Iredell County

Iredell County, North Carolina — key demographics (most recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates, primarily 2023 ACS; population uses latest estimates)

Population size

• Total population: ~208,000 (2023 estimate)
• Growth: up from 186,693 in 2020 (+11–12% since 2020)

Age

• Median age: ~41 years
• Under 18: ~23%
• 18 to 64: ~59%
• 65 and over: ~18%

Gender

• Female: ~50.7%
• Male: ~49.3%

Race and Hispanic/Latino origin

• White (non-Hispanic): ~70%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic): ~12%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~10%
• Asian (non-Hispanic): ~2–3%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic): ~3–4%
• Other groups (American Indian/Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, some other race): ~1–2% combined

Households

• Total households: ~78,000
• Average household size: ~2.6 persons
• Family households: ~68% of households
• Married-couple households: ~50–52% of households
• Households with children under 18: ~30–31%
• One-person households: ~24–26%
• Housing tenure: ~73–75% owner-occupied; ~25–27% renter-occupied

Insights

• Rapid population growth since 2020, reflecting suburban expansion north of Charlotte
• Age structure skewed slightly older than the U.S. median, with nearly one in five residents 65+
• Predominantly non-Hispanic White, with meaningful Black and growing Hispanic populations; modest but rising multiracial and Asian shares

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (2023) and Population Estimates Program; 2020 Decennial Census for baseline comparisons. Estimates rounded for readability.

Iredell County, NC snapshot (2025):

• Population and density: 195,000 residents over ~574 sq mi of land (340 people/sq mi). Urban/suburban clusters around Mooresville and Statesville along I‑77/I‑40 have the strongest connectivity.
• Estimated email users (age 13+): 156,000 (80% of total population), derived from county age structure and U.S. adoption rates.
  • By age (share of email users): 13–17: 10%, 18–34: 27%, 35–54: 33%, 55–64: 14%, 65+: 16%.
• Gender split: Email usage is essentially parity with population; 51% female (80k users) and 49% male (76k users).
• Digital access and trends:
  • Households with a computer: ~90%.
  • Households with a broadband subscription: ~85% (≈64,000 of ~75,000 households), with highest subscription in the Mooresville–Lake Norman and Statesville areas.
  • Access is dominated by cable and expanding fiber in populated corridors; rural northern/eastern tracts rely more on DSL/fixed wireless, driving lower speeds and adoption.
  • Mobile access is ubiquitous; high smartphone penetration supports strong mobile email use.

Method: Estimates use recent ACS county demographics combined with Pew/industry email adoption by age to localize counts and splits.

Mobile phone usage in Iredell County, NC — 2024 snapshot

User estimates

• Adult smartphone users: about 134,000 residents. This is based on Iredell’s adult population and current U.S. smartphone ownership rates applied to the county’s age-income mix.
• Households with a cellular data plan: about 61,000 (roughly 81% of the county’s ~75,000 households).
• Cellular-only internet households (no fixed home broadband, rely on mobile data): about 12,500 (about 17% of households).
• Wireless-only voice households (no landline): about 7 in 10, consistent with North Carolina’s move away from landlines and Iredell’s suburban-rural profile.

Demographic breakdown (usage patterns)

• Age:
  • 18–29: near-universal smartphone ownership (~97%); heavy mobile-first behavior for streaming, social media, navigation, and payments.
  • 30–64: high ownership (~92–95%); strongest overlap with both mobile and home broadband; highest 5G device penetration among commuters along the I‑77 corridor.
  • 65+: solid smartphone ownership (~70–75%), but lower adoption of mobile-only internet; more likely to keep a home broadband connection.
• Income:
  • < $35k: high smartphone ownership (~85–90%) but the most likely to be cellular-only for home internet (around one in four), driven by cost sensitivity to wireline plans and fees.
  • ≥ $75k: near‑universal smartphone ownership (~95–98%) with strong fixed broadband adoption; lowest cellular‑only rates.
• Race/ethnicity:
  • Smartphone ownership is broadly high across groups. Cellular‑only home internet is more common among Black and Hispanic households countywide than among White households, mirroring state trends, but the overall countywide shares are moderated by Iredell’s suburban composition.
• Geography within the county:
  • South/east (Mooresville–Troutman–Statesville urbanized areas, I‑77/I‑40 corridors): highest 5G availability and fastest median mobile speeds; strong device upgrade cycles.
  • Northern and far‑western rural areas: more LTE/low‑band 5G reliance and higher cellular‑only household rates; occasional signal attenuation in wooded and hilly terrain.

