Contents
Report Parameters
Economy Overview
Unemployment by Demographics
Historic & Projected Trends
Popula on Characteris cs
Inbound and Outbound Migra on Industry Characteris cs
Business Characteris cs
Workforce Characteris cs
Educa onal Pipeline
In-Demand Skills
37193Wilkes County, NC
QCEW Employees, Non-QCEW Employees, and Self-Employed
The informa on in this report pertains to the chosen geographical area.
65,78422,150$50.4K
Popula on (2024)Total Regional EmploymentMedian Household Income (2023)
Popula on decreased by 2,512 over the last 5 years and is projected to decrease by 1,653 over the next 5 years.
Jobs decreased by 2,309 over the last 5 years and are projected to decrease by 4 over the next 5 years.
Median household income is $28.1K below the na onal median household income of $78.5K.
As of 2024 the region's popula on declined by 3.7% since 2019, falling by 2,512. Popula on is expected to decrease by 2.5% between 2024 and 2029, losing 1,653.
From 2019 to 2024, jobs declined by 9.4% in Wilkes County, NC from 24,459 to 22,150. This change fell short of the na onal growth rate of 4.3% by 13.7%. As the number of jobs declined, the labor force par cipa on rate decreased from 52.3% to 47.7% between 2019 and 2024
Concerning educa onal a ainment, 11.8% of Wilkes County, NC residents possess a Bachelor's Degree (9.7% below the na onal average), and 12.1% hold an Associate's Degree (3.2% above the na onal average).
The top three industries in 2024 are Animal Slaughtering and Processing, Restaurants and Other Ea ng Places, and Educa on and Hospitals (Local Government).
Labor Force (Jul 2025) Jobs (2024) Cost of LivingGRPImportsExports
Region65,46124,96922,15094.5$2.68B$4.23B$3.15B State11,045,6055,327,2005,568,76495.5$811.52B$603.55B$732.31B Popula on (2025)
Jul 2025 Labor Force Breakdown
Concerning educa onal a ainment, 11.8% of Wilkes County, NC residents possess a Bachelor's Degree (9.7% below the na onal average), and 12.1% hold an Associate's Degree (3.2% above the na onal average).
As of 2024 the region's popula on declined by 3.7% since 2019, falling by 2,512. Popula on is expected to decrease by 2.5% between 2024 and 2029, losing 1,653.
From 2019 to 2024, jobs declined by 9.4% in Wilkes County, NC from 24,459 to 22,150. This change fell short of the na onal growth rate of 4.3% by 13.7%.
Wilkes County, NC had a July 2025 unemployment rate of 4.05%, decreasing from 6.82% 5 years before.
10,916 Millennials
Wilkes County, NC has 10,916 millennials (ages 25-39). The na onal average for an area this size is 13,413.
3,341
Wilkes County, NC has 3,341 veterans. The na onal average for an area this size is 3,266.
25,008 Re ring Soon
Re rement risk is high in Wilkes County, NC. The na onal average for an area this size is 19,928 people 55 or older, while there are 25,008 here.
9,495
Racial Diversity
Racial diversity is low in Wilkes County, NC. The na onal average for an area this size is 27,492 racially diverse people, while there are 9,495 here.
Wilkes County, NC has 2.11 violent crimes per 1,000 people. The na onal rate is 3.54 per 1,000 people.
Wilkes County, NC has 11.42 property crimes per 1,000 people. The na onal rate is 18.02 per 1,000 people.
Understanding where talent in Wilkes County, NC currently works compared to where talent lives can help you op mize site decisions. 28659 North Wilkesboro, NC (in Wilkes county)9,684
Wilkesboro, NC (in Wilkes county) … 7,778
Millers Creek, NC (in Wilkes county) 1,019 28654 Moravian Falls, NC (in Wilkes county) … 584 28670 Ronda, NC (in Wilkes county) … 581
The table below analyzes past and current residents of Wilkes County, NC. The le column shows residents of other coun es migra ng to Wilkes County, NC. The right column shows residents migra ng from Wilkes County, NC to other coun es.
