US Census Data

New Hanover County vs Onslow County

A side-by-side comparison of New Hanover County and Onslow County: population, income, housing, and more.

New Hanover County and Onslow County are counties in North Carolina. This page compares them across population, income, housing, education, commuting, and how each has changed since 2019.

New Hanover County has the higher population (231,214 vs 208,537 in Onslow County). New Hanover County has the higher median household income ($72,892 vs $64,568 in Onslow County). New Hanover County has the higher median home value ($353,700 vs $219,500 in Onslow County).

Population, income & housing

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
Population231,214208,537
Median age40.1 yrs27.1 yrs
Median household income$72,892$64,568
Median home value$353,700$219,500
Median gross rent$1,343$1,198
Housing units117,23685,917
Homeownership rate60.7%61.0%
Bachelor's degree or higher44.8%26.1%
Unemployment rate4.7%5.8%

Trends (ACS 5-year, 2019–2023)

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
Population227,938 → 231,214 (+1.4%)195,069 → 208,537 (+6.9%)
Median household income$54,891 → $72,892 (+32.8%)$50,278 → $64,568 (+28.4%)
Median home value$243,600 → $353,700 (+45.2%)$156,900 → $219,500 (+39.9%)
Median gross rent$1,031 → $1,343 (+30.3%)$997 → $1,198 (+20.2%)

New Hanover County

Population
227,938231,214
Median household income
$54,891$72,892
Median home value
$243,600$353,700
Median gross rent
$1,031$1,343

Onslow County

Population
195,069208,537
Median household income
$50,278$64,568
Median home value
$156,900$219,500
Median gross rent
$997$1,198

Age & race/ethnicity

Age distribution (share)

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
Under 54.7%8.0%
5 to 1713.6%16.3%
18 to 2412.1%21.4%
25 to 3413.1%17.4%
35 to 4412.6%11.4%
45 to 5412.3%7.7%
55 to 6413.0%8.1%
65 to 7411.3%6.0%
75 and over7.4%3.7%

Race & ethnicity (share)

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
White (non-Hispanic)75.1%64.8%
Black or African American11.1%11.9%
American Indian & Alaska Native0.2%0.6%
Asian1.4%1.8%
Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander0.0%0.1%
Some other race0.6%0.1%
Two or more races4.0%6.9%
Hispanic or Latino7.6%13.8%

Educational attainment (age 25+)

Share of adults 25+

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
No high school diploma6.4%6.8%
High school graduate18.0%29.8%
Some college or associate's30.8%37.3%
Bachelor's degree29.1%17.9%
Graduate or professional degree15.7%8.2%

Commute to work

How workers get to work (share)

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
Drove alone72.4%66.4%
Carpooled6.8%12.7%
Public transit0.2%0.1%
Walked1.4%7.5%
Bicycle0.5%0.1%
Worked from home17.8%10.9%
Other means0.8%2.3%

Housing

Units in structure (share)

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
1-unit, detached61.0%64.7%
1-unit, attached5.6%9.9%
2 to 4 units8.0%4.3%
5 to 19 units12.3%4.6%
20 or more units10.4%4.4%
Mobile home & other2.8%12.2%

Poverty & households

New Hanover CountyOnslow County
Poverty rate12.4%11.7%
Average household size2.202.57
Mean commute (minutes)2122
Median year structure built19921997

Full profiles

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