Wake County

Wake County, North Carolina — key demographics

Population

• 1.18 million (2023 estimate, U.S. Census Bureau)

Age

• Median age: ~37.0 years
• Under 18: ~24%
• 65 and over: ~14%

Gender

• Female: ~51%
• Male: ~49%

Race and ethnicity (ACS estimates)

• White, non-Hispanic: ~54%
• Black or African American: ~21%
• Asian: ~9–10%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race): ~11–12%
• Two or more races: ~4–5%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~1%
• Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander: ~0.1%

Households

• Total households: ~445,000
• Average household size: ~2.5
• Family households: ~60–62%
• Owner-occupied housing rate: ~63%
• Median household income: ~$90–96k
• Households with children under 18: ~30–33%
• Foreign-born residents: ~14–16%
• Language other than English spoken at home: ~16–18%
• Broadband internet subscription: ~93–96%

Notes: Figures are the most recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates (Population Estimates Program, July 1, 2023; American Community Survey 2019–2023). Wake County remains one of the fastest-growing, highest-income, and most diverse counties in North Carolina.

• Estimated email users: ≈900,000 adults in Wake County. Basis: ~1.18M residents (2023), ~77–78% adults, and >95% of online adults use email regularly.
• Age distribution of email users (approx.): 18–29: 18–20%; 30–49: 35–38%; 50–64: 25–28%; 65+: 15–18%. Younger cohorts are near-universal users; adoption remains very high even among 65+.
• Gender split: Mirrors county demographics—about 51% female, 49% male among email users.
• Digital access and device trends:
  • ~96% of households have a computer.
  • ~93% have a broadband subscription at home; non‑subscription is concentrated in lower‑income tracts.
  • Smartphone access exceeds 90%, supporting near‑ubiquitous email reach on mobile.
  • Work/school domains and major webmail providers dominate; daily checking is the norm across working‑age adults.
• Local density/connectivity facts:
  • Population ≈1.18M; density ~1,350 people per sq. mile, with highly urbanized cores (Raleigh, Cary, Apex).
  • Extensive fiber coverage (AT&T Fiber, Google Fiber, regional ISPs) and countywide 5G support fast, reliable email access.
  • Home broadband subscription rates rank among the highest in North Carolina, with gigabit service widely available.

Mobile phone usage in Wake County, North Carolina: a concise profile with county-level statistics, demographics, infrastructure, and how local trends differ from the state.

Core adoption and user estimates (ACS 2023, 1-year, S2801)

• Households with a smartphone:
  • Wake County: approximately 95–96% of households
  • North Carolina overall: approximately 91–92% of households
  • User estimate: with roughly 470,000 households in Wake County, about 445,000–450,000 households have at least one smartphone.
• Households with an internet subscription (any type, including cellular data plans):
  • Wake County: about 93–95%
  • North Carolina: about 89–90%
  • Households without any internet subscription:
    • Wake County: roughly 5–7% (about 25,000–33,000 households)
    • North Carolina: roughly 10–12%
• Households reporting a cellular data plan (smartphone/tablet/other device):
  • Wake County: on the order of 88–92%
  • North Carolina: on the order of 82–86%

Demographic breakdown (ACS 2023, 1-year patterns)

• Age of householder (with any internet subscription; higher figures generally imply greater smartphone use and mobile-plan penetration):
  • Under 35: Wake ~96–98% vs NC ~93–95%
  • 35–64: Wake ~94–96% vs NC ~90–92%
  • 65+: Wake ~88–90% vs NC ~80–83%
  • Insight: Older-adult connectivity is materially higher in Wake than statewide, narrowing the typical age-based adoption gap.
• Income (with any internet subscription):
  • <$25k: Wake ~82–85% vs NC ~73–76%
  • $25k–$74,999: Wake ~91–94% vs NC ~87–90%
  • $75k+: Wake ~97–99% vs NC ~95–97%
  • Insight: Low-income households in Wake are more connected than the state average and are less likely to be “mobile-only” by necessity.
• Race/ethnicity (with any internet subscription):
  • White, non-Hispanic: Wake ~94–96% vs NC ~91–93%
  • Black: Wake ~90–93% vs NC ~85–88%
  • Hispanic/Latino: Wake ~88–91% vs NC ~82–85%
  • Insight: Racial/ethnic adoption gaps exist but are narrower in Wake than statewide, reflecting stronger baseline access.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• 5G availability: All three nationwide carriers (AT&T, T‑Mobile, Verizon) provide countywide 5G, including mid-band (2.5 GHz and C‑band) that drives higher throughput in Raleigh, Cary, Apex, and Morrisville. Coverage is dense in populated areas; minor gaps persist in large parklands and water-adjacent zones.
• Mobile performance: The Raleigh–Cary metro (Wake-led) regularly ranks among North Carolina’s fastest for median mobile download speeds, with mid-band 5G commonly delivering 100–250 Mbps in core population centers, and higher peaks where spectrum depth and small cells are deployed.
• Fiber and Wi‑Fi offload: Extensive fiber-to-the-home/business from AT&T Fiber and Google Fiber, plus cable from Spectrum, enable high in-home Wi‑Fi offload. This reduces reliance on cellular as a primary home connection compared with rural parts of the state.
• Public connectivity and resilience:
  • Broad public Wi‑Fi coverage across municipal buildings, libraries, and campuses.
  • Text-to-911 supported countywide; robust E911 enhances mobile emergency accessibility.

