Cherokee County, North Carolina Population 2024

30,459

Cherokee County, North Carolina's estimated 2024 population is 30,459 with a growth rate of 1.67% in the past year according to the most recent United States census data. Cherokee County, North Carolina is the 71st largest county in North Carolina. The 2010 population was 27,435 and has seen a growth of 11.02% since that time.

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change
Year
Population
Growth
Change
202932,9595001.54%
202832,4595001.56%
202731,9595001.59%
202631,4595001.62%
202530,9595001.64%
202430,4595001.67%
202329,9595001.7%
202229,4592650.91%
202129,1943361.16%
202028,8581500.52%
201928,7082831%
201828,4254251.52%
201728,0001400.5%
201627,8607342.71%
201527,126330.12%
201427,093-46-0.17%
201327,139950.35%
201227,044-141-0.52%
201127,185-250-0.91%
201027,43500%
199020,1701,2376.53%
198018,9332,60315.94%
197016,330-5-0.03%
196016,335-1,959-10.71%
195018,294-519-2.76%
194018,8132,66216.48%
193016,1519095.96%
192015,2421,1067.82%
191014,1362,27619.19%
190011,8601,88418.89%
18909,9761,79421.93%
18808,1821021.26%
18708,080-1,086-11.85%
18609,1662,32834.05%
18506,8383,41199.53%
18403,427-29,532-89.6%
2024 Growth Rate
1.67% (500)
County Website
Cherokee County
2020 Population
28,858
Area
456 mi²
Density
67 people/mi²
Growth Since 2020
5.55% (1,601)
Founded
1839

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White26,50291.8%
Two or more races1,0483.63%
Native American4631.6%
Black or African American4201.45%
Other race2700.94%
Asian1500.52%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander150.05%

White

Two or more races

Native American

Black or African American

Other race

Asian

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Cherokee County, North Carolina Population by Race

Cherokee County, North Carolina Population Pyramid 2024

Cherokee County, North Carolina Median Age

52.9

Total

51.8

Male

53.9

Female

Cherokee County, North Carolina Adults

There are 24,222 adults, (8,870 of whom are seniors) in Cherokee County, North Carolina.

Cherokee County, North Carolina Age Dependency

88

Age Dependency Ratio

57.8

Old Age Dependency Ratio

30.3

Child Dependency Ratio

Cherokee County, North Carolina Sex Ratio

Female14,62250.65%
Male14,24649.35%

Cherokee County, North Carolina Population by Age

Cherokee County, North Carolina Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All12,7582.2381.318.7
Married6,5532.6989.310.7
Non Family4,7191.2574.325.7
Female1,2103.3868.131.9
Male2763.056733

2.73

Average Family Size

2.23

Average Household Size

81.3%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Cherokee County, North Carolina Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade1,3766.14%
Associates Degree2,83212.63%
Bachelors Degree3,51115.66%
Graduate Degree1,7877.97%
High School Graduate7,40133.01%
Less Than 9th Grade6082.71%
Some College4,90821.89%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Cherokee County, North Carolina Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Cherokee County, North Carolina Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
White20,52518,8785,027
Hispanic65647179
2+ Races65447861
Native American31327010
Black28825733
Other Race21117630
Asian12111873
Islander1500

The highest rate of high school graduation is among asian people with a rate of 97.52%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 60.33%.

Cherokee County, North Carolina Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$57,778$67,500$52,337
Graduate Degree$61,364$59,135$62,386
High School Graduate$32,512$34,266$27,470
Less Than 9th Grade$27,134$38,451$21,838
Overall$35,554$39,091$33,203
Some College$31,861$37,133$28,419

$35,554

Average Earnings

$39,091

Average Male

$33,203

Average Female

Cherokee County, North Carolina Earnings by Educational Attainment

Cherokee County, North Carolina Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Cherokee County, North Carolina Language

97.12% of Cherokee County, North Carolina residents speak only English, while 2.88% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 2.16% of the population.

Cherokee County, North Carolina Language

Cherokee County, North Carolina Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
White25,7434,10615.95%
Hispanic1,06631529.55%
Native45714331.29%
Other26512647.55%
Multiple1,04711010.51%
Black3379427.89%
Asian15021.33%

16.74%

Overall Poverty Rate

15.51%

Male Poverty Rate

17.93%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Cherokee County, North Carolina

The race most likely to be in poverty in Cherokee County, North Carolina is Other, with 47.55% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Cherokee County, North Carolina is Asian, with 1.33% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 4.57%. Among those working part-time, it was 19.47%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 21.29%.

Cherokee County, North Carolina Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade29.39%
High School20.95%
Some College11.66%
Bachelors or Greater6.43%

Cherokee County, North Carolina Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed55.49%
Male Unemployed38.73%
Male Employed10.92%
Female Employed7.96%

Cherokee County, North Carolina Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Cherokee County, North Carolina Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$60,917$75,190
Households$49,254$63,371
Married Families$67,406$-999,999,999
Non Families$32,255$41,030

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Cherokee County, North Carolina Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

55.7%

Overall Marriage Rate

57.5%

Male Marriage Rate

54.0%

Female Marriage Rate

Cherokee County, North Carolina Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Cherokee County, North Carolina Marriage

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

Cherokee County, North Carolina Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Cherokee County, North Carolina Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

3,090

Number of Veterans

2,833

Male Veterans

257

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Vietnam1,635
First Gulf War440
Second Gulf War419
Korea124
World War II9

Cherokee County, North Carolina Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
65 to 741,233
75+779
55 to 64527
35 to 54369
18 to 34182

Cherokee County, North Carolina Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
White2,87312.8%
2+ Races12117.46%
Hispanic10514.17%
Native American5415.93%
Black4212.57%

Cherokee County, North Carolina Veterans by Race

Cherokee County, North Carolina Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

9.72%

Veteran Poverty Rate

38.74%

Veteran Disability Rate

Cherokee County, North Carolina Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

48.4%

Labor Force Participation

45.9%

Employment Rate

4.9%

Unemployment Rate

Cherokee County, North Carolina Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Cherokee County, North Carolina Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Cherokee County, North Carolina 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

38.14%

Born in Cherokee County, North Carolina

97.96%

Native Born

2.04%

Foreign Born

0.9%

Non Citizen

1.13%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

97.96% of Cherokee County, North Carolina residents were born in the United States, with 38.14% having been born in North Carolina. 0.9% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Cherokee County, North Carolina Place of Birth

Sources