Robeson County, NC

County Profile

116,902 residents. Safety, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Robeson County, NC.

Several figures AreaProfile publishes are measured by county and nowhere finer — death rates by intent among them. On this page those describe the geography they are printed on, which is not true of the city and ZIP pages that inherit them.

38out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 1% of 1,453 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 13 sources
Opportunity1,458th of 1,463 counties measured10
Schools1,327th of 1,377 counties measured9
GrowthTop 48% of 1,453 counties measured52
Housing affordabilityTop 46% of 1,462 counties measured74
ClimateTop 29% of 1,463 counties measured74
Physical resilience1,255th of 1,463 counties measured28
Access1,196th of 1,463 counties measured62
Economic stability1,406th of 1,463 counties measured16
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable counties measured: unemployment is 5.4% and the Opportunity signal places Robeson County in the bottom 1%.

In the public schools here, 28% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 16.6 students for every teacher.

385 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 6% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
116,902
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$41,978
Bottom 6% nationally
Density
123/sq mi
947.3 sq mi of land
Median age
36.4
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Robeson County
North Carolina
Micro area
Nearest major airport
MYR
67 mi · Myrtle Beach Intl
Median home value
$94,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 5.4% — higher than in all but 13% of the 1,467 measured US counties.

Employment fell 2.9% over the past year, to 38,915 employed residents.

Median household income of $41,978 is lower than in 94% of measured US counties.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsfiling years 2022–2023$36,9051st percentileof 1,417filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftfiling years 2022–2023$43,0515th percentileof 1,417filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$1,3232024 ACS 5-Year$41,978Bottom 6%of 3,2212024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$7772024 ACS 5-Year$23,672Bottom 6%of 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Per-capita personal income2023$43,897Bottom 5%of 1,3892023
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year26.7%Bottom 6%of 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year27.2 minBottom 40%of 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year14.7%Bottom 11%of 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year85.3%94th percentileof 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202638,915Top 46%of 1,467July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026−5.2%Bottom 6%of 1,467July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−2.9%Bottom 10%of 1,467July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202641,14554th percentileof 1,467July 2026
Labor force participation ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year66.2%Bottom 15%of 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.2%2024 ACS 5-Year0.3%62nd percentileof 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−0.8%Top 16%of 1,467July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20265.4%Bottom 13%of 1,467July 2026
Worked from home ±0.7%2024 ACS 5-Year4.2%11th percentileof 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/078.14.4
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 5.4% in July 2026. It has been rising, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202442k37k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $41,978 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

28% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 30% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 16.6 students for every full-time teacher across 39 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
40
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
16.6
across 39 of them
Math proficiency
27.6%
Bottom 8% in North Carolina
Reading proficiency
29.6%
Bottom 2% in North Carolina
The 12 largest of 40 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Lumberton Senior HighPublic Schools of Robeson County1,89416.529%31%
Purnell Swett HighPublic Schools of Robeson County1,58318.429%29%
Saint Pauls HighPublic Schools of Robeson County1,14218.125%25%
Red Springs HighPublic Schools of Robeson County86718.137%42%
Fairmont HighPublic Schools of Robeson County78013.422%22%
Magnolia ElementaryPublic Schools of Robeson County77916.629%26%
Prospect ElementaryPublic Schools of Robeson County77514.927%32%
Saint Pauls ElementaryPublic Schools of Robeson County71016.918%22%
Pembroke ElementaryPublic Schools of Robeson County70316.026%26%
Saint Pauls MiddlePublic Schools of Robeson County67818.325%24%
Lumberton JuniorPublic Schools of Robeson County65517.25%18%
Pembroke MiddlePublic Schools of Robeson County64517.419%23%

98.3% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against North Carolina’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of North Carolina is up 57% over five years, and up 3.4% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $820 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.87% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $925, some 15% above the $805 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $925 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $37,000 a year, about 88% of the median household income here of $41,978.

The typical renter household here spends 29% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $805 a month.

