These Are The 10 Most Successful Cities In North Carolina

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What is success? Is it the amount of money you have in your bank account, at any given point? Is it that feeling you get after delivering a killer presentation, or even a pretty decent bar joke?

Or is it something biggerâsomething wholly unnamable, undefinable, immeasurable, and totally subjective?

Probably so.

But here at Zippia, we like things that we can neatly measure and then expound upon. So yes, with the Power of Math, we have determined the unarguable, totally objective 10 most successful cities in North Carolina. And here they are:

If you are trying to argue already with our unarguable list, keep reading. Thereâs a method to this madness.

For more NC reading, check out:

How We Determined The Most Successful Cities In North Carolina

The first thing that comes to most capitalist minds in terms of success isâmoney. After all, rich people must be successful, right?

Meh. Maybe. But we think thereâs a bit more that goes into it than that. So we looked at this set of criteria from the 2010-2014 American Community Survey:

1. Oak Ridge

Source: Flickr

Population: 6,435Median Income: $101,667
Poverty Level: 1.9%
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%

2. Summerfield

Population: 10,477Median Income: $102,713
Poverty Level: 2.6%
Unemployment Rate: 6.3%

3. Holly Springs

Population: 27,339Median Income: $91,755
Poverty Level: 2.9%
Unemployment Rate: 5.4%

4. Pinehurst

Population: 15,052Median Income: $75,284
Poverty Level: 3.2%
Unemployment Rate: 3.8%

5. Morrisville

Population: 20,728Median Income: $84,301
Poverty Level: 3.9%
Unemployment Rate: 5.0%

6. Apex

Population: 40,631Median Income: $89,392
Poverty Level: 3.0%
Unemployment Rate: 6.4%

7. Marvin

Population: 5,806Median Income: $158,246
Poverty Level: 4.3%
Unemployment Rate: 6.5%

8. Cary

Population: 146,041Median Income: $91,481
Poverty Level: 6.4%
Unemployment Rate: 5.1%

9. Weddington

Population: 9,906Median Income: $129,695
Poverty Level: 2.8%
Unemployment Rate: 7.2%

10. Knightdale

Population: 12,692Median Income: $72,591
Poverty Level: 6.1%
Unemployment Rate: 4.5%

Measuring Success

If youâre still looking at this post thinking, âSurely, such superficial methods canât possibly measure a city, or rather, the individuals that make up that cityâs success!â well, youâre probably right.

But we like to measure things, and when it comes to success, we feel pretty successful in our approach. Congrats to Oak Ridge and our winners. And for those who didnât make the cut, well, better luck next year.

