Cary, NC

Census Place

Add Comparison
2024 Population
179,306
US Senator
Thom Tillis
Republican Party
US Senator
Ted Budd
Republican Party
2024 Median Age
40.2
1.01% 1-year increase
2024 Poverty Rate
5.66%
7.16% 1-year increase
2024 Median Household Income
$134,905
4.26% 1-year growth
2024 Median Property Value
$580,200
10.5% 1-year growth
2024 Employed Population
95,385
1.98% 1-year growth

About

None of the households in Cary, NC reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

89% of the residents in Cary, NC are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Cary, NC are Shepherds Theological Seminary (39 degrees awarded in 2023) and Mitchells Academy (21 degrees).

In 2024, the median property value in Cary, NC was $580,200, and the homeownership rate was 66.6%.

Most people in Cary, NC drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 22.5 minutes. The average car ownership in Cary, NC was 2 cars per household.

United StatesNorth CarolinaChatham County, NCWake County, NCDurham-Chapel Hill, NCRaleigh, NCWake County (Northwest)--Raleigh City (Northwest) & Morrisville Town PUMA, NCWake County (West Central)--Cary Town PUMA, NCWake County (Southwest)--Apex & Holly Springs Towns PUMA, NCDurham County (South)--Durham City (South) PUMA, NCChatham & Lee Counties PUMA, NC

Population & Diversity

Cary, NC is home to a population of 179k people, from which 89% are citizens. As of 2024, 23.8% of Cary, NC residents were born outside of the country (42.6k people).

In 2024, there were 2.79 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (102k people) in Cary, NC than any other race or ethnicity. There were 36.4k Asian (Non-Hispanic) and 13.6k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

89%
2024 Citizenship
88.7%
2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 89% of Cary, NC residents were US citizens, which is lower than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Cary, NC was 88.7%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been increasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Cary, NC compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

View Data
Save Image

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Cary, NC
  1. White (Non-Hispanic)
    102k ± 2.5k
  2. Asian (Non-Hispanic)
    36.4k ± 1.74k
  3. Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
    13.6k ± 1.44k
9.55%
Hispanic Population
17.1k people

In 2024, there were 2.79 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (102k people) in Cary, NC than any other race or ethnicity. There were 36.4k Asian (Non-Hispanic) and 13.6k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

9.55% of the people in Cary, NC are hispanic (17.1k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Cary, NC as a share of the total population.

View Data
Save Image

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the Place level, so we are showing data for North Carolina.
Most Common Origin
  1. Mexico
    224,963 ± 11,520 people
  2. India
    83,219 ± 7,055 people
  3. Honduras
    48,247 ± 5,380 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of North Carolina was Mexico, the natal country of 224,963 North Carolina residents, followed by India with 83,219 and Honduras with 48,247.

View Data
Save Image

Foreign-Born Population

23.8%
2024 Foreign-Born Population
42.6k people
23.6%
2023 Foreign-Born Population
41.8k people

As of 2024, 23.8% of Cary, NC residents (42.6k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Cary, NC was 23.6%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Cary, NC compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

View Data
Save Image

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period
  1. Vietnam
    1,912 ± 357
  2. Gulf War (2001-)
    1,621 ± 285
  3. Gulf War (1990s)
    1,299 ± 349

Cary, NC has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 1.18 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Cary, NC.

View Data
Save Image

Economy

The economy of Cary, NC employs 95.4k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Cary, NC were Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services (24,137 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (11,230 people), and Manufacturing (9,845 people), and the highest paying industries were Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($170,125), Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services ($126,212), and Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($118,646).

Employment

Occupations

95.4k
2024 Value
± 2,858
1.98%
1 Year growth
± 4.08%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Cary, NC grew at a rate of 1.98%, from 93.5k employees to 95.4k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Cary, NC, are Management Occupations (16,044 people), Computer & Mathematical Occupations (14,199 people), and Business & Financial Operations Occupations (9,356 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Cary, NC.

View Data
Save Image

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for North Carolina.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in North Carolina (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

View Data
Save Image

Industries

Employment by Industries

95.4k
2024 Value
± 2,858
1.98%
1 Year growth
± 4.08%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Cary, NC grew at a rate of 1.98%, from 93.5k employees to 95.4k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Cary, NC, are Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services (24,137 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (11,230 people), and Manufacturing (9,845 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Cary, NC, though some of these residents may live in Cary, NC and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

View Data
Save Image

Median Earnings by Industry

$102,296
Median earning men ± $4,115
$60,907
Median earning women ± $2,191

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($135,769), Information ($134,345), and Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($130,118).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($93,726), Manufacturing ($86,326), and Public Administration ($80,217).

