Scores by category

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

Safety28#11,271/15,637
Economy33#10,546/15,631
Housing64#5,457/14,977
Health26#11,533/15,609
Healthcare13#13,637/15,650
Environment61#6,097/15,453
Education33#10,504/15,649
Infrastructure57#6,709/15,650
Community41#9,216/15,651
Leisure & amenities49#7,941/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Haw River, North Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Alamance 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

Distance to an Amtrak station · low5 mi
95/100North Carolina 23 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauAlamance County value
Child care cost burden · low22.0%
88/100North Carolina 25.1%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAlamance County value
Unemployment rate · low1.6%
86/100North Carolina 3.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
High ozone days · low0 days
76/100North Carolina 1 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyAlamance County value
Comfortable days · high29.5%
75/100North Carolina 30.0%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationAlamance County value
Broadband subscriptions · high93.9%
75/100North Carolina 90.1%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002

Weaknesses

Drought exposure · high94%
4/100North Carolina 79%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAAlamance County value
Distance to an emergency room · high17.1 mi
5/100North Carolina 7.9 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesAlamance County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · high20.2%
10/100North Carolina 10.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Poverty rate · high25.1%
16/100North Carolina 12.6%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Poor or fair health · high24.7%
18/100North Carolina 19.6%United States 19.9%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Adult smoking · high18.8%
18/100North Carolina 16.2%United States 16.1%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
2,458 (2015-2019) → 2,824 (2020-2024)
+15%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateWorsening
4.4% (2015-2019) → 38.5% (2020-2024)
+34 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateWorsening
6.6% (2015-2019) → 25.1% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
78.4% (2015-2019) → 93.9% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
10.8% (2015-2019) → 24.3% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
54.6% (2015-2019) → 42.0% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%

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, Haw River, North Carolina improved on 3 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 9 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.

Improved3

Bachelor's++14 points10.8% → 24.3%
Household income+51%$40,560 → $61,058
Broadband+15 points78.4% → 93.9%

Declined1

Poverty+18 points6.6% → 25.1%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Haw River, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.5 min2015-2019	32.5 min2020-2024	+10.0 min	Within the margin of error	2%
Bachelor's degree or higher	10.8%2015-2019	24.3%2020-2024	+14 points	Improved	96%
Broadband subscriptions	78.4%2015-2019	93.9%2020-2024	+15 points	Improved	81%
Effective property tax rate	0.84%2015-2019	0.94%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	6%
High school diploma or higher	84.5%2015-2019	89.7%2020-2024	+5.2 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Home price to income ratio	2.4×2015-2019	2.7×2020-2024	+0.2×	Within the margin of error	67%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4092015-2019	0.4182020-2024	+0.009	Within the margin of error	42%
Median household income	$40,5602015-2019	$61,0582020-2024	+51%	Improved	85%
Poverty rate	6.6%2015-2019	25.1%2020-2024	+18 points	Declined	1%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	30.9%2015-2019	26.7%2020-2024	−4.2 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Rent-burdened households	54.6%2015-2019	42.0%2020-2024	−13 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	25.2%2015-2019	20.2%2020-2024	−5 points	Within the margin of error	87%

“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 Haw River, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Haw River, 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, Haw River, North Carolina itself moved +10.1 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

2,824 residents (±469)

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: 30–39 women (+5.6 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

2,824 residents (±469)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

White58%1,649
Black5.5%†156
Hispanic or Latino19%†534
Asian1.3%†38
American Indian and Alaska Native0.0%0
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races16%†447

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Other or two or more races (+15.4 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 B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

1,656 residents (±259)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

No high school diploma10%†170
High school or GED30%503
Some college19%†312
Associate degree16%†268
Bachelor's degree14%†232
Graduate degree10%†171

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Graduate degree (+7.7 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 B15003View 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.

Income

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

Household income

1,049 households (±162)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k19%†204
$25k–50k25%†258
$50k–75k18%†187
$75k–100k11%†118
$100k–150k15%†161
$150k–200k9.6%†101
$200k or more1.9%†20

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

1,049 households (±162)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own71%743
Rent29%†306

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

293 households (±104)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $75018%†54
$750–1,00031%†91
$1,000–1,50017%†49

Home values

743 homes (±178)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $150k43%†319
$150k–250k36%†267
$250k–400k15%†115

Age of homes

1,134 homes (±162)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

2010 or later10%†118
2000–20098.7%†99
1980–199920%†225

Size of homes

1,134 homes (±162)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Studio0.4%†5
1 bedroom9.2%†104
2 bedrooms30%†342

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

1,573 workers (±282)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone81%1,280
Carpool12%†184
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.8%†12
Bike0.0%0
Work from home6.2%†97
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+4.9 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

1,476 workers (±277)

Haw River, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under 15 min17%†251
15–29 min42%†614
30–44 min21%†308

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 Burlington, 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 Alamance County, the county holding most of Haw River's residents.

Alamance County has 3,652 employer establishments, 204 for every 10,000 residents (0.82× the US rate of 248; 0.86× North Carolina's), with 61,726 paid employees at an average annual pay of $49,886. The Census Bureau also counts 13,489 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,652; 13,489 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 204; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 61,726
Average annual pay: $49,886; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	321	17.9	0.97×About typical	7,032	$19,205	72
Specialty trade contractors	296	16.5	1.07×About typical	2,464	$59,744	1,215
Ambulatory health care services	242	13.5	0.65×Fewer than typical	8,276	$80,552	491
Lessors of real estate	149	8.3	0.67×Fewer than typical	388	$43,381	1,108
Religious organizations	146	8.1	1.47×More than typical	1,019	$25,320	—
Limited-service restaurants	144	8	1.00×About typical	3,544	$18,086	23
Full-service restaurants	139	7.7	1.01×About typical	2,974	$21,058	33
Building equipment contractors	128	7.1	1.19×About typical	1,273	$53,946	281
Services to buildings and dwellings	125	7	1.03×About typical	781	$34,291	1,072
Construction of buildings	104	5.8	0.77×Fewer than typical	404	$47,785	462
Clothing and accessories stores	96	5.4	1.48×More than typical	1,318	$18,004	122
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	79	4.4	1.40×More than typical	708	$77,527	215

Rank places for an industry Open Alamance County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 179,369 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 $7,755 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Haw River, North Carolina: $2.75 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $7,755; −78% vs FY2025
Per resident: $2.75; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.0%; 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

Federal Prison Industries / Unicor$7,755100%

Top recipients

INTERSTATE NARROW FABRICS, INC.$7,755100%

Spending by fiscal year

38.8KFY2017
81.8KFY2018
52.4KFY2019
27KFY2020
8.8KFY2021
71.3KFY2022
67.7KFY2023
19.8KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Fabric mills · 3132$7,755100%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 Haw River, North Carolina, so they do not add up across cities.

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

See federal money in Alamance 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.

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

House

Richard HudsonR-NC-9 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.2%

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.

Alamance County50100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Burlington, NC49

Other cities and towns in Alamance 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/3730260

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends