City · Surry County, North Carolina

Mount Airy, North Carolina

Mount Airy is a city in Surry County, North Carolina, part of the Mount Airy, NC metro area. It has 10,633 residents. Mount Airy, North Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 27 out of 100 (low), ranking #11,501 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Carolina it ranks #307 of 458 cities and towns. It ranks best on average commute time (low), social associations (high) and pharmacies (high). It ranks worst on suicide rate (high), income inequality (Gini index) (high) and firearm deaths (high).

27Low

Quality-of-life score: #11,501 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Carolina: #307 of 458 in NC
Population: 10,633 (2020-2024)
Land area: 12 mi²
Density: 903.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 3744800

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.

Safety24#11,845/15,637
Economy10#14,047/15,631
Housing53#7,017/14,977
Health5#14,900/15,609
Healthcare19#12,730/15,650
Environment79#3,236/15,453
Education55#6,974/15,649
Infrastructure30#10,925/15,650
Community54#7,132/15,651
Leisure & amenities36#10,004/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Average commute time · low17.8 min
91/100North Carolina 25.1 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Social associations · high13.7 /10k
85/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSurry County value
Pharmacies · high2.2 /10k
82/100North Carolina 1.6 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSurry County value
Reading scores · high3.22
80/100North Carolina 3.07United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSurry County value
High ozone days · low0 days
76/100North Carolina 1 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySurry County value
Child care cost burden · low25.3%
73/100North Carolina 25.1%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSurry County value

Weaknesses

Suicide rate · high30.8 /100k
3/100North Carolina 14.7 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSurry County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.522
3/100North Carolina 0.477United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Firearm deaths · high28.0 /100k
3/100North Carolina 16.2 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSurry County value
Poverty rate · high26.9%
6/100North Carolina 12.6%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Median household income · low$40,275
6/100North Carolina $74,055United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Dental care shortage · high18.0
6/100North Carolina 11.5United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSurry County value

Trends

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

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
63.3% (2015-2019) → 84.1% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
45.5% (2015-2019) → 37.1% (2020-2024)
−8.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
49.9% (2015-2019) → 46.8% (2020-2024)
−3.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
82.3% (2015-2019) → 85.4% (2020-2024)
+3.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
4.0× (2015-2019) → 4.5× (2020-2024)
+13%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Bachelor's degree or higherWorsening
25.5% (2015-2019) → 23.1% (2020-2024)
−2.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

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, Mount Airy, North Carolina improved on 1 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 13 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.

Improved1

Broadband+21 points63.3% → 84.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Mount Airy, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.7 min2015-2019	17.8 min2020-2024	−1.9 min	Within the margin of error	70%
Bachelor's degree or higher	25.5%2015-2019	23.1%2020-2024	−2.4 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Broadband subscriptions	63.3%2015-2019	84.1%2020-2024	+21 points	Improved	91%
Child poverty rate	45.5%2015-2019	37.1%2020-2024	−8.4 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Effective property tax rate	1.08%2015-2019	0.79%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Little change	74%
High school diploma or higher	82.3%2015-2019	85.4%2020-2024	+3.1 points	Within the margin of error	69%
Home price to income ratio	4.0×2015-2019	4.5×2020-2024	+0.5×	Within the margin of error	46%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5392015-2019	0.5222020-2024	−0.017	Within the margin of error	65%
Median household income	$38,5152015-2019	$40,2752020-2024	+4.6%	Within the margin of error	11%
Poverty rate	26.2%2015-2019	26.9%2020-2024	+0.7 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	30.0%2015-2019	29.0%2020-2024	−1 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Rent-burdened households	49.9%2015-2019	46.8%2020-2024	−3.1 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Unemployment rate	6.3%2015-2019	4.1%2020-2024	−2.2 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	15.3%2015-2019	13.6%2020-2024	−1.7 points	Within the margin of error	66%

“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 Mount Airy, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Mount Airy, 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, Mount Airy, 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

10,633 residents (±48)

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

4,865 households (±346)

Mount Airy, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k30%1,466
$25k–50k31%1,489
$50k–75k14%665

Homes

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

Owners and renters

4,865 households (±346)

Mount Airy, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own55%2,697
Rent45%2,168

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

4,107 workers (±398)

Mount Airy, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone80%3,278
Carpool13%†524
Public transit0.0%0

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 Mount Airy, 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 Surry County, the county holding most of Mount Airy's residents.

Surry County has 1,661 employer establishments, 232 for every 10,000 residents (0.93× the US rate of 248; 0.98× North Carolina's), with 32,143 paid employees at an average annual pay of $55,697. The Census Bureau also counts 5,614 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,661; 5,614 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 232; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 32,143
Average annual pay: $55,697; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	133	18.6	1.01×About typical	2,577	$17,702	23
Specialty trade contractors	128	17.9	1.16×About typical	993	$50,269	606
Ambulatory health care services	121	16.9	0.81×About typical	1,433	$69,142	148
Religious organizations	81	11.3	2.04×More than typical	324	$19,392	—
Full-service restaurants	65	9.1	1.18×About typical	1,266	$18,659	7
Construction of buildings	58	8.1	1.07×About typical	368	$59,522	352
Truck transportation	57	8	1.58×More than typical	978	$66,501	102
Limited-service restaurants	53	7.4	0.92×About typical	1,155	$16,740	9
Building equipment contractors	47	6.6	1.09×About typical	490	$49,461	94
Lessors of real estate	45	6.3	0.51×Fewer than typical	95	$39,747	527
Offices of physicians	44	6.1	0.95×About typical	554	$99,901	26
Services to buildings and dwellings	42	5.9	0.87×About typical	149	$31,161	463

Rank places for an industry Open Surry County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 71,564 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 $46.3K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Mount Airy, North Carolina: $4.36 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $46.3K; −81% vs FY2025
Per resident: $4.36; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 1.3%; 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$46.3K100%

Top recipients

EQUIPMENT SOLUTIONS & PERSONNEL, L.L.C.$46.3K100.0%
VIGILANT CYBER SYSTEMS, INC.$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

31.8KFY2017
49.3KFY2018
131.7KFY2019
58.4KFY2020
61.4KFY2021
58.2KFY2022
111.8KFY2023
210.8K

Top industries (NAICS)

Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$21.8K47%
Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$19.6K42%
Other textile product mills · 3149$3,3947.3%
Commercial and service industry machinery manufacturing · 3333$1,0872.3%
Hardware manufacturing · 3325$3030.7%
Rubber product manufacturing · 3262$1210.3%

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

Mount Airy, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Surry County, NC ($646.6K in FY2026), never added to them: 7.2% of that total.

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

See federal money in Surry 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.

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

House

Virginia FoxxR-NC-5 · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 0.4%

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.

Surry County38100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Mount Airy, NC31

Other cities and towns in Surry 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/3744800

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends