26.5

In 2020-2024, 40.9 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 40.5% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 34.8% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 44.9% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 28501 in 2020-2024, 90% had health insurance coverage and 10% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 49.4% and public coverage was 61.6%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 2.8%.


In 2020-2024, 28501 had a total population of 17,642 - 9,635 (54.6%) females and 8,007 (45.4%) males. The median age was 42.7 years. An estimated 23.6% of the population was under 18 years, 26.9% was 19 to 44 years, 26.1% was 45 to 64 years, and 21.4 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for 28501 in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 487 478
5 to 9 797 614
10 to 14 419 695
15 to 19 515 514
20 to 24 342 534
25 to 29 510 468
30 to 34 446 778
35 to 39 231 581
40 to 44 451 394
45 to 49 533 496
50 to 54 526 681
55 to 59 553 648
60 to 64 622 546
65 to 69 498 467
70 to 74 513 565
75 to 79 295 502
80 to 84 98 264
85 and over 171 410

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 25% were White; 64.6% were Black or African American; 8% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 0.5% were Asian; 29.5% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 6.1% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 4.7% of the people in 28501 were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 24.4% of the people in 28501 were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 7,894 households in 28501. The average household size was 2.2 people.

Married-couple households made up 24.2% of the households in 28501 while cohabiting couple households made up 4.9% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 48.1% of all households, while 22.8% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 19.3% of households were male householders living alone, and 21% were female householders living alone, for a total of 40.3% of all households.

In 28501, 29.4% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 38.1% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 24.2
Cohabiting Couples 4.9
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
22.8
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
48.1

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 33.8% of males and 29.3% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 37.3 42.2
Now married, except separated 33.8 29.3
Separated 4.1 3.7
Widowed 5.9 11.1
Divorced 18.9 13.6

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In 28501, 496 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 71.4% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 97% of the people living in 28501 were U.S. natives. 76.7% of the 28501 population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 3% of 28501 residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 37.2% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 79.3 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of 28501 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 28501.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 71.8
Asia 13.4
Europe 13.2
Africa 1.5
Northern America 0
Oceania 0

Language

Among people at least five years old living in 28501 in 2020-2024, 5.7 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 5% of people at least five years old; 1.8% 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 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 5
Other Indo-European languages 0.3
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 0.3
Other languages 0.1

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 89.8 % of the people at least one year old living in 28501 were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 89.8
Different house, same county 4.9
Different county, same state 3.4
Different state 1.7
Abroad 0.3

Education

In 2020-2024, 82.2 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 13.3% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 17.8% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in 28501 was 4,224 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 106 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 3,437. College or graduate school enrollment was 681.

Educational Attainment of People in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 17.8
High school diploma or equivalency 35.7
Some college, no degree 22.6
Associate's degree 10.6
Bachelor's degree 8.9
Graduate or professional degree 4.5

Disability

In 28501, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 27.3 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 14% of people under 18 years old, to 23.9% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 51.7% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In 28501, 48.8 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 44.8% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 77.1% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 15.8% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 6.1 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 5,243 77.1
Federal, state, or local government workers 1,077 15.8
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 412 6.1

Industries

In 2020-2024, the civilian employed population 16 years and older in 28501 worked in the following industries:

Percent by Industry in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 1.8
Construction 10.2
Manufacturing 18.5
Wholesale trade 1.5
Retail trade 7
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 6.1
Information 0.3
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 1.3
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 7.2
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 27.2
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 9.1
Other Services, except public administration 3.6
Public administration 6

Occupations

Occupations for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and over in 28501 in 2020-2024

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 1,733 25.5
Service occupations 1,672 24.6
Sales and office occupations 799 11.8
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 694 10.2
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 1,899 27.9

Commuting to Work

An estimated 82.5% of 28501 workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 13.4% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 22.6 minutes to get to work.

Percent of Workers 16 and over Commuting by Mode in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 82.5
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 13.4
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 0.4
Walked 1.1
Other means 0.1
Worked from home 2.4

In 2020-2024, 28501 had a total of 9,852 housing units. Of these housing units, 61.6% 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"). 24.4% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 14% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 61.6
Apartments in multi-unit structures 24.4
Mobile homes 14
Boat, RV, van, etc 0

3.9% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 13.7% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in 28501 was 4.9 rooms, and of these housing units 60.8% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, 28501 had 7,894 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 1,958 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 48.4% while renters occupied 51.6%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.2 and in renter-occupied houses it was 2.19.

3% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 12% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 17% and another 15.9% had three or more vehicles available for use.

The following chart provides the primary fuel used to heat houses in 28501:

House Heating Fuel Used in 28501 in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 34.9
Electricity 60.4
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 2.1
All other fuels 1.4
No fuel used 1.2

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in 28501 was $79,000.

Of the owner-occupied households, 32.6 % had a mortgage. 67.4% 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 $1,131 and for owners without a mortgage it was $393.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for 28501 was $799. 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.