A median home at $94,500 costs 1.8 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $52,397, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
29.2%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
1.8×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$925
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$805
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$94,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Robeson County’s median household income of $41,978, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of North Carolina’s figure2026 Q2+3.4%43rd percentileof 1,4312026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of North Carolina’s figure2026 Q2+57.2%90th percentileof 1,4312026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of North Carolina’s figure2026 Q2+113.0%81st percentileof 1,4312026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.12024 ACS 5-Year1.8Top 14%of 3,2172024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year65.8%17th percentileof 3,2212024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±712024 ACS 5-Year49,11182nd percentileof 3,2212024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$748Top 14%of 1,423FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,187Top 10%of 1,423FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$925Top 10%of 1,423FY2026
Median gross rent ±$222024 ACS 5-Year$805Top 36%of 3,2152024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$2,4452024 ACS 5-Year$94,5005th percentileof 3,2192024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$272024 ACS 5-Year$82016th percentileof 3,1722024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$2,4592024 ACS 5-Year$52,397Bottom 7%of 3,2182024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.04%2024 ACS 5-Year0.87%55th percentileof 3,1262024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year29.2%Bottom 35%of 3,2162024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±592024 ACS 5-Year17933rd percentileof 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.4%7th percentileof 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year11.8%68th percentileof 3,2212024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3322024 ACS 5-Year5,97783rd percentileof 3,2222024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

52/ 100
Top 48% of 1,453 published county profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running from 2022 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 2% since 2020, reaching 118,624 in 2024.

Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 399 units authorized in 2025, up 18% on the prior year.

Population is still rising but the pace is easing: 118,624 residents in 2024, up 0.8% over the year, a smaller gain than the year before.

Federal tax returns show Robeson County gained about 0.5% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $36,905, below the $43,051 of households that moved out.

At 3.3 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US counties.

Units permitted
385
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
3.3
Top 44% nationally
Year over year
+6%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
27.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

20202021202220232024119k116k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been rising for the last 3 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
+0.5%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
35%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$36,905
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$43,051
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Cumberland County, NC 950 people · 22% of arrivals
  2. Hoke County, NC 335 people · 7.9% of arrivals
  3. Scotland County, NC 252 people · 6.0% of arrivals
  4. Bladen County, NC 236 people · 5.6% of arrivals
  5. Columbus County, NC 127 people · 3.0% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Cumberland County, NC 904 people · 24% of departures
  2. Hoke County, NC 282 people · 7.4% of departures
  3. Scotland County, NC 246 people · 6.5% of departures
  4. Bladen County, NC 204 people · 5.4% of departures
  5. Wake County, NC 108 people · 2.8% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

2022202320242025399233
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was higher than 2022 (+71%).

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 91°F and January a low of 35°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 42.6 inches.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station LUMBERTON MUNI AP, 3.2 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.9"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals42.6"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals35°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals91°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals37°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

28 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are hurricane, inland flooding and tornado, with hurricane alone responsible for 31% of it. Inland flooding and tornado are independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large those hazards are.

Strong windHigh
HurricaneElevated
EarthquakeModerate
LightningModerate
Ice stormModerate
WildfireModerate
Cold waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: tornado, winter weather, heat wave, inland flooding, hail, drought, landslide, coastal flooding, avalanche, tsunami, volcanic activity.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). These are FEMA’s own figures for this county rather than a value derived from surrounding geographies. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

These are deaths, not offenses — they say nothing about burglary, theft or assault.

Robeson County records 29.8 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, higher than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 34.9 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 57.9 per 100,000 residents in Robeson County.

Homicide
29.8
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
34.9
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
57.9
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
9.4
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe Robeson County as a whole. They are shown and not scored. How to read death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Myrtle Beach Intl at 67 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year77.6%Bottom 8%of 3,2212024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle67 miBottom 16%of 1,463NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle4Top 43%of 1,463NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year19.2%Bottom 8%of 3,2212024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Myrtle Beach IntlMYR67 mi9,503 ft
Wilmington IntlILM73 mi8,016 ft
Raleigh-Durham IntlRDU87 mi10,000 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
38
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
IncomeU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

Cities in Robeson County, NC

ZIP areas

Only ZIP areas whose income or home value differ from their city’s by at least ten percent get a profile of their own, so this is a selection rather than every ZIP code in the county.