Jackson County Demographics

A map of Jackson County's Population by Race

Race	2024 Pop	2020 Pop	2024 %	2020 %
White	34,317	32,800	78.4%	76.1%
Hispanic	3,500	3,292	8.0%	7.6%
Native American/Other	3,038	3,964	6.9%	9.2%
Multiracial	1,543	1,820	3.5%	4.2%
Black	927	736	2.1%	1.7%
Asian	446	497	1.0%	1.2%

Jackson County, North Carolina has an estimated population of 43,771, a slight increase from the 43,109 recorded in the 2020 Census. The population is 78.4% White, 8.0% Hispanic, 6.9% Native American/Other, 3.5% Multiracial, 2.1% Black, and 1.0% Asian. This demographic dot map shows the population of Jackson County, with one dot drawn for each person counted by the Census, color-coded by race.

Jackson has become less racially diverse since the 2020 Census. It is considerably less diverse than North Carolina overall. Demographers use a diversity index to measure the probability that two randomly selected individuals belong to different racial or ethnic groups. In Jackson County, that probability was 40.5% in 2020 and 37.2% in the most recent ACS estimates.

Jackson County is ranked the 59th most populous county in North Carolina, out of 100 counties. Jackson County was ranked the 58th most populous county in the 2020 Census.

Jackson County's White Population

34,317 residents of Jackson County, or 78.4% of the population, identify as White. The share of White residents in Jackson County is significantly higher than in North Carolina overall, where 60% of the population is White. Jackson County ranks 35th statewide in terms of White residents as a share of the population, out of 100 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Jackson County's White population has grown by an estimated 4.6%. White residents' share of Jackson County's population has increased from 76.1% to 78.4%.

Jackson County is more White than neighboring Swain County (59.2% White). Jackson County is less White than neighboring Haywood County (90.4% White), Macon County (85.2% White), Transylvania County (87.6% White), and Rabun County (86.7% White).

Jackson County's Black Population

927 residents of Jackson County, or 2.1% of the population, identify as Black. The share of Black residents in Jackson County is significantly lower than in North Carolina overall, where 20% of the population is Black. Jackson County ranks 89th statewide in terms of Black residents as a share of the population, out of 100 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Jackson County's Black population has grown by an estimated 26.0%. Black residents' share of Jackson County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 2.1%.

Jackson County is more Black than neighboring Haywood County (0.9% Black), Macon County (1.4% Black), and Rabun County (0.8% Black). Jackson County is less Black than neighboring Transylvania County (3.6% Black), and Swain County (2.6% Black).

Jackson County's Asian Population

446 residents of Jackson County, or 1.0% of the population, identify as Asian. The share of Asian residents in Jackson County is slightly lower than in North Carolina overall, where 3.3% of the population is Asian. Jackson County ranks 30th statewide in terms of Asian residents as a share of the population, out of 100 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Jackson County's Asian population has declined by an estimated 10.3%. Asian residents' share of Jackson County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 1.0%.

Jackson County is more Asian than neighboring Haywood County (0.4% Asian), Macon County (0.6% Asian), Transylvania County (0.7% Asian), Swain County (0.5% Asian), and Rabun County (0.9% Asian).

Jackson County's Hispanic Population

3,500 residents of Jackson County, or 8.0% of the population, identify as Hispanic. The share of Hispanic residents in Jackson County is slightly lower than in North Carolina overall, where 11.3% of the population is Hispanic. Jackson County ranks 48th statewide in terms of Hispanic residents as a share of the population, out of 100 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Jackson County's Hispanic population has grown by an estimated 6.3%. Hispanic residents' share of Jackson County's population has remained roughly unchanged at 8.0%.

Jackson County is more Hispanic than neighboring Haywood County (5% Hispanic), Transylvania County (5.2% Hispanic), and Swain County (5.5% Hispanic). Jackson County is less Hispanic than neighboring Macon County (10% Hispanic), and Rabun County (8.8% Hispanic).

Jackson County's Native American/Other Population

3,038 residents of Jackson County, or 6.9% of the population, identify as American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander/Other. The share of Native American/Other residents in Jackson County is higher than in North Carolina overall, where 1.4% of the population is Native American/Other. Jackson County ranks 4th statewide in terms of Native American/Other residents as a share of the population, out of 100 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Jackson County's Native American/Other population has declined by an estimated 23.4%. Native American/Other residents' share of Jackson County's population has decreased from 9.2% to 6.9%.

Jackson County is more Native American/Other than neighboring Haywood County (0.7% Native American/Other), Macon County (0.4% Native American/Other), Transylvania County (0.6% Native American/Other), and Rabun County (0.1% Native American/Other). Jackson County is less Native American/Other than neighboring Swain County (27.3% Native American/Other).

Jackson County's Multiracial Population

1,543 residents of Jackson County, or 3.5% of the population, identify as Multiracial. The share of Multiracial residents in Jackson County is comparable to the share in North Carolina overall, where 4.1% of the population is Multiracial. Jackson County ranks 15th statewide in terms of Multiracial residents as a share of the population, out of 100 counties.

Since the 2020 Census, Jackson County's Multiracial population has declined by an estimated 15.2%. Multiracial residents' share of Jackson County's population has decreased from 4.2% to 3.5%.

Jackson County is more Multiracial than neighboring Haywood County (2.7% Multiracial), Macon County (2.4% Multiracial), Transylvania County (2.3% Multiracial), and Rabun County (2.8% Multiracial). Jackson County is less Multiracial than neighboring Swain County (5% Multiracial).

Sources: Most recent population estimates are from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. 2020 population counts and map data are from 2020 Census State Redistricting Data. Geographic data are from Census TIGER/Line Shapefiles.