Local government spending in North Carolina
The 50 largest counties, cities and townships in North Carolina with fully reported figures, out of 385 in this data. Schools, hospitals and utilities are often run by separate districts, so a total here is not comparable between places. Compare one service at a time. A zero means this government reported no spending on that service; another government may provide it.
Largest governments
| Government | Residents | FY2022 spending | Police per resident | Fire per resident | Roads per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wake County | 1,132,271 | $3.6 billion | $65 | $23 | $0 |
| Mecklenburg County | 1,128,945 | $4.2 billion | $106 | $9 | $0 |
| Charlotte | 900,350 | $2.9 billion | $367 | $179 | $145 |
| Guilford County | 540,521 | $1.4 billion | $101 | $6 | $0 |
| Raleigh | 474,414 | $1.1 billion | $252 | $162 | $138 |
| Forsyth County | 383,843 | $1.2 billion | $100 | $39 | $0 |
| Cumberland County | 336,364 | $1.1 billion | $140 | $33 | $0 |
| Greensboro | 297,878 | $723.1 million | $297 | $220 | $139 |
| Durham | 285,897 | $580.6 million | $275 | $163 | $160 |
| Buncombe County | 263,477 | $888.6 million | $205 | $156 | $0 |
| Winston-salem | 248,112 | $393.2 million | $325 | $161 | $103 |
| Union County | 244,562 | $904.8 million | $283 | $5 | $0 |
| New Hanover County | 236,613 | $846.0 million | $235 | $70 | $0 |
| Gaston County | 226,568 | $677.9 million | $267 | $28 | $0 |
| Cabarrus County | 221,479 | $675.3 million | $85 | $14 | $0 |
| Johnston County | 216,246 | $1.1 billion | $147 | $5 | $0 |
| Onslow County | 203,943 | $672.5 million | $130 | $15 | $0 |
| Iredell County | 185,770 | $542.8 million | $221 | $78 | $0 |
| Pitt County | 182,924 | $565.1 million | $129 | $21 | $0 |
| Cary Town | 173,587 | $306.0 million | $172 | $180 | $134 |
| Alamance County | 171,346 | $531.2 million | $143 | $0 | $0 |
| Davidson County | 169,234 | $451.1 million | $126 | $73 | $2 |
| Catawba County | 160,307 | $870.8 million | $117 | $59 | $0 |
| Orange County | 149,077 | $505.5 million | $201 | $52 | $0 |
| Brunswick County | 149,039 | $465.9 million | $263 | $0 | $0 |
| Randolph County | 144,557 | $404.4 million | $153 | $84 | $0 |
| Rowan County | 142,495 | $414.7 million | $165 | $0 | $0 |
| Robeson County | 129,999 | $453.6 million | $134 | $2 | $0 |
| Wilmington | 124,794 | $193.2 million | $301 | $160 | $96 |
| Wayne County | 123,967 | $360.3 million | $150 | $47 | $0 |
| Henderson County | 118,445 | $684.4 million | $192 | $109 | $0 |
| High Point | 113,565 | $369.3 million | $296 | $229 | $108 |
| Moore County | 103,352 | $329.4 million | $111 | $0 | $0 |
| Nash County | 94,859 | $312.2 million | $136 | $47 | $0 |
| Greenville | 94,779 | $350.7 million | $314 | $181 | $137 |
| Asheville | 92,852 | $249.1 million | $317 | $409 | $166 |
| Rockingham County | 91,285 | $244.4 million | $220 | $56 | $0 |
| Burke County | 90,418 | $245.6 million | $222 | $52 | $0 |
| Lincoln County | 88,097 | $292.0 million | $250 | $147 | $0 |
| Caldwell County | 82,100 | $260.8 million | $281 | $69 | $0 |
| Wilson County | 81,979 | $258.9 million | $159 | $34 | $0 |
| Jacksonville | 76,284 | $82.7 million | $228 | $113 | $63 |
| Chatham County | 75,748 | $237.5 million | $409 | $161 | $0 |
| Carteret County | 69,558 | $401.3 million | $165 | $0 | $0 |
| Wilkes County | 68,043 | $214.5 million | $139 | $68 | $0 |
| Rutherford County | 67,076 | $216.8 million | $152 | $62 | $0 |
| Apex Town | 64,388 | $114.8 million | $221 | $220 | $173 |
| Chapel Hill Town | 63,705 | $124.2 million | $216 | $169 | $121 |
| Stanly County | 63,239 | $186.4 million | $197 | $9 | $0 |
| Haywood County | 62,972 | $308.5 million | $189 | $85 | $0 |
How to read this
Per-resident figures are our calculation: spending divided by the population Census lists.
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Source and coverage
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments, individual unit file (revision 07/15/2026). Our per-resident figures are our own calculation; the Census Bureau has not reviewed or sanctioned them. Census has not reviewed unit data as a time series, and the data may contain non-sampling error.
Census unit file. Covers counties, cities and townships for fiscal year 2022 only, not a trend. Governments where Census estimated part of the spending are left out, so a missing place is not a zero: about 14,200 of 38,400 are absent for that reason. Pushbuild is not affiliated with any government listed.