The Town Files

Orange County, North Carolina

149,678 people. The median home is worth $459,500 (typical North Carolina town: $228,900) and the median household earns $90,089.

Towns in Orange County

Towns in Orange County

TownPeopleMedian homeIncomeMedian age
Chapel Hill61,960$613,700$85,98925.8
Carrboro21,295$539,400$85,74333.4
Hillsborough9,660$460,100$98,16342.5

People and housing

Orange CountyTypical North Carolina town
Median home value$459,500$228,900
Median rent$1,496$969
Median household income$90,089$60,458
Median age36.141.1
Bachelor's degree or higher61.8%24.5%
Below the poverty line12.5%14.3%

Jobs and pay

78,431 jobs in 2024, average pay $79,229 a year.

Largest industries in Orange CountyRetail6,513 jobs · $40,644Hotels & restaurants6,239 jobs · $26,853Health care & social assistan…6,000 jobs · $65,470Professional & technical serv…4,964 jobs · $124,810Other services2,242 jobs · $54,234Construction2,065 jobs · $71,477
BLS QCEW 2024.
Unemployment rate in Orange County0%2%4%6%8%2000200420082012201620202023 2.9%
BLS LAUS via USDA ERS, annual averages.

Storms since 1996

NOAA recorded 525 storm events in Orange County from 1996 to 2026, with 5 deaths.

Storm events in Orange County by type since 1996Hail56Flood4Tornado8High Wind4Lightning10Flash Flood76Strong Wind15Winter Storm34Excessive Heat7Winter Weather38
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

Federal disaster declarations

Orange County has been included in 26 FEMA declarations since 1953.

DeclaredIncidentDeclaration
January 24, 2026Winter StormEM-3637: Severe Winter Storm
September 11, 2025Tropical DepressionDR-4889: Tropical Depression Chantal
September 26, 2024Tropical StormEM-3617: Hurricane Helene
August 6, 2024Tropical StormEM-3608: Tropical Storm Debby
October 1, 2022HurricaneEM-3586: Hurricane Ian
August 2, 2020HurricaneEM-3534: Hurricane Isaias
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024; BLS QCEW and LAUS; NOAA Storm Events; FEMA OpenFEMA (not endorsed by FEMA).