County profile
Carteret County, NC
United States · GDP 2024
#856 of 3,127 US counties by GDPtop-quartile growthmore diversified than 58% of counties
EA Place Score
——methodology in progress
GDP 2024 (USD)
$3.7B
BEA · 2024
GDP growth (YoY)
+7.1%
BEA · 2024
Jobs tracked
21,789
Census CBP · 2023
Employers
2,249
Census CBP · 2023
Avg. wage
$44.0k
BLS QCEW · 2023
Population
70,469
Census PEP · 2025
Labor, income & education
Unemployment
3.2%
Median HH income
$72.3k±$2.8k
Bachelor's degree+
34.5%±1.4%
Poverty rate
10.1%±1.1%
Business applications
889 · 2025
Retail establishments
373
53.1/10k pop
Public companies headquartered here
SEC EDGAR · FMPCompanySectorRevenueEA
1Indocan Resources Inc.Healthcare———HQ-based placement with total (global) headcount — local employment attribution needs firmographic data; the industry mix at right is measured county data (CBP).
Industry mix · employment
Retail trade28%
Food & accommodation27%
Health care22%
Construction11%
Other services7%
Manufacturing6%
share of top-6 sector employment · CBP 2023
Population & migration
Census PEP · 2020–2025
70,469
residents · 2025 · +4.1% since 2020
Income per capita $74.2k · BEA 2024
COMPONENTS OF CHANGE · 2021–2025
Domestic migration+5,090
International migration+300
Natural change−2,602
GDP trend
2019–2024 · nominal
$2.7B2019
$2.5B2020
$2.8B2021
$3.1B2022
$3.5B2023
$3.7B2024
Real estate & risk
FHFA · ACS · FEMA
Median home value
$333.3k±$9.3k
Median gross rent
$1.1k/mo±$48/mo
Vacancy rate
38.7%±1.1%
Affordability
7.6× wages
Residential permits
$246.6M
471 units · 6.7/1k pop
FEMA risk score
93.5
HUD Fair Market Rent (2BR):$1.2k/mo · 2026
TOP PERILS · FEMA NRI
Hurricane 99Winter weather 95Wildfire 89
FHFA HOUSE PRICE INDEX · 2016–2025
2962016
3042017
3202018
3452019
3642020
4102021
4982022
5582023
5642024
6182025
RESIDENTIAL PERMITS · 2021–2025
↓ -31% since 20216842021
6812022
5242023
9352024
4712025
Transport access
BTS · FAA · USACE
Nearest interstate
112.6 km
I-587
Nearest freight rail
11.7 km
CLNA
Nearest port
12.2 km
North Carolina State Ports Authority, Morehead City Barge Terminal North.
Nearest commercial airport
44.7 km
COASTAL CAROLINA RGNL
Waterborne tonnage, host port(s) (CY2023):2,157,999 short tons/yr · Morehead City, NC
Wage trend
BLS QCEW · 2019–2023$44.0k
avg. annual pay · +21% since 2019
Similar US counties
nearest by GDPNearby & same-state counties
by GDP rankThe read
What is the GDP of Carteret?
Carteret's economy produced $3.7B in 2024, growing 7.1% year over year — faster than most US counties. Its largest employment sector is retail trade.
GDP: BEA (2024), USD-normalized · Jobs/employers/wages & industry mix: Census CBP (2023) · Population & migration: Census PEP · Income: BEA CAINC1 · Companies: SEC EDGAR + FMP, by HQ.