View Data
Save Image

Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for North Carolina.
Y-Axis
3.04%
Year-over-year growth
Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 4.86M people employed in North Carolina. This represents a 3.04% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 10.9%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in North Carolina.

View Data
Save Image

Education

In 2023, universities in Cary, NC awarded 60 degrees. The student population of Cary, NC in 2023 is skewed towards men, with 165 male students and 60 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Cary, NC are White (53 and 88.3%), Black or African American (3 and 5%), Hispanic or Latino (2 and 3.33%), and Asian (2 and 3.33%).

The largest universities in Cary, NC by number of degrees awarded are Shepherds Theological Seminary (39 and 65%) and Mitchells Academy (21 and 35%).

The most popular majors in Cary, NC are Theological Studies (34 and 56.7%), General Cosmetology (21 and 35%), and Divinity & Ministry (5 and 8.33%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2023 there were 225 students enrolled in Cary, NC, 73.3% men and 26.7% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 182 records, of which 25.3% were women and 74.7% men.

View Data
Save Image

Completions

Concentrations

Theological Studies
Most Common
34 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Masters Degree recipients in Cary, NC was Theological Studies with 34 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Masters Degree from schools in Cary, NC according to their major.

View Data
Save Image

Universities

Gender
Race
Largest Universities by degrees awarded
  1. Shepherds Theological Seminary
    39 degrees awarded
  2. Mitchells Academy
    21 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Shepherds Theological Seminary with 39 degrees awarded.

View Data
Save Image

Student Diversity

In 2023, 30 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Cary, NC, which is 1 times more than the 30 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 53 degrees mean that there were 17.7 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 3 degrees awarded.

View Data
Save Image

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Housing & Living

The median property value in Cary, NC was $580,200 in 2024, which is 1.74 times larger than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $525,200 to $580,200, a 10.5% increase. The homeownership rate in Cary, NC is 66.6%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Cary, NC have an average commute time of 22.5 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Cary, NC is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$580,200
Median Property Value 2024
±$11,119
$46,439
Median Property Taxes
±$1,529

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Cary, NC the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Cary, NC compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Rent vs Own

66.6%
Homeownership
2024
65.8%
Homeowners with Mortgage
2024

In 2024, 66.6% of the housing units in Cary, NC were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 66.3%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Cary, NC compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

View Data
Save Image

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.
$134,905
Median Household Income
± $3,712
69.7k
Number of Households
± 2,192

In 2024, the median household income of the 69.7k households in Cary, NC grew to $134,905 from the previous year's value of $129,399.

The following chart displays the households in Cary, NC distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the $200k+ range.

View Data
Save Image

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Cary, NC is from North Carolina.
0.467
2023 Wage GINI in North Carolina
0.47
2022 Wage GINI in North Carolina

In 2023, the income inequality in North Carolina was 0.467 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.639% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for North Carolina was lower than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in North Carolina in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in North Carolina across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

View Data
Save Image

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024
  1. Drove Alone (56.3%)
  2. Worked At Home (36.5%)
  3. Carpooled (4.5%)

In 2024, 56.3% of workers in Cary, NC drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (36.5%) and those who carpooled to work (4.5%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

View Data
Save Image

Commute Time

22.5 minutes
Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Cary, NC have a shorter commute time (22.5 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 1.55% of the workforce in Cary, NC have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Cary, NC compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Car Ownership

2 cars
Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Cary, NC distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Cary, NC have 2 cars.

View Data
Save Image

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

5.66% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Cary, NC (10.1k out of 179k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 35 - 44, followed by Females 18 - 24 and then Females 65 - 74.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Cary, NC is White, followed by Hispanic and Black.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

View Data
Save Image

Health

95.1% of the population of Cary, NC has health coverage, with 67.5% on employee plans, 5.15% on Medicaid, 10.4% on Medicare, 11.4% on non-group plans, and 0.709% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in North Carolina see 1,413 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (1,413 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1634 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 299 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.4% were men and 50.6% were women.

Coverage

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 24.6% under 18 years, 18% between 18 and 34 years, 43.3% between 35 and 64 years, and 14.1% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.4% were men and 50.6% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

View Data
Save Image

Uninsured People

4.93%
Uninsured
67.5%
Employer Coverage
5.15%
Medicaid
10.4%
Medicare
11.4%
Non-Group
0.709%
Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Cary, NC declined by 8.82% from 5.4% to 4.93%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Cary, NC changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

View Data
Save Image