Scores by category

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

Safety19#12,657/15,637
Economy43#8,950/15,631
Housing50#7,529/14,977
Health26#11,577/15,609
Healthcare40#9,403/15,650
Environment78#3,444/15,453
Education31#10,787/15,649
Infrastructure42#9,041/15,650
Community60#6,327/15,651
Leisure & amenities59#6,356/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Unemployment rate · low1.1%
91/100North Carolina 3.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Social associations · high14.6 /10k
90/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCatawba County value
Child care cost burden · low21.7%
89/100North Carolina 25.1%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCatawba County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.49%
88/100North Carolina 0.66%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Days with unhealthy air · low0.0%
84/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyCatawba County value
Natural hazard risk · low12.3
80/100North Carolina 45.12025Federal Emergency Management AgencyCatawba County value

