Wilmington, North Carolina Population 2024

125,007

Wilmington Demographics

According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Wilmington was:

  • White: 74.37%
  • Black or African American: 16.21%
  • Two or more races: 4.67%
  • Other race: 3.14%
  • Asian: 1.3%
  • Native American: 0.28%
  • Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 0.02%
Land Area (mi²)
51.4 sq mi
Density (mi²)
2,431.40/sq mi
Growth Since 2020
7.98% (9,237)
The current population of Wilmington, North Carolina is 125,007 based on our projections of the latest US Census estimates (released May 2024). The last official US Census in 2020 recorded the population at 115,770.

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White86,96674.37%
Black or African American18,95516.21%
Two or more races5,4654.67%
Other race3,6773.14%
Asian1,5181.3%
Native American3270.28%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander250.02%

White

Black or African American

Two or more races

Other race

Asian

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Wilmington Population by Race

Wilmington Population Pyramid 2024

Wilmington Median Age

37.6

Total

36.5

Male

39

Female

Wilmington Adults

There are 97,294 adults, (20,739 of whom are seniors) in Wilmington.

Wilmington Age Dependency

52.7

Age Dependency Ratio

27.1

Old Age Dependency Ratio

25.7

Child Dependency Ratio

Wilmington Sex Ratio

Female62,34553.32%
Male54,58846.68%

Wilmington Population by Age

Wilmington Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All53,3742.145.954.1
Non Family28,1921.3431.668.4
Married18,3242.8572.527.5
Female5,4103.1832.367.7
Male1,4483.1139.260.8

2.87

Average Family Size

2.1

Average Household Size

45.9%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Wilmington Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade3,5084.46%
Associates Degree8,37710.65%
Bachelors Degree22,15228.16%
Graduate Degree12,16715.46%
High School Graduate15,56119.78%
Less Than 9th Grade1,7602.24%
Some College15,15319.26%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Wilmington Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Wilmington Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
White59,28456,83829,406
Black12,52610,7412,721
Hispanic3,6632,864925
2+ Races2,4832,254862
Other Race1,5281,117187
Asian946807574
Native American17810047
Islander25250

The highest rate of high school graduation is among islander people with a rate of 100%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 60.68%.

Wilmington Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$51,338$61,292$42,466
Graduate Degree$72,147$84,698$67,159
High School Graduate$29,954$34,708$26,641
Less Than 9th Grade$25,130$26,172$18,563
Overall$43,932$49,636$38,661
Some College$40,056$43,597$34,713

$43,932

Average Earnings

$49,636

Average Male

$38,661

Average Female

Wilmington Earnings by Educational Attainment

Wilmington Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Wilmington Language

92.21% of Wilmington residents speak only English, while 7.79% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 4.92% of the population.

Wilmington Language

Wilmington Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
White80,28610,49113.07%
Black18,8336,73735.77%
Multiple5,2321,51929.03%
Hispanic7,8231,42918.27%
Other3,4623098.93%
Asian1,34518613.83%
Native3107925.48%

17.79%

Overall Poverty Rate

15.49%

Male Poverty Rate

19.83%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Wilmington

The race most likely to be in poverty in Wilmington is Black, with 35.77% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Wilmington is Other, with 8.93% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 3.44%. Among those working part-time, it was 27.49%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 27.06%.

Wilmington Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade36.47%
High School21.1%
Some College13.5%
Bachelors or Greater4.63%

Wilmington Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed40.67%
Male Unemployed32.93%
Female Employed13.22%
Male Employed7.65%

Wilmington Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Wilmington Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$84,883$127,809
Households$58,908$91,678
Married Families$110,267$155,340
Non Families$42,882$57,886

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Wilmington Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

38.6%

Overall Marriage Rate

41.8%

Male Marriage Rate

35.9%

Female Marriage Rate

Wilmington Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Wilmington Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 45-54.

Wilmington Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Wilmington Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

5,970

Number of Veterans

5,169

Male Veterans

801

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Vietnam1,906
Second Gulf War1,489
First Gulf War1,116
Korea644
World War II87

Wilmington Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
75+1,704
35 to 541,231
65 to 741,226
55 to 641,118
18 to 34691

Wilmington Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
White4,9526.55%
Black7014.83%
Hispanic2154.31%
2+ Races1664.67%
Other Race1457.95%
Native American63.08%

Wilmington Veterans by Race

Wilmington Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

6.95%

Veteran Poverty Rate

28.02%

Veteran Disability Rate

Wilmington Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

64.2%

Labor Force Participation

60.7%

Employment Rate

4.9%

Unemployment Rate

Wilmington Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Wilmington Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Wilmington Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

49.93%

Born in Wilmington

94.98%

Native Born

5.02%

Foreign Born

2.73%

Non Citizen

2.29%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

94.98% of Wilmington residents were born in the United States, with 49.93% having been born in North Carolina. 2.73% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Wilmington Place of Birth

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change
Year
Population
Growth
Change
2029136,5542,3101.72%
2028134,2442,3091.75%
2027131,9352,3101.78%
2026129,6252,3091.81%
2025127,3162,3091.85%
2024125,0072,3091.88%
2023122,6981,5781.3%
2022121,1203,2832.79%
2021117,8372,0671.79%
2020115,770-7,752-6.28%
2019123,5227360.6%
2018122,7861,8691.55%
2017120,9172,0781.75%
2016118,8393,6763.19%
2015115,1631,7551.55%
2014113,4081,6551.48%
2013111,7532,0471.87%
2012109,7061,5351.42%
2011108,1711,4021.31%
2010106,76900%
200075,83820,30836.57%
199055,53011,53026.2%
198044,000-2,169-4.7%
197046,1692,1564.9%
196044,013-1,030-2.29%
195045,04311,63634.83%
194033,4071,1373.52%
193032,270-1,102-3.3%
192033,3727,62429.61%
191025,7484,77222.75%
190020,9769204.59%
189020,0562,70615.6%
188017,3503,90429.03%
187013,4463,89440.77%
18609,5522,28831.5%
18507,2641,92936.16%
18405,3351,54440.73%
18303,7911,15843.98%
18202,633-133,921-98.07%

Wilmington Population by Year