As of 2022, 208 people have migrated from Surry County, NC to Wilkes County, NC. In the same year, 216 people le Wilkes County, NC migra ng to Surry County, NC. The total Net Migra on for Wilkes County, NC in 2022 was 278
Surry County, NC Surry County, NC
Yadkin County, NC
Iredell County, NC
Ashe County, NC Ashe County, NC
Watauga County, NC
Watauga County, NC
Catawba County, NC Catawba County, NC
Forsyth County, NC Forsyth County, NC
Caldwell County, NC Caldwell County, NC
Surry County, NC Surry County, NC
Mecklenburg County, NC
Mecklenburg County, NC
Alexander County, NC
Ashe County, NC Ashe County, NC Previous CountyWilkes County, NCFollowing County
Yadkin County, NC Yadkin County, NC
Forsyth County, NC Forsyth County, NC
Catawba County, NC Catawba County, NC
Iredell County, NC Iredell County, NC
Caldwell County, NC
Mecklenburg County, NC
Guilford County, NC Guilford County, NC
Watauga County, NC Watauga County, NC
Top Previous Coun es Migra ons
Government
Manufacturing
Health Care and Social Assistance
Retail Trade
Accommoda on and Food Services
Other Services (except Public Administra on)
Construc on
Administra ve and Support and Waste Management and Remedia on Services
Wholesale Trade
Professional, Scien fic, and Technical Services
Transporta on and Warehousing
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hun ng
Finance and Insurance
Informa on
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing
Arts, Entertainment, and Recrea on Management of Companies and Enterprises
Educa onal Services
U li es
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extrac on
Industry Employment
Concentra on
Manufacturing
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hun ng
Retail Trade
Other Services (except Public Administra on)
Government
Health Care and Social Assistance
Wholesale Trade
Construc on
Accommoda on and Food Services
Administra ve and Support and Waste Management and Remedia on Services
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing
Informa on
Arts, Entertainment, and Recrea on U li es
Management of Companies and Enterprises
Transporta on and Warehousing
Professional, Scien fic, and Technical Services
Finance and Insurance
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extrac on
Educa onal Services
Gross Regional Product
Manufacturing
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing
Health Care and Social Assistance
Retail Trade Government
Wholesale Trade
Construc on
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hun ng
Finance and Insurance
Accommoda on and Food Services
Professional, Scien fic, and Technical Services
Transporta on and Warehousing
Informa on
Other Services (except Public Administra on)
Administra ve and Support and Waste Management and Remedia on Services
Management of Companies and Enterprises
U li es
Arts, Entertainment, and Recrea on
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extrac on Educa onal Services
Earnings Per Worker
U li es
Management of Companies and Enterprises
Finance and Insurance
Wholesale Trade
Informa on
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing
Transporta on and Warehousing
Professional, Scien fic, and Technical Services
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extrac on
Health Care and Social Assistance
Manufacturing
Government
Construc on
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hun ng
Retail Trade
Administra ve and Support and Waste Management and Remedia on Services
Other Services (except Public Administra on)
Educa onal Services
Accommoda on and Food Services
Arts, Entertainment, and Recrea on
Online profiles for your workers men on 5,112 companies as employers, with the top 10 appearing below. In the last 12 months, 545 companies in Wilkes County, NC posted job pos ngs, with the top 10 appearing below.
*Business Data by DatabaseUSA.com is third-party data provided by Lightcast to its customers as a convenience, and Lightcast does not endorse or warrant its accuracy or consistency with other published Lightcast data. In most cases, the Business Count will not match total companies with profiles on the summary tab.
Occupa on Jobs Na onal Average
Produc on
Office and Administra ve Support
Transporta on and Material Moving
Sales and Related
Food Prepara on and Serving Related
Educa onal Instruc on and Library Management
Healthcare Support
Installa on, Maintenance, and Repair
Healthcare Prac oners and Technical
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance
Construc on and Extrac on
Business and Financial Opera ons
Personal Care and Service
Community and Social Service
Protec ve Service
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
Computer and Mathema cal
Architecture and Engineering
Life, Physical, and Social Science
Legal
Military-only
Occupa on Employment Concentra on
Produc on
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance
Community and Social Service
Installa on, Maintenance, and Repair
Educa onal Instruc on and Library
Transporta on and Material Moving
Food Prepara on and Serving Related
Healthcare Support
Sales and Related
Personal Care and Service
Construc on and Extrac on
Office and Administra ve Support
Protec ve Service
Healthcare Prac oners and Technical
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
Management
Life, Physical, and Social Science
Military-only
Business and Financial Opera ons
Legal
Architecture and Engineering
Computer and Mathema cal
Architecture and Engineering Management
Healthcare Prac oners and Technical
Computer and Mathema cal Legal
Business and Financial Opera ons
Life, Physical, and Social Science
Community and Social Service
Installa on, Maintenance, and Repair
Educa onal Instruc on and Library
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
Protec ve Service
Construc on and Extrac on
Produc on
Office and Administra ve Support
Transporta on and Material Moving
Military-only
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance
Healthcare Support
Sales and Related
Personal Care and Service
Food Prepara on and Serving Related
Healthcare Prac oners and Technical
Sales and Related
Transporta on and Material Moving Management
Office and Administra ve Support
Installa on, Maintenance, and Repair
Educa onal Instruc on and Library
Healthcare Support
Food Prepara on and Serving Related
Community and Social Service
Produc on
Business and Financial Opera ons
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance
Construc on and Extrac on
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
Computer and Mathema cal
Protec ve Service
Life, Physical, and Social Science
Personal Care and Service
Architecture and Engineering
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
Legal
Jobs Requiring Ed. Level Popula on at Ed. Level
No Formal Educa on Required
High School Diploma or Equivalent
Some College, Non-Degree Award
Associate's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Graduate Degree and Higher
In 2023, there were 1,200 graduates in Wilkes County, NC. This pipeline has remained stable (neither grown nor shrunk) over the last 5 years. The highest share of these graduates come from "Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies" (Associate's), "Automobile/Automo ve Mechanics Technology/Technician" (Cer ficate), and "Business Administra on and Management, General" (Cer ficate).
School Total Graduates (2023)
Wilkes Community College1,200
Cer ficate Associate's Bachelor's
Graduate Trend (20192023)
Master's or Higher
Nursing
Merchandising
Inventory Management
Home Health Care
Housekeeping
Cash Register
Data Collec on
Medical Records
Effec ve Communica on
Restaurant Opera on