Census place 3735920

Kinston

A Census profile of the people, homes, and daily patterns that shape this place.

Official Census name: Kinston city

Relocation snapshot

What stands out in Kinston.

According to the 2025 estimate, Kinston has a population of 19,705 and 1,078 residents per square mile. Of the six relocation measures evaluated, the three largest relative differences from the median among 93 covered North Carolina places are: median home value is $119,300, below the comparison median of $309,100; median household income is $36,878, below the comparison median of $66,738; and population density is 1,078/sq mi, below the comparison median of 1,644/sq mi. These unweighted medians compare covered Census places and are not statewide estimates.

median home value
$119,300
Below the comparison median of $309,100
median household income
$36,878
Below the comparison median of $66,738
population density
1,078/sq mi
Below the comparison median of 1,644/sq mi

National context

Follow the metrics.

Compare Kinston's values with other covered Census places. Rankings are descriptive, not recommendations.

At a glance

A city in numbers.

Population
19,705
2025 estimate
Annual change
+0.5%
Population estimate
Density
1,078/sq mi
18.3 sq mi land area
Median age
42.9 years
ACS 5-year estimate

Living here

The everyday equation.

Households, homes, education, and the time it takes to get around.

Median household income
$36,878
Median home value
$119,300
Median gross rent
$867
Bachelor’s degree or higher
16.4%
Typical commute
20.7 min
Drive-alone commute
80%
Public transit commute
0.4%
Walked to work
1.4%

Housing

Who rents, and what it takes.

Renter share and rent burden help describe the housing choices visible in this place.

Renter-occupied homes
57.5%
Renters paying 30%+ of income
47.4%

Work

How the workday lands.

Employment status and working-from-home share add context to income and commuting patterns.

Employed residents 16+
43.1%
Unemployed residents 16+
8.3%
Working from home
3.3%

Community

The everyday infrastructure.

Access, mobility, housing growth, and household composition add another layer to a place's day-to-day picture.

Households with broadband
77.8%
Homes built 2020+
0.6%
Households without a vehicle
17%
Households with children
26.6%
Residents with a disability
29.3%
Residents without insurance
9.4%

Environmental context

A record of declared events.

FEMA declarations for Lenoir County provide historical context, not a forecast or a property-level risk assessment.

Environmental declarations since 2000
17
Hurricane declarations
15
Tropical Storm declarations
2

Climate normals

The long view of weather.

Thirty-year averages, not a forecast. Temperature and precipitation describe the typical conditions recorded from 1991 through 2020.

Representative station: GOLDSBORO 4 SE (22 mi from place center)
Average high
73.6°F
Average low
53.1°F
Annual rainfall
52.3"
Annual snowfall
2"

Month by month

A year in Kinston.

Typical high and low °F
20°F40°F60°F80°F100°F
JFMAMJJASOND
Typical precipitation inches

Data vintage

Population is from the 2025 Population Estimates Program. Household, housing, education, and commute data are from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year release. Disaster declarations are from FEMA's OpenFEMA dataset and are refreshed with this edition.

Similar places

More places to consider.

Selected by the closest mix of population, density, median home value, and average annual high.

Lumberton, NC

Population, housing, work, and travel data for this Census place.

Population
18,955
Median home
$152,600

Altus, OK

Population, housing, work, and travel data for this Census place.

Population
18,707
Median home
$152,200

El Dorado, AR

Population, housing, work, and travel data for this Census place.

Population
16,609
Median home
$124,100

Keep exploring

Compare Kinston with Lumberton