County profile
Gaston County, NC
United States · GDP 2024
#402 of 3,127 US counties by GDPtop-quartile growthmore diversified than 70% of counties
EA Place Score
——methodology in progress
GDP 2024 (USD)
$11.3B
BEA · 2024
GDP growth (YoY)
+6.8%
BEA · 2024
Jobs tracked
72,268
Census CBP · 2023
Employers
4,594
Census CBP · 2023
Avg. wage
$51.8k
BLS QCEW · 2023
Population
246,558
Census PEP · 2025
Labor, income & education
Unemployment
3.6%
Median HH income
$67.5k±$1.7k
Bachelor's degree+
26.5%±0.9%
Poverty rate
13.5%±1.1%
Business applications
3,606 · 2025
Retail establishments
631
26.0/10k pop
Public companies headquartered here
SEC EDGAR · FMPCompanySectorRevenueEA
1VirExit Technologies, Inc.Utilities———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
Manufacturing28%
Health care24%
Retail trade19%
Food & accommodation15%
Construction8%
Other services6%
share of top-6 sector employment · CBP 2023
Population & migration
Census PEP · 2020–2025
246,558
residents · 2025 · +7.8% since 2020
Income per capita $55.4k · BEA 2024
COMPONENTS OF CHANGE · 2021–2025
Domestic migration+14,262
International migration+4,003
Natural change−474
GDP trend
2019–2024 · nominal
$8.0B2019
$8.0B2020
$8.7B2021
$9.7B2022
$10.6B2023
$11.3B2024
Real estate & risk
FHFA · ACS · FEMA
Median home value
$266.0k±$5.6k
Median gross rent
$1.2k/mo±$22/mo
Vacancy rate
8.0%±0.7%
Affordability
5.1× wages
Residential permits
$876.8M
2,343 units · 9.5/1k pop
FEMA risk score
84.9
HUD Fair Market Rent (2BR):$1.7k/mo · 2026
TOP PERILS · FEMA NRI
Ice storm 98Strong wind 95Tornado 91
FHFA HOUSE PRICE INDEX · 2016–2025
4182016
4492017
4902018
5292019
5612020
6502021
7972022
8572023
9062024
9242025
RESIDENTIAL PERMITS · 2021–2025
↑ 7% since 20212,1842021
1,6392022
1,5782023
2,0692024
2,3432025
Transport access
BTS · FAA · USACE
Nearest interstate
1.2 km
I-85
Nearest freight rail
2.8 km
CER
Nearest port
251.3 km
BURKHART ENTERPRISES, KNOXVILLE DOCK
Nearest commercial airport
22.7 km
CHARLOTTE/DOUGLAS INTL
Filing activity
SEC EDGARWage trend
BLS QCEW · 2019–2023$51.8k
avg. annual pay · +22% since 2019
Similar US counties
nearest by GDPNearby & same-state counties
by GDP rankThe read
What is the GDP of Gaston?
Gaston's economy produced $11.3B in 2024, growing 6.8% year over year — faster than most US counties. Its largest employment sector is manufacturing.
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.