How Wake County differs from the North Carolina state average

• Higher smartphone penetration and multi-device households: Wake’s household smartphone access (≈95–96%) exceeds the state, and households are more likely to have desktops/laptops and tablets alongside smartphones.
• Lower share of unconnected households: Roughly 5–7% of Wake households lack internet subscriptions, versus about 10–12% statewide.
• Less “mobile-only” reliance: Thanks to strong fiber/cable availability, a smaller share of Wake households depend solely on a cellular data plan for home internet compared with the state average.
• Smaller demographic gaps: Older adults, lower-income households, and Black/Hispanic households in Wake report higher connectivity rates than their statewide counterparts, narrowing age- and race/ethnicity-based disparities.
• Better speeds and capacity: Dense 5G mid-band deployments and widespread fiber backhaul support higher median mobile speeds and more consistent capacity than typical North Carolina counties, especially rural ones.

Bottom line

• Wake County’s mobile landscape is characterized by near-universal smartphone access at the household level, higher-than-state internet subscription rates across all major demographic groups, and superior 5G availability and performance. The combination of fiber depth, strong carrier investment, and a tech-forward, urban/suburban population translates into fewer unconnected households, fewer mobile-only homes, faster median speeds, and narrower digital equity gaps than North Carolina overall.

Wake County, NC — social media usage snapshot (2025)

Context and user base

• Population: 1,175,021 (U.S. Census Bureau, July 1, 2023).
• Adult penetration: At least 83% of adults use social media (Pew Research Center, 2024; YouTube alone reaches 83% of U.S. adults). Given Wake’s urban/suburban profile and high connectivity, overall social media use is comparable to or slightly above national averages.
• Rough scale: With roughly 0.9M adults in-county, this implies about three-quarters of a million adult social media users.

Most-used platforms (share of U.S. adults who use each; Wake County expected to be in-line)

• YouTube: 83%
• Facebook: 68%
• Instagram: 47%
• Pinterest: 35%
• LinkedIn: 30%
• Snapchat: 30%
• TikTok: 33%
• WhatsApp: 29%
• X (Twitter): 22%
• Reddit: 22%
• Nextdoor: ~1 in 5 adults (Pew 2024; neighborhood platform use tends to run high in suburban counties like Wake)

Age-group patterns (usage tendencies)

• 18–29: Heavy on Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat; near-universal YouTube. Facebook used but not dominant for daily posting; Reddit active due to college/early-career population.
• 30–49: Broadest multi-platform mix. YouTube, Facebook, Instagram core; WhatsApp for family/ethnic networks; TikTok growing for local discovery.
• 50–64: YouTube and Facebook lead; Pinterest for projects/home; LinkedIn for professional news; Nextdoor for neighborhood info.
• 65+: Facebook and YouTube dominate; Nextdoor adoption concentrated among homeowners; lighter use of TikTok/Snapchat.

Gender breakdown (who over-indexes where)

• Women: Pinterest strongly female (about half of women vs about one-fifth of men), Snapchat slightly female-skewed, Facebook modestly female-leaning.
• Men: Reddit and X (Twitter) skew male; YouTube usage is slightly male-leaning; LinkedIn modest male tilt.
• Platforms with relatively balanced gender mix: Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook Groups (usage is broad even if engagement styles differ).

Behavioral trends in Wake County

• Community and neighborhood life: Facebook Groups and Nextdoor are central for HOA communications, yard sales, municipal updates, school notices, and safety alerts—especially in Cary, Apex, Wake Forest, and Garner.
• Local discovery: Short-form video (TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts) drives discovery of restaurants, breweries, concerts, and weekend events across Raleigh, Cary, and Downtown Wake Forest.
• Professional ecosystem: LinkedIn is above-average given the Research Triangle’s tech, biotech, and higher-ed workforce; active use for hiring, alumni networking, and industry events.
• Student and campus influence: NC State and other nearby campuses boost Reddit participation (local subreddits), Instagram/TikTok content creation, and late-night/mobile-first engagement.
• Customer service and civic engagement: Residents frequently use Facebook Messenger and X to contact city departments, transit, and utilities; real-time weather and traffic updates see high engagement during events and storms.
• Messaging layers: WhatsApp groups are common among international and multilingual communities; Discord servers appear in gaming/tech circles; Messenger and Snapchat remain default peer-to-peer channels for younger users.
• Content format shift: Short-form vertical video outperforms static posts for reach and shares; Facebook/Instagram remain essential for event RSVPs, while YouTube sustains longer how-to and local news explainers.

Key sources

• Pew Research Center, Social Media Use in 2024 (platform reach by U.S. adults; Wake County aligns closely given its demographics).
• U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 population estimates (Wake County total population).