Scores by category

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

Safety53#7,303/15,637
Economy22#12,244/15,631
Housing49#7,569/14,977
Health22#12,117/15,609
Healthcare25#11,694/15,650
Environment95#779/15,453
Education55#6,967/15,649
Infrastructure22#12,160/15,650
Community99#235/15,651
Leisure & amenities23#12,116/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Access to exercise opportunities · high100.0%
100/100North Carolina 78.0%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMitchell County value
Hot days · low0 days
100/100North Carolina 32 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMitchell County value
Social associations · high16.7 /10k
95/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMitchell County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100North Carolina 6.9 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMitchell County value
Median Air Quality Index · low31
92/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMitchell County value
Pharmacies · high2.7 /10k
92/100North Carolina 1.6 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMitchell County value

Weaknesses

Grocery stores · low0.7 /10k
4/100North Carolina 1.8 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMitchell County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.0 /10k
4/100North Carolina 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMitchell County value
Median household income · low$42,098
7/100North Carolina $74,055United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Uninsured residents (under 65) · high21.8%
8/100North Carolina 10.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.534
10/100North Carolina 0.477United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Drug overdose deaths · high27.9 /100k
12/100North Carolina 20.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataMitchell County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
2,273 (2015-2019) → 2,398 (2020-2024)
+5.5%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
15.0% (2015-2019) → 24.4% (2020-2024)
+9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
3.8× (2015-2019) → 4.9× (2020-2024)
+31%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
40.8% (2015-2019) → 46.8% (2020-2024)
+5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
79.8% (2015-2019) → 85.1% (2020-2024)
+5.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
38.6% (2015-2019) → 43.2% (2020-2024)
+4.6 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, Spruce Pine, North Carolina improved on 1 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 12 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.

Improved1

Bachelor's++9.4 points15.0% → 24.4%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Spruce Pine, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.0 min2015-2019	21.7 min2020-2024	+2.8 min	Within the margin of error	21%
Bachelor's degree or higher	15.0%2015-2019	24.4%2020-2024	+9.4 points	Improved	88%
Broadband subscriptions	79.8%2015-2019	85.1%2020-2024	+5.3 points	Within the margin of error	33%
Child poverty rate	38.6%2015-2019	43.2%2020-2024	+4.6 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Effective property tax rate	0.63%2015-2019	0.64%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	15%
High school diploma or higher	83.6%2015-2019	81.0%2020-2024	−2.6 points	Within the margin of error	12%
Home price to income ratio	3.8×2015-2019	4.9×2020-2024	+1.2×	Within the margin of error	17%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4622015-2019	0.5342020-2024	+0.072	Within the margin of error	10%
Median household income	$40,9132015-2019	$42,0982020-2024	+2.9%	Within the margin of error	10%
Poverty rate	24.3%2015-2019	22.5%2020-2024	−1.8 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Rent as share of income	27.0%2015-2019	29.3%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Rent-burdened households	40.8%2015-2019	46.8%2020-2024	+5.9 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	25.8%2015-2019	21.8%2020-2024	−4.1 points	Within the margin of error	82%

“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 Spruce Pine, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Spruce Pine, 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, Spruce Pine, North Carolina itself moved −10 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

2,398 residents (±451)

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 women (+5.8 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

2,398 residents (±451)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

White83%1,986
Black0.8%†19
Hispanic or Latino12%†285
Asian0.3%†6
American Indian and Alaska Native0.5%†13
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races3.7%†89

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 B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

1,801 residents (±289)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

No high school diploma19%†342
High school or GED23%†421
Some college24%†431
Associate degree9.3%†168
Bachelor's degree13%†230
Graduate degree12%†209

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Associate degree (−12.4 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 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

1,111 households (±207)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k28%†312
$25k–50k28%†312
$50k–75k17%†185
$75k–100k11%†118
$100k–150k7.4%†82
$150k–200k5.0%†55
$200k or more4.2%†47

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

1,111 households (±207)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own64%715
Rent36%†396

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

344 households (±122)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $75042%†143
$750–1,00024%†83
$1,000–1,50024%†83

Home values

715 homes (±160)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $150k36%†260
$150k–250k31%†219
$250k–400k23%†

Age of homes

1,228 homes (±207)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

2010 or later3.7%†45
2000–20091.4%†17
1980–199929%†350

Size of homes

1,228 homes (±207)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom12%†152
2 bedrooms37%†453

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

1,047 workers (±275)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone81%844
Carpool15%†162
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home3.9%†41
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (+7.8 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

1,006 workers (±257)

Spruce Pine, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under 15 min40%†407
15–29 min41%†412
30–44 min3.9%†

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

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 Mitchell County, the county holding most of Spruce Pine's residents.

Mitchell County has 371 employer establishments, 247 for every 10,000 residents (1.00× the US rate of 248; 1.04× North Carolina's), with 4,297 paid employees at an average annual pay of $46,680. The Census Bureau also counts 1,202 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 371; 1,202 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 247; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 4,297
Average annual pay: $46,680; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	34	22.6	1.09×About typical	542	$36,474	42
Restaurants and other eating places	27	18	0.98×About typical	335	$18,072	5
Specialty trade contractors	27	18	1.16×About typical	162	$42,716	119
Religious organizations	25	16.7	3.00×More than typical	80	$16,550	—
Offices of physicians	20	13.3	2.06×More than typical	270	$26,885	5
Full-service restaurants	15	10	1.30×More than typical	137	$13,723	4
Truck transportation	12	8	1.58×More than typical	179	$58,492	30
Automotive repair and maintenance	11	7.3	1.46×More than typical	26	$19,615	28
Building equipment contractors	11	7.3	1.22×About typical	100	$40,670	17
Lessors of real estate	11	7.3	0.59×Fewer than typical	70	$28,886	84
Limited-service restaurants	11	7.3	0.91×About typical	198	$20,904	—
Construction of buildings	10	6.7	0.88×About typical	31	$33,548	81

Rank places for an industry Open Mitchell County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 15,013 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 $3M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Spruce Pine, North Carolina: $1,234 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $3M; −73% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1,234; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.4%; 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 Highway Administration$2.9M99.6%
Department of the Army$12.7K0.4%

Top recipients

ECLIPSE COMPANIES, LLC$1.6M52%
BRYANT'S LAND AND DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRIES, INC.$1.4M47%
GOLDBELT GLOBAL LLC$12.7K0.4%
CENTRAL SOUTHERN CONSTRUCTION CORP.$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

8.1KFY2017
14.7KFY2018
12KFY2019
74.8KFY2020
151KFY2021
78.6KFY2022
10.3KFY2023
10.8MFY2025

Top industries (NAICS)

Highway, street, and bridge construction · 2373$2.9M99.6%
Water, sewage and other systems · 2213$12.7K0.4%

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

Spruce Pine, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Mitchell County, NC ($36.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 8.2% of that total.

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

See federal money in Mitchell 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.

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

House

Chuck EdwardsR-NC-11 · 100% of residentsWith party 96%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.

Mitchell County56100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Mitchell County

Largest first.

Bakersville747

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/3764260

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends