North Carolina · Census place 3719000
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in 3 counties of North Carolina with an estimated 301,870 residents on July 1, 2024. It is the 4th largest of 335 incorporated places of 1,000+ people in the state.
- Population 2024
- 301,870
- #4 of 335 in North Carolina
- Change since 2020
- +7.2%
- +20,191 people
- Land area
- 118.8 sq mi
- + 0.83 sq mi water
- Density
- 2,540 / sq mi
- State median 1,316
Measure from here
Tools and pages that start from Durham
Durham population, 2020 to 2024
Durham added 20,191 residents from July 2020 to July 2024, a change of +7.2%. In the latest year it moved by +5,488. Among 147 North Carolina places of 5,000 or more, that growth ranks 56th; the median place changed by +4.7%. The median place of 5,000+ in North Carolina has 14,573 people, so Durham is 20.7 times that size.
Durham covers 118.84 square miles of land and 0.83 of water, for 2,540 people per square mile of land. The median North Carolina place of 5,000+ has 1,316, so Durham is denser than the typical town.
The 3 counties Durham spans
Durham crosses county lines. The Census county-part estimates split its 301,870 residents as follows; Durham County holds 99.9% of them. The shaded shapes are on the map above; dots mark the eight nearest places.
- 01Durham County301,432
- 02Wake County293
- 03Orange County145
ZIP codes in Durham
8 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) overlap Durham by at least 10% of the ZCTA's or the city's land: 27701, 27703, 27704, 27705, 27707, 27708, 27712, 27713. ZCTAs are Census approximations of USPS ZIP code delivery areas. The list comes from the 2020 ZCTA to place relationship file, so a city that annexed land after 2020 may reach into ZIP codes not listed here.
Where Durham is
The Census internal point of Durham is at 35.977900, -78.898100. Raleigh, the capital, is 19.9 miles SE in a straight line. The nearest larger place is Raleigh, NC (499,825 people), 17.6 miles away. The nearest city of 100,000 or more is Cary, NC, 14.2 miles away. The ground at the internal point is about 113 m (371 ft) above sea level.
Internal point
- Decimal
- 35.977900, -78.898100
- DMS
- 35°58'40.44"N 78°53'53.16"W
- UTM
- 17N 689505.4E 3983539.8N
- Geohash
- dnrusts4m
- Plus code
- 8773X4H2+5Q
- Time zone
- America/New_York
Daylight in Durham
At 35.98° N, Durham gets about 14 h 36 min of daylight around the June solstice and 9 h 43 min around the December solstice, a swing of 4 h 53 min. Figures are sunrise to sunset from the SunCalc model for June 21 and December 21, 2026. Month-by-month sunrise and sunset times are on the Durham daylight page.
Places near Durham
The eight nearest incorporated places of 1,000+ in North Carolina, measured between internal points. The closest is Chapel Hill, 8.7 miles away, with 64,028 people.
Questions people ask
What is the population of Durham, NC?
301,870 on July 1, 2024, in the Census Vintage 2024 estimates. That is up 20,191 (7.2%) from 281,679 in July 2020.
What county is Durham in?
It spans 3 counties: Durham County (301,432 residents), Wake County (293 residents), Orange County (145 residents).
What ZIP codes cover Durham?
8 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas overlap it by at least 10% of either area: 27701, 27703, 27704, 27705, 27707, 27708, 27712, 27713.
How far is Durham from Raleigh?
19.9 miles (32.1 km) in a straight line, heading SE from Durham.
What is the nearest larger city to Durham?
Raleigh, NC, with 499,825 residents, 17.6 miles away between internal points.
Sources and data as of
Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates (July 1, 2024), 2024 Gazetteer places, 2020 ZCTA to place relationship file.
- 01Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
- 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, places
- 03Census 2020 ZCTA to place relationship file
- 04Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)
- 05Open-Meteo forecast API (time zone and Copernicus GLO-90 elevation) (last verified 2026-09-30)
How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.