Census-designated place · Wayne County, North Carolina

Brogden, North Carolina

Brogden is a census-designated place in Wayne County, North Carolina, part of the Goldsboro, NC metro area. It has 2,733 residents. Brogden, North Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 9 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,220 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Carolina it ranks #429 of 458 cities and towns. It ranks best on social associations (high), home price to income ratio (low) and effective property tax rate (low). It ranks worst on bachelor's degree or higher (low), adult obesity (high) and drought exposure (high).

9Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,220 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Carolina: #429 of 458 in NC
Population: 2,733 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 1,233.3 /mi²
FIPS code: 3708110

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety3#15,140/15,637
Economy8#14,418/15,631
Housing63#5,529/14,977
Health7#14,447/15,609
Healthcare11#13,852/15,650
Environment42#8,929/15,453
Education7#14,625/15,649
Infrastructure29#11,162/15,650
Community46#8,445/15,651
Leisure & amenities21#12,360/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Brogden, North Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Wayne County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Social associations · high14.0 /10k
87/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWayne County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.3×
80/100North Carolina 4.0×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Effective property tax rate · low0.63%
77/100North Carolina 0.66%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Mammography screening · high51.0%
76/100North Carolina 50.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWayne County value
Comfortable days · high29.6%
76/100North Carolina 30.0%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationWayne County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.385
72/100North Carolina 0.477United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083

Weaknesses

Bachelor's degree or higher · low4.5%
2/100North Carolina 35.7%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003High uncertainty
Adult obesity · high46.6%
3/100North Carolina 37.2%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Drought exposure · high98%
3/100North Carolina 79%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAWayne County value
Lack of reliable transportation · high19.2%
3/100North Carolina 8.8%United States 8.3%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · high38.3%
3/100North Carolina 15.8%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Poor or fair health · high33.6%
3/100North Carolina 19.6%United States 19.9%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
2,279 (2015-2019) → 2,733 (2020-2024)
+20%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
82.6% (2015-2019) → 53.6% (2020-2024)
−29 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
70.8% (2015-2019) → 92.3% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
20.8% (2015-2019) → 35.8% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
51.0% (2015-2019) → 40.5% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Child poverty rateImproving
58.6% (2015-2019) → 50.0% (2020-2024)
−8.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Brogden, North Carolina improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Rent / income−11 points51.0% → 40.5%
Broadband+21 points70.8% → 92.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Brogden, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.5 min2015-2019	27.3 min2020-2024	+7.7 min	Within the margin of error	4%
Broadband subscriptions	70.8%2015-2019	92.3%2020-2024	+21 points	Improved	92%
Child poverty rate	58.6%2015-2019	50.0%2020-2024	−8.6 points	Within the margin of error	79%
Effective property tax rate	0.69%2015-2019	0.63%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	27%
High school diploma or higher	76.2%2015-2019	73.4%2020-2024	−2.8 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Home price to income ratio	2.1×2015-2019	2.3×2020-2024	+0.1×	Within the margin of error	71%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3982015-2019	0.3852020-2024	−0.013	Within the margin of error	62%
Median household income	$38,5652015-2019	$42,0742020-2024	+9.1%	Within the margin of error	16%
Poverty rate	28.6%2015-2019	31.1%2020-2024	+2.6 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	51.0%2015-2019	40.5%2020-2024	−11 points	Improved	94%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	20.8%2015-2019	35.8%2020-2024	+15 points	Within the margin of error	1%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Brogden, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Brogden, North Carolina in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Brogden, North Carolina itself moved +0.3 points in standing on average over the same 8 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

2,733 residents (±569)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 50–59 men (−9.5 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

2,733 residents (±569)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

White26%†719
Black39%†1,065
Hispanic or Latino30%†

Education

1,705 residents (±392)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

No high school diploma27%†454
High school or GED35%602
Some college26%†442

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

918 households (±165)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k35%†318
$25k–50k21%†194
$50k–75k21%†197
$75k–100k13%†123
$100k–150k4.9%†45
$150k–200k4.5%†41
$200k or more0.0%0

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

918 households (±165)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own68%628
Rent32%†290

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

261 households (±120)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $75013%†35
$750–1,00035%†91
$1,000–1,50039%†102

Home values

628 homes (±119)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $150k78%†488
$150k–250k20%†128
$250k–400k1.0%†

Age of homes

957 homes (±183)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

2010 or later3.8%†36
2000–20090.0%0
1980–199940%†380

Size of homes

957 homes (±183)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Studio1.0%†10
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms13%†122

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

1,144 workers (±338)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone67%†761
Carpool31%†350
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.4%†5
Bike0.0%0
Work from home2.4%†28
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (−12.9 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

1,116 workers (±340)

Brogden, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under 15 min34%†382
15–29 min36%†402
30–44 min9.2%†

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Goldsboro, NC

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Wayne County, the county holding most of Brogden's residents.

Wayne County has 2,195 employer establishments, 183 for every 10,000 residents (0.74× the US rate of 248; 0.77× North Carolina's), with 33,629 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,726. The Census Bureau also counts 8,307 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,195; 8,307 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 183; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 33,629
Average annual pay: $42,726; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Wayne County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	188	15.7	0.85×About typical	4,630	$17,842	46
Ambulatory health care services	157	13.1	0.63×Fewer than typical	1,829	$54,507	349
Specialty trade contractors	151	12.6	0.81×About typical	1,448	$50,741	551
Religious organizations	142	11.9	2.14×More than typical	654	$20,982	—
Limited-service restaurants	97	8.1	1.01×About typical	2,972	$16,715	20
Full-service restaurants	75	6.3	0.82×About typical	1,491	$19,793	16
Building equipment contractors	64	5.3	0.89×About typical	553	$58,712	116
Lessors of real estate	64	5.3	0.43×Fewer than typical	224	$37,915	606
Automotive repair and maintenance	60	5	1.00×About typical	377	$33,899	210
Services to buildings and dwellings	59	4.9	0.73×Fewer than typical	496	$29,276	830
Gasoline stations	53	4.4	1.37×More than typical	342	$25,251	7
Construction of buildings	52	4.3	0.57×Fewer than typical	462	$78,970	260

Rank places for an industry Open Wayne County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 119,731 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $19.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Brogden, North Carolina: $7.25 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $19.8K
Per resident: $7.25; US $1,994
Sole-source: 49%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service$19.8K100%

Top recipients

ESSINEM LLC$19.8K100%

Spending by fiscal year

5.5KFY2019
66.1FY2020
4.5KFY2022
1.8KFY2023
19.8KFY2026

What was bought

Facilities & utilities$19.8K100%

Top industries (NAICS)

Waste treatment and disposal · 5622$10.1K51%
Waste collection · 5621$9,67849%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Brogden, North Carolina, so they do not add up across cities.

Brogden, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Wayne County, NC ($62.9M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Brogden is mostly in Wayne County.

See federal money in Wayne County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Brogden, North Carolina is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Donald G. DavisD-NC-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 70%Missed 1.8%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Wayne County29100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Goldsboro, NC31

Other cities and towns in Wayne County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/3708110