• county
  • FIPS 37085
  • Largest town: Dunn

Harnett County, North Carolina

Harnett County had 146,096 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 595.1 square miles of land. It ranks 23rd of 100 in North Carolina by population and 25th by land area.

Population
146,096
#23 of 100 in North Carolina · #469 in US
Area
595.1 sq mi
#25 of 100 in North Carolina · #1,643 in US
Density
245 / sq mi
#24 of 100 in North Carolina · #505 in US
Median household income
$70,074
#23 of 100 in North Carolina · #998 in US

Census Vintage 2024 estimates · SAIPE 2023 income · 2024 Gazetteer land area

Harnett County within North Carolina. Pin: Raleigh.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Harnett County

Harnett County population, land area and income

Harnett County had 146,096 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 595.1 square miles of land. It ranks 23rd of 100 in North Carolina by population and 25th by land area. That works out to 245.5 people per square mile, 2.6 times the US average of 96.3, and in the top quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in North Carolina has 52,768 residents, so Harnett County is 2.8 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $70,074 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

146,096

3144th1st

469th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

595 sq mi

3144th1st

1643rd of 3,144 (US)

Density

245.5 / sq mi

3144th1st

505th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$70,074

3143rd1st

998th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within North Carolina (100)

Population

146,096

100th1st

23rd of 100 (NC)

Land area

595 sq mi

100th1st

25th of 100 (NC)

Density

245.5 / sq mi

100th1st

24th of 100 (NC)

Median household income

$70,074

100th1st

23rd of 100 (NC)

How Harnett County's population changed since 2020

Harnett County gained 12,380 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 9.3%. That ranks 10th of 100 in North Carolina for growth. The median North Carolina county changed by +2.7%, and the state as a whole by +5.7%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Harnett County recorded 7,827 births and 5,648 deaths, a natural change of +2,179. Net international migration added +1,071 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +9,067. The largest single component was domestic migration, which added 9,067 people.

133.7k2020135.6k2021138.6k2022141.8k2023146.1k2024
Census Vintage 2024 county estimates for July 1 of each year. The axis starts above zero so year-to-year changes are visible.

Components of change, April 2020 to July 2024

Births
7,827
Deaths
5,648
Net international migration
+1,071
Net domestic migration
+9,067
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+4,304

Where Harnett County is

The Census internal point of Harnett County is at 35.368700, -78.871700. It sits in UTM zone 17N. The map shades North Carolina's 100 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Harnett County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Scotland County: +1.4%Rockingham County: +2.5%Franklin County: +15.6%Caswell County: -0.5%Stokes County: +2.9%Granville County: +2.3%Edgecombe County: +0.7%Randolph County: +2.8%Alexander County: +0.8%Person County: +2.4%Cherokee County: +5.2%Ashe County: +2.5%Davidson County: +5.2%Cabarrus County: +7.8%Mecklenburg County: +8.1%Burke County: +1.5%Cumberland County: +0.4%Northampton County: -4.9%Buncombe County: +3.5%Wilson County: +0.8%Bladen County: +0.5%Pitt County: +4.1%Yancey County: +2.7%Stanly County: +7.4%Harnett County: +9.3%Wilkes County: +0.5%Tyrrell County: +8.8%Pamlico County: +1.9%Hoke County: +6.0%Transylvania County: +2.5%Carteret County: +3.8%Durham County: +6.5%Anson County: +1.8%Pender County: +15.6%Alamance County: +6.7%Polk County: +4.9%Lenoir County: +0.5%Washington County: -3.0%Avery County: -0.0%Hyde County: +1.5%Gates County: -1.4%Davie County: +5.8%Jackson County: +7.4%Montgomery County: +2.5%Martin County: -2.0%Pasquotank County: +2.9%Perquimans County: +3.4%Cleveland County: +2.3%Sampson County: +2.3%Catawba County: +3.8%Alleghany County: +4.5%Robeson County: +2.3%Macon County: +4.4%Clay County: +8.0%Haywood County: +1.3%Duplin County: +3.8%Henderson County: +3.6%Craven County: +2.6%Warren County: +2.6%Graham County: +1.7%Union County: +9.9%Wayne County: +2.2%Gaston County: +5.9%Guilford County: +3.7%Yadkin County: +2.0%Watauga County: +1.0%Rowan County: +4.4%Swain County: -1.1%Chatham County: +9.4%Bertie County: -4.4%Halifax County: -2.9%Forsyth County: +4.1%Onslow County: +3.8%Dare County: +3.1%Chowan County: +1.3%Brunswick County: +20.9%Johnston County: +14.9%Orange County: +6.4%Currituck County: +13.6%New Hanover County: +7.5%Richmond County: -1.7%Vance County: -0.5%Iredell County: +9.9%Lincoln County: +12.0%Caldwell County: +0.2%McDowell County: +1.6%Rutherford County: +1.9%Mitchell County: +0.9%Moore County: +8.1%Columbus County: -0.8%Lee County: +8.1%Greene County: +1.1%Madison County: +5.0%Camden County: +7.5%Hertford County: -12.0%Beaufort County: -0.3%Jones County: +3.5%Wake County: +9.0%Nash County: +3.0%Surry County: +0.2%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < +0.5%
  2. < +2.3%
  3. < +3.7%
  4. < +7.4%
  5. ≥ +7.4%
no data

Orange pin: Harnett County internal point. Dark pin: Raleigh.

Internal point

Decimal
35.368700, -78.871700
DMS
35°22'7.32"N 78°52'18.12"W
UTM
17N 693350.5E 3916010.9N
Geohash
dnrcjnxms
Plus code
8773949H+F8

Towns in Harnett County

5 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Harnett County, 27,747 people together, or 19% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Harnett County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Dunn with 8,754.

  1. 01Dunn8,754
  2. 02Angier (part)6,963
  3. 03Erwin4,865
  4. 04Lillington4,848
  5. 05Coats2,317
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Harnett County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 7 neighbors for Harnett County. The most populous is Wake County, NC, with 1,232,444 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Raleigh and the nearest big city

Raleigh is 31.3 miles NNE of Harnett County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Fayetteville, NC (population 209,496), 20.6 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Spring Lake, NC (population 11,530), 14.5 miles away.

Harnett County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Harnett County is 37085: state code 37 for North Carolina plus county code 085. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $70,074.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Harnett County, North Carolina?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 146,096. That is up 12,380 people (9.3%) from the July 2020 estimate of 133,716.

What is the FIPS code of Harnett County?

37085. The first two digits (37) are North Carolina; the last three (085) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Harnett County?

Dunn, with 8,754 residents inside Harnett County in 2024.

Which counties border Harnett County?

7 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Wake County, NC; Cumberland County, NC; Johnston County, NC; Moore County, NC; Chatham County, NC; Lee County, NC; Sampson County, NC.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census Vintage 2024 county population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, counties
  3. 03Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  4. 04Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  5. 05Census 2024 county adjacency file
  6. 06Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.