City · Union County, North Carolina

Monroe, North Carolina

Monroe is a city in Union County, North Carolina, part of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area. It has 36,759 residents. Monroe, North Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 54 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #7,253 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Carolina it ranks #170 of 458 cities and towns. It ranks best on new homes permitted (high), child care cost burden (low) and voter turnout (high). It ranks worst on public libraries (low), drought exposure (high) and uninsured residents (under 65) (high).

54Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #7,253 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Carolina: #170 of 458 in NC
Population: 36,759 (2020-2024)
Land area: 33 mi²
Density: 1,116.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 3743920

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 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.

Safety67#5,166/15,637
Economy54#7,248/15,631
Housing60#5,934/14,977
Health57#6,739/15,609
Healthcare35#10,157/15,650
Environment60#6,196/15,453
Education57#6,669/15,649
Infrastructure33#10,544/15,650
Community59#6,412/15,651
Leisure & amenities38#9,680/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

New homes permitted · high29.6 /1k
98/100North Carolina 8.0 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Child care cost burden · low18.5%
97/100North Carolina 25.1%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteUnion County value
Voter turnout · high81.0%
97/100North Carolina 72.9%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionUnion County value
Reading scores · high3.34
91/100North Carolina 3.07United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteUnion County value
Math scores · high3.41
91/100North Carolina 3.06United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteUnion County value
Job growth · high2.0%
88/100North Carolina 0.8%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataUnion County value

Weaknesses

Public libraries · low0.2 /10k
2/100North Carolina 0.4 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesUnion County value
Drought exposure · high97%
3/100North Carolina 79%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAUnion County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · high18.6%
8/100North Carolina 10.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Dentists · low34 /100k
15/100North Carolina 62 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteUnion County value
Restaurants and bars · low5.6 /10k
15/100North Carolina 8.8 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsUnion County value
Public EV charging ports · low1.5 /10k
16/100North Carolina 5.2 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyUnion County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedImproving
16.1 /1k (2021) → 29.7 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+84%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateImproving
28.1% (2015-2019) → 18.9% (2020-2024)
−9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$51,754 (2015-2019) → $72,540 (2020-2024)
+40%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
85.1% (2015-2019) → 92.6% (2020-2024)
+7.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
16.9% (2015-2019) → 24.1% (2020-2024)
+7.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
3.2× (2015-2019) → 4.3× (2020-2024)
+34%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×

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, Monroe, North Carolina improved on 6 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 5 moved within the margin of error and 1 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.

Improved6

Unemployment−3.9 points8.6% → 4.6%
Child poverty−9.2 points28.1% → 18.9%
Bachelor's++7.2 points16.9% → 24.1%
Poverty−4.6 points17.9% → 13.3%
Household income+40%$51,754 → $72,540

Declined2

Commute+4.4 min25.7 min → 30.1 min
Price / income+1.1×3.2× → 4.3×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Monroe, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.7 min2015-2019	30.1 min2020-2024	+4.4 min	Declined	12%
Bachelor's degree or higher	16.9%2015-2019	24.1%2020-2024	+7.2 points	Improved	80%
Broadband subscriptions	85.1%2015-2019	92.6%2020-2024	+7.5 points	Improved	47%
Child poverty rate	28.1%2015-2019	18.9%2020-2024	−9.2 points	Improved	80%
Effective property tax rate	0.97%2015-2019	0.70%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Little change	69%
High school diploma or higher	78.0%2015-2019	82.6%2020-2024	+4.6 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	4.3×2020-2024	+1.1×	Declined	19%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4092015-2019	0.4222020-2024	+0.012	Within the margin of error	40%
Median household income	$51,7542015-2019	$72,5402020-2024	+40%	Improved	74%
Poverty rate	17.9%2015-2019	13.3%2020-2024	−4.6 points	Improved	78%
Rent as share of income	32.5%2015-2019	29.6%2020-2024	−2.9 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Rent-burdened households	55.2%2015-2019	49.1%2020-2024	−6.1 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Unemployment rate	8.6%2015-2019	4.6%2020-2024	−3.9 points	Improved	93%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	21.3%2015-2019	18.6%2020-2024	−2.7 points	Within the margin of error	74%