Digital infrastructure points

• Technology and coverage:
  • 4G LTE covers essentially all populated areas; 5G is widely available in the Statesville–Mooresville axis and along I‑77 and I‑40, with mid‑band 5G (e.g., C‑band/n41) providing the county’s fastest mobile speeds.
  • Small‑cell and new macro‑site buildouts since 2020 have concentrated along growth corridors (I‑77 exits, NC‑150, US‑21), supporting commuter and industrial traffic.
• Carriers and capacity:
  • All three national operators (AT&T, Verizon, T‑Mobile) offer countywide service. Mid‑band 5G deployments by T‑Mobile and Verizon are established along the interstate corridors; AT&T 5G and FirstNet coverage blanket public‑safety and civic sites.
  • Peak speeds and capacity are highest in Mooresville, Statesville, and near major interchanges; rural north sees greater variance and more band‑12/low‑band 5G/LTE usage.
• Reliability and public safety:
  • E‑911 and FirstNet coverage is provisioned across primary response districts; densification around hospitals, schools, and government facilities has reduced capacity bottlenecks compared with pre‑2020 conditions.

How Iredell differs from North Carolina overall

• Slightly higher cellular‑only home internet reliance (≈17% vs. a statewide average closer to the mid‑teens). This reflects pockets without affordable fiber/cable and cost‑conscious households substituting mobile data plans for home broadband.
• Above‑average 5G performance in urbanized corridors due to concentrated mid‑band deployments along I‑77/I‑40, producing higher median mobile speeds than the state’s rural average.
• A pronounced corridor effect: usage intensity and 5G device penetration are elevated in commuter zones (Mooresville–Statesville), while the rural north behaves more like rural NC with greater LTE dependence and more variability in indoor coverage.
• Lower landline retention than many rural NC counties, due to the county’s suburban character and proximity to the Charlotte metro, accelerating wireless‑only voice adoption.
• Digital divide characteristics are more about geography than basic ownership: smartphone ownership is high across the county, but the main gap is fixed broadband availability/affordability outside the interstate corridors, pushing some households into mobile‑only internet.

Notes on figures

• Household counts and internet‑subscription shares reflect the latest multi‑year American Community Survey patterns at the county level, combined with current mobile‑adoption research; values are rounded to whole‑number percentages and easy‑to‑use counts.
• Infrastructure observations synthesize FCC mobile coverage filings and operator deployment timelines since 2020, corroborated by the county’s growth corridors.

Iredell County, NC — social media usage snapshot (modeled to county level from Pew Research 2023–2024 U.S. suburban patterns and platform ad‑audience benchmarks)

Overall penetration

• Adults using at least one social platform: ~72% of adults
• Teens (13–17) on social/video platforms: >90% use at least one; YouTube dominates

Most‑used platforms among adults (estimated local share)

• YouTube: 83%
• Facebook: 67%
• Instagram: 50%
• Pinterest: 35%
• LinkedIn: 30%
• TikTok: 33%
• Snapchat: 28%
• X (Twitter): 22%
• Reddit: 20%
• Nextdoor: 18%
• WhatsApp: 21%

Age profile (platform use by age, adults unless noted; local rates align with national suburban averages)

• Teens 13–17: YouTube 93%, TikTok 67%, Instagram 62%, Snapchat 60%, Facebook ~33%
• 18–29: YouTube ~95%, Instagram ~78%, Snapchat ~65%, TikTok ~62%, Facebook ~42%
• 30–49: YouTube ~92%, Facebook ~73%, Instagram ~55%, TikTok ~39%, Snapchat ~29%, LinkedIn ~35%
• 50–64: Facebook ~73%, YouTube ~83%, Instagram ~29%, TikTok ~24%, Pinterest ~40%
• 65+: Facebook ~62%, YouTube ~50%, Instagram ~15%, TikTok ~10%, Nextdoor usage rises among homeowners

Gender breakdown (directional)

• Women: Higher on Facebook (70%+), Instagram, Pinterest (50% of women vs ~20% of men), Snapchat
• Men: Higher on YouTube (86% vs ~81%), Reddit (30% men vs 12% women), X/Twitter (26% vs ~20%), LinkedIn slightly higher among men

Behavioral trends in Iredell

• Facebook Groups and Marketplace are central for hyperlocal news, schools, church and youth sports, buy/sell/trade, lost-and-found, and municipal updates
• Nextdoor grows in HOA/subdivision areas around Mooresville, Troutman, and Statesville for safety alerts, contractor referrals, and utilities/roadwork notices
• Short‑form vertical video (Reels/TikTok/Shorts) drives discovery for restaurants, events, and local services; live video used for high school sports, festivals, and civic streams
• Commute‑time and evening usage spikes; weekend peaks around local events, Lake Norman recreation, and youth sports
• Local small businesses lean on FB/IG “Click‑to‑Message,” Stories, and boosted posts; UGC and before/after clips outperform static images
• Professional networking and hiring rely on LinkedIn (notably among commuters to the Charlotte metro); Pinterest strong for home, DIY, décor; WhatsApp usage concentrated among Hispanic and international communities

Notes on method

• Percentages reflect adults who report using each platform; localized to Iredell by aligning with U.S. suburban South usage patterns and platform audience benchmarks from 2023–2024 Pew Research Center and major ad platforms.