Detailed List Of The Most Successful Cities In North Carolina

Rank	City	Median Income	Poverty Rate	Unemployment Rate
1	Oak Ridge	$101,667	1.9%	2.8%
2	Summerfield	$102,713	2.6%	6.3%
3	Holly Springs	$91,755	2.9%	5.4%
4	Pinehurst	$75,284	3.2%	3.8%
5	Morrisville	$84,301	3.9%	5.0%
6	Apex	$89,392	3.0%	6.4%
7	Marvin	$158,246	4.3%	6.5%
8	Cary	$91,481	6.4%	5.1%
9	Weddington	$129,695	2.8%	7.2%
10	Knightdale	$72,591	6.1%	4.5%
11	Harrisburg	$82,135	6.5%	5.6%
12	Huntersville	$85,258	5.7%	6.6%
13	Davidson	$94,551	6.6%	6.9%
14	Unionville	$63,455	4.2%	5.9%
15	Wake Forest	$77,173	6.5%	6.5%
16	Clemmons	$66,680	7.8%	4.6%
17	Wesley Chapel	$91,463	3.6%	8.5%
18	Stallings	$77,374	7.5%	6.9%
19	Gibsonville	$56,961	7.6%	3.9%
20	Matthews	$71,361	5.7%	7.5%
21	Cornelius	$81,059	7.7%	7.0%
22	Mills River	$57,326	7.5%	5.3%
23	Mint Hill	$70,530	9.2%	6.5%
24	Stokesdale	$76,691	9.2%	8.2%
25	Indian Trail	$67,338	4.5%	9.0%
26	King	$55,325	6.5%	7.5%
27	Lewisville	$73,403	7.1%	9.0%
28	Kill Devil Hills	$54,861	10.0%	5.8%
29	Waxhaw	$74,650	5.8%	10.7%
30	Fletcher	$47,451	9.5%	5.9%
31	Clayton	$56,941	8.6%	8.3%
32	Wendell	$45,220	10.7%	5.1%
33	Carrboro	$51,310	15.6%	4.8%
34	Kernersville	$49,066	12.1%	6.4%
35	Leland	$61,823	11.5%	8.5%
36	Trinity	$47,878	14.6%	4.9%
37	Archdale	$51,418	9.3%	8.3%
38	Fuquay-Varina	$59,592	9.2%	9.7%
39	Mebane	$51,751	12.6%	7.2%
40	Garner	$58,107	10.7%	9.1%
41	Winterville	$58,801	10.0%	9.7%
42	Mooresville	$61,458	8.8%	11.9%
43	Raleigh	$54,581	15.4%	8.3%
44	Belmont	$51,167	12.1%	9.3%
45	Carolina Beach	$57,592	13.9%	9.8%
46	Hillsborough	$46,082	14.6%	7.8%
47	Hope Mills	$47,332	11.6%	9.8%
48	Mount Holly	$48,290	11.7%	10.8%
49	Concord	$52,901	12.5%	11.7%
50	Durham	$49,585	18.8%	8.3%
51	Oak Island	$47,761	10.2%	11.9%
52	Butner	$47,067	17.1%	8.7%
53	Charlotte	$53,274	15.8%	10.8%
54	Aberdeen	$38,721	15.9%	7.0%
55	Chapel Hill	$62,620	28.5%	7.0%
56	Black Mountain	$40,185	16.3%	7.4%
57	Hickory	$42,393	17.4%	7.7%
58	Asheville	$44,077	18.9%	7.9%
59	Boiling Spring Lakes	$46,000	11.9%	11.8%
60	Brevard	$38,686	13.9%	9.1%
61	Waynesville	$35,708	18.2%	6.9%
62	Havelock	$44,258	13.6%	11.6%
63	Southern Pines	$46,385	15.9%	11.3%
64	Nashville	$48,375	14.7%	12.9%
65	Conover	$42,974	16.3%	10.3%
66	Jacksonville	$41,293	11.5%	13.0%
67	Cherryville	$40,980	10.9%	13.7%
68	Greensboro	$41,518	19.1%	10.0%
69	Burlington	$37,316	18.2%	10.6%
70	Monroe	$43,328	18.4%	12.3%
71	Elon	$42,545	28.6%	8.1%
72	Fayetteville	$44,514	16.3%	13.8%
73	High Point	$43,015	19.2%	12.6%
74	Kannapolis	$41,453	17.5%	13.2%
75	Morehead City	$38,508	23.6%	9.1%
76	Mocksville	$37,484	22.0%	10.2%
77	Sanford	$44,391	19.9%	12.9%
78	Pineville	$32,492	18.0%	10.3%
79	Winston-Salem	$40,480	22.3%	11.4%
80	Woodfin	$35,186	22.7%	9.4%
81	Reidsville	$36,900	21.3%	11.2%
82	Tarboro	$34,267	12.6%	13.8%
83	Wilmington	$42,130	24.9%	11.3%
84	New Bern	$41,238	18.7%	15.2%
85	Sawmills	$38,280	24.7%	10.6%
86	Roanoke Rapids	$36,477	23.6%	10.7%
87	Gastonia	$39,578	20.4%	13.6%
88	Kings Mountain	$36,830	19.3%	15.5%
89	Wilson	$38,030	23.2%	13.7%
90	Lumberton	$31,899	29.6%	8.8%
91	Spring Lake	$37,154	19.9%	16.1%
92	Morganton	$35,144	25.3%	11.7%
93	Oxford	$36,362	22.3%	15.0%
94	Graham	$32,713	25.4%	11.1%
95	Mount Airy	$31,134	22.0%	12.4%
96	Bessemer City	$33,583	18.0%	17.4%
97	Thomasville	$35,127	21.8%	15.6%
98	Smithfield	$32,403	23.1%	13.0%
99	Asheboro	$31,652	23.4%	12.7%
100	Hendersonville	$36,000	30.2%	12.3%

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Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

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