• county
  • FIPS 37199
  • Largest town: Burnsville

Yancey County, North Carolina

Yancey County had 18,993 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 312.6 square miles of land. It ranks 83rd of 100 in North Carolina by population and 80th by land area.

Population
18,993
#83 of 100 in North Carolina · #1,884 in US
Area
312.6 sq mi
#80 of 100 in North Carolina · #2,780 in US
Density
61 / sq mi
#76 of 100 in North Carolina · #1,296 in US
Median household income
$54,913
#68 of 100 in North Carolina · #2,330 in US

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

Yancey County within North Carolina. Pin: Raleigh.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Yancey County

Yancey County population, land area and income

Yancey County had 18,993 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 312.6 square miles of land. It ranks 83rd of 100 in North Carolina by population and 80th by land area. That works out to 60.8 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and above the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in North Carolina has 52,768 residents, so Yancey County has 36% of the typical county's population.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $54,913 is below the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

18,993

3144th1st

1884th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

313 sq mi

3144th1st

2780th of 3,144 (US)

Density

60.8 / sq mi

3144th1st

1296th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$54,913

3143rd1st

2330th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within North Carolina (100)

Population

18,993

100th1st

83rd of 100 (NC)

Land area

313 sq mi

100th1st

80th of 100 (NC)

Density

60.8 / sq mi

100th1st

76th of 100 (NC)

Median household income

$54,913

100th1st

68th of 100 (NC)

How Yancey County's population changed since 2020

Yancey County gained 497 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 2.7%. That ranks 51st 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, Yancey County recorded 739 births and 1,255 deaths, a natural change of -516. Net international migration added +71 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +969. The largest single component was domestic migration, which added 969 people.

18.5k202018.8k202118.8k202218.9k202319.0k2024
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
739
Deaths
1,255
Net international migration
+71
Net domestic migration
+969
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+53

Where Yancey County is

The Census internal point of Yancey County is at 35.889300, -82.304000. 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 Yancey 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: Yancey County internal point. Dark pin: Raleigh.

Internal point

Decimal
35.889300, -82.304000
DMS
35°53'21.48"N 82°18'14.40"W
UTM
17N 382306.3E 3972455.5N
Geohash
dnmkpjkn3
Plus code
867VVMQW+PC

Towns in Yancey County

One incorporated place of 1,000+ people has residents in Yancey County, 1,626 people together, or 9% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Yancey County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Burnsville with 1,626.

  1. 01Burnsville1,626
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Yancey County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 5 neighbors for Yancey County, including 1 across a state line. The most populous is Buncombe County, NC, with 279,210 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Raleigh and the nearest big city

Raleigh is 205.4 miles E of Yancey County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Knoxville, TN (population 198,722), 92.2 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Asheville, NC (population 94,992), 26.0 miles away.

Yancey County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Yancey County is 37199: state code 37 for North Carolina plus county code 199. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $54,913.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Yancey County, North Carolina?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 18,993. That is up 497 people (2.7%) from the July 2020 estimate of 18,496.

What is the FIPS code of Yancey County?

37199. The first two digits (37) are North Carolina; the last three (199) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Yancey County?

Burnsville, with 1,626 residents inside Yancey County in 2024.

Which counties border Yancey County?

5 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Buncombe County, NC; McDowell County, NC; Madison County, NC; Unicoi County, TN; Mitchell 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.