City · Person County, North Carolina

Roxboro, North Carolina

Roxboro is a city in Person County, North Carolina, part of the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area. It has 8,182 residents. Roxboro, North Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 11 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,976 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Carolina it ranks #416 of 458 cities and towns. It ranks best on social associations (high), drinking water violations (low) and job growth (high). It ranks worst on firearm deaths (high), poverty rate (high) and suicide rate (high).

11Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,976 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Carolina: #416 of 458 in NC
Population: 8,182 (2020-2024)
Land area: 8 mi²
Density: 1,040.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 3758160

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 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.

Safety13#13,680/15,637
Economy4#15,038/15,631
Housing24#11,396/14,977
Health8#14,331/15,609
Healthcare15#13,341/15,650
Environment94#912/15,453
Education19#12,695/15,649
Infrastructure12#13,719/15,650
Community47#8,331/15,651
Leisure & amenities12#13,721/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Roxboro, North Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Person 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 · high16.1 /10k
94/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePerson County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100North Carolina 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePerson County value
Job growth · high1.6%
85/100North Carolina 0.8%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataPerson County value
Days with unhealthy air · low0.0%
84/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPerson County value
Child care cost burden · low23.3%
83/100North Carolina 25.1%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePerson County value
Median Air Quality Index · low36
82/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPerson County value

Weaknesses

Firearm deaths · high30.2 /100k
2/100North Carolina 16.2 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataPerson County value
Poverty rate · high33.3%
3/100North Carolina 12.6%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Suicide rate · high30.2 /100k
3/100North Carolina 14.7 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataPerson County value
Median household income · low$36,553
3/100North Carolina $74,055United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Drought exposure · high97%
3/100North Carolina 79%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAPerson County value
Unemployment rate · high13.5%
4/100North Carolina 3.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025

Trends

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

Child poverty rateImproving
69.2% (2015-2019) → 49.5% (2020-2024)
−20 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
70.6% (2015-2019) → 86.1% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.7× (2015-2019) → 4.3× (2020-2024)
+62%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
32.1% (2015-2019) → 37.5% (2020-2024)
+5.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$31,427 (2015-2019) → $36,553 (2020-2024)
+16%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Income inequality (Gini index)Worsening
0.476 (2015-2019) → 0.549 (2020-2024)
+15%5 yearsCensus table B19083US 0.482 → 0.483

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, Roxboro, North Carolina improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 11 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

Child poverty−20 points69.2% → 49.5%
Broadband+16 points70.6% → 86.1%

Declined1

Price / income+1.7×2.7× → 4.3×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Roxboro, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	24.5 min2015-2019	26.1 min2020-2024	+1.6 min	Within the margin of error	31%
Bachelor's degree or higher	12.8%2015-2019	14.1%2020-2024	+1.3 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Broadband subscriptions	70.6%2015-2019	86.1%2020-2024	+16 points	Improved	81%
Child poverty rate	69.2%2015-2019	49.5%2020-2024	−20 points	Improved	93%
Effective property tax rate	1.03%2015-2019	0.89%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	44%
High school diploma or higher	78.5%2015-2019	79.3%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	43%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	4.3×2020-2024	+1.7×	Declined	7%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4762015-2019	0.5492020-2024	+0.074	Within the margin of error	9%
Median household income	$31,4272015-2019	$36,5532020-2024	+16%	Within the margin of error	26%
Poverty rate	34.4%2015-2019	33.3%2020-2024	−1.2 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Rent as share of income	32.1%2015-2019	37.5%2020-2024	+5.4 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Rent-burdened households	59.2%2015-2019	60.9%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Within the margin of error	50%
Unemployment rate	12.1%2015-2019	13.5%2020-2024	+1.4 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	19.3%2015-2019	20.1%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	36%

“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 Roxboro, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Roxboro, 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, Roxboro, North Carolina itself moved −6.5 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

8,182 residents (±23)

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

3,548 households (±311)

Roxboro, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k36%1,278
$25k–50k29%†1,038
$50k–75k12%†

Homes

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

Owners and renters

3,548 households (±311)

Roxboro, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own51%1,799
Rent49%1,749

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

3,093 workers (±353)

Roxboro, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone76%2,346
Carpool9.6%†296
Public transit1.5%†

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 Durham-Chapel Hill, 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 Person County, the county holding most of Roxboro's residents.

Person County has 725 employer establishments, 182 for every 10,000 residents (0.73× the US rate of 248; 0.77× North Carolina's), with 8,458 paid employees at an average annual pay of $43,941. The Census Bureau also counts 2,752 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 725; 2,752 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 182; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 8,458
Average annual pay: $43,941; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	60	15.1	0.97×About typical	545	$55,209	271
Religious organizations	53	13.3	2.40×More than typical	207	$16,034	—
Restaurants and other eating places	46	11.6	0.63×Fewer than typical	949	$17,681	12
Ambulatory health care services	41	10.3	0.49×Fewer than typical	414	$68,833	109
Building equipment contractors	31	7.8	1.29×More than typical	218	$51,761	56
Services to buildings and dwellings	31	7.8	1.15×About typical	83	$29,193	290
Construction of buildings	27	6.8	0.90×About typical	64	$58,563	146
Gasoline stations	26	6.5	2.01×More than typical	143	$20,909	—
Limited-service restaurants	26	6.5	0.81×About typical	502	$18,839	6
Automotive repair and maintenance	23	5.8	1.15×About typical	83	$43,349	74
Landscaping services	22	5.5	1.58×More than typical	49	$30,265	135
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	19	4.8	1.44×More than typical	131	$50,580	24

Rank places for an industry Open Person County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 39,819 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 -$16.5K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Roxboro, North Carolina: -$2.01 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$16.5K; −117% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$2.01; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

NORTH AMERICAN AERODYNAMICS, INC.-$16.5K0.0%

Spending by fiscal year

935.1KFY2017
327.1KFY2018
1.3MFY2019
495.1KFY2020
283.2KFY2021
3.4MFY2022
-398.9KFY2023
0FY2024
95.1K

What was bought

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

Roxboro, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Person County, NC ($867.2K 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: Roxboro is mostly in Person County.

See federal money in Person 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.

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

House

Brad KnottR-NC-13 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.6%

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.

Person County33100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Durham-Chapel Hill, NC83

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/3758160

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends