North Slope, Alaska

North Slope population, land area and income

North Slope had 10,663 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 88,792.8 square miles of land. It ranks 9th of 30 in Alaska by population and 2nd by land area. That works out to 0.1 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and the 6th lowest nationally.

The median county-equivalent in Alaska has 6,175 residents; North Slope is somewhat larger.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $103,556 is in the top tenth among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How North Slope's population changed since 2020

North Slope lost 343 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 3.1%. That ranks 23rd of 30 in Alaska for growth. The median Alaska county changed by -1.3%, and the state as a whole by +1.0%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, North Slope recorded 542 births and 274 deaths, a natural change of +268. Net international migration added +130 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -777. The largest single component was domestic migration, which removed 777 people.

Where North Slope is

The Census internal point of North Slope is at 69.449300, -153.472800. It sits in UTM zone 5N. The map shades Alaska's 30 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with North Slope outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in North Slope

One incorporated place of 1,000+ people has residents in North Slope, 4,668 people together, or 44% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside North Slope; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Utqiaġvik with 4,668.

Counties bordering North Slope

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 2 neighbors for North Slope. The most populous is Northwest Arctic, AK, with 7,134 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Northwest Arctic

  7,134 people

  238 mi SW

• Yukon-Koyukuk

  5,099 people

  286 mi S

Distance to Juneau and the nearest big city

Juneau is 955.3 miles SE of North Slope's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Anchorage, AK (population 289,600), 584.0 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Fairbanks, AK (population 31,732), 354.6 miles away.

North Slope FIPS code

The FIPS code of North Slope is 02185: state code 02 for Alaska plus borough or census area code 185. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $103,556.