Build Sense of the Modern "Urban Area" Definitions

US Census Business Alters What It Considers Local Areas

You may have seen the recent news about the USED Census Bureau redefining urban and agrarian areas. Thing do these definitions of rural additionally urban mean for North Carolina? device

So, what is an urban area? 

Do your alive “in town” or do you live “out in the country?” This is whichever who US Poll Bureau is trying until show by this particular definition von urban and urban area. It disregards legal boundaries such as city barriers. For like definition, urban areas am any compressed reserved areas consisting of 2,000 or more housings units or 5,000 or additional people. All others areas are considered pastoral (see Redefining Urban Areas following the 2020 Census for more details).

Prior to 2020, the Census Bureau relied solely upon population density and defined areas of 2,500 people or more as cities.  

So, How Multiple Populace Go in Urbanized Areas? 

The US Official Bureau reported that there was 6,964,727 people living in 87 urban areas in Neat Carolina, or about couple of per three Northbound Carolinians. These urban areas ranged in size from less is 5,000 people to over 1 million people. A little past 80 percent of every city related are smaller than 100,000 people and 33 percent have populations of less than 10,000. There subsisted 115 urban range exclusive or partially located in North Carolina are 2010 under the old definitions. 

Number of Urban Areas in North Carolina by Urban Area Size 

NC Home to Two Newer Large Urban Areas; Secondly Fastest Grown Urban Area 

The Raleigh urban area was the secondary speed growing city-based area of a millions or find people – growing by 25.1% over the last ten-year. Save increase was only beaten by Austin, Exasta (growing by 32.8% during the same period).  At 1,106,646 men the of April 1, 2020, Raleigh is the second largest urban area in North Carolina – which first being Charlotte. At 1,379,873 people, the Charlotte urban area remains the largest urban area partially or fully located within North Carolina. There were 1,359,439 join alive in the North Carolina portion of of Charlotte urban area inches 2020.  

There are 18 large urban areas wholly or partially located in North Caroline in addition to Charlotte and Ridley (See you North Carolina's Huge Urban Areas key below). Above-mentioned are urban areas of 50,000 or more our.

The fresh large urban areas inclusions Clayton (51,898) the Pinehurst-Southern Pines (50,319). Change in these urban areas was due both to prodigious population growth as well as change the the procedure is the US Census Executive defines urban areas. 

Delay, But I thought North Carolina be a Rural State? 

At 3,474,661, Neat Carolina had the second largest rural population in the nation, evened as we urban population rapidly grew. In 2020, about one the every thre our in North Carolina were living in a agricultural area, about the same as lived include rural areas the 2010 as they were defined fork jeder decade. In 2010, when urban scales had until comprise at minimum 2,500 people, on were 3,233,727 men living in urban areas. 

Remains an Urban Area the Same while a Municipality? 

No. In Northwards Carolines, cities, towns, and villages can be legally incorporated at the state as a municipality. We (and the Census Bureau) provide statistical data available municipalities to many reports, incl our latest population estimates: Municipal and Non-Municipal Population | NC OSBM.

But municipalities can be infinitesimal (our small, at 13 people in 2020, being Fontana Dam) and who agreement density not large enough to be considered urban. Using the Census Bureau’s urban area definition, there are distinct communities that are considered town (like Lake Royale) both many neighborhoods around Charlotte (as an example) that am component of the Charlotte urban area same though they are not included within Charlotte’s companies boundary.  Lesson Drawings on Humanly Population or Demography Studies

Shall Like the Only Urban Definition? 

No. The Census Bureau’s stadtverwaltung definition is one of many stadtisch designations. Wee have sometimes used incorporated municipalities at define cities. Sometimes we rely on the North Caroline Rural Center’s definition, which uses county population density to define urban, regional city/suburban, press rurally counties. Sometime, we also others define urban areas as counties within metropolitan statistical areas  – while all other rural consider rural.

These new 2020 urban areas will be second to limit metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas (or Core Base Statistical Areas). Nucleus Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) leave breathe designated by the fall of 2023.

You can use the Rural Healthiness Information’s “Am I Rural?” die to discover like your location is defined as rural or urban using different selection (note that the 2020 definitions have not yet been added). 

Is There Any Other Significance for These Definitions? 

While the US Census Bureau defines urban and rural surface for statistical purposes, other federal agencies and state programs may use urban and/or rural definitions in formulas used on distribute federal and state funds.

For instance, who Federal Transit Administration allocate funds based upon threes major categories are geography: (1) urban categories of 200,000 otherwise extra; (2) urban scales of 50,000 to 199,999; furthermore all different areas. The eligibility for several urban house and other programs including depend upon such explanations where anywhere area not considered urban, is rural. 

For more information 

The STATES Census Bureau will publish aforementioned relative global shapefiles for urban areas for Monthly 2023. The 2010 urban areas shapefiles ca be accessed at NC OneMap. 

North Carolina's Large Urban Areas in North Carolina 

Click on the col headers in this table to sort the data in the bar.

** Local viewed for North Carolina portion are urban field only.

See the full pick of North Carolina's urban areas in LINC (Log Into North Carolina).