“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 Monroe, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Monroe, 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, Monroe, North Carolina itself moved +4 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

36,759 residents (±42)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79
60–69

Income

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

Household income

12,620 households (±581)

Monroe, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k14%1,805
$25k–50k22%2,788
$50k–75k16%2,021

Homes

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

Owners and renters

12,620 households (±581)

Monroe, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own62%7,771
Rent38%4,849

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

17,394 workers (±820)

Monroe, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone75%13,067
Carpool15%2,576
Public transit0.0%†1

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 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC

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 Union County, the county holding most of Monroe's residents.

Union County has 5,732 employer establishments, 223 for every 10,000 residents (0.90× the US rate of 248; 0.94× North Carolina's), with 66,082 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,261. The Census Bureau also counts 26,484 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 5,732; 26,484 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 223; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 66,082
Average annual pay: $53,261; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	652	25.3	1.64×More than typical	6,081	$66,398	2,036
Restaurants and other eating places	320	12.4	0.68×Fewer than typical	6,250	$19,203	99
Lessors of real estate	303	11.8	0.96×About typical	485	$47,538	2,612
Ambulatory health care services	299	11.6	0.56×Fewer than typical	2,665	$69,504	1,040
Services to buildings and dwellings	295	11.5	1.70×More than typical	1,777	$50,808	1,674
Construction of buildings	275	10.7	1.41×More than typical	1,317	$87,826	1,053
Building equipment contractors	246	9.6	1.59×More than typical	3,076	$66,771	367
Truck transportation	204	7.9	1.57×More than typical	1,041	$54,207	1,073
Management, scientific and technical consulting	191	7.4	1.11×About typical	349	$69,877	1,014
Real estate agents and brokers	191	7.4	1.52×More than typical	260	$51,850	863
Landscaping services	178	6.9	1.97×More than typical	1,105	$55,823	631
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	165	6.4	2.03×More than typical	1,482	$67,307	399

Rank places for an industry Open Union County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 257,474 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 $2.9M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Monroe, North Carolina: $80.23 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $2.9M; −79% vs FY2025
Per resident: $80.23; US $1,994
Sole-source: 41%; US 30%
Single offer: 11%; 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

Defense Logistics Agency$1.6M55%
Department of the Navy$980.7K33%
U.S. Coast Guard$293.6K10.0%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$118.3K4.0%
Department of the Army$45.1K1.5%
Bureau of Reclamation$28.7K1.0%
Department of Veterans Affairs$20.1K0.7%
Department of State$6,4030.2%

Top recipients

SCOTT TECHNOLOGIES, INC.$1.6M54%
CIRCOR PUMPS NORTH AMERICA LLC$596.8K20%
FAIRWINDS TECHNOLOGIES LLC$342.8K12%
SAFRAN ELECTRONICS & DEFENSE, AVIONICS USA, LLC$257K8.7%
ORO MANUFACTURING CO$121.9K4.1%

Spending by fiscal year

4.6MFY2017
6.8MFY2018
4.7MFY2019
3.6MFY2020
4MFY2021
4.5MFY2022
6.2MFY2023
6M

Top industries (NAICS)

Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$832.2K28%
Boiler, tank, and shipping container manufacturing · 3324$597.5K20%
Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$346.7K12%
Semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing · 3344$340.7K12%
Support activities for air transportation · 4881$257K8.7%
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$213.6K

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 Monroe, North Carolina, so they do not add up across cities.

Monroe, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Union County, NC ($18.8M in FY2026), never added to them: 16% of that total.

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

See federal money in Union 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.

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

House

Mark HarrisR-NC-8 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 0.0%

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.

Union County87100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC75

Other cities and towns in Union 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
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
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/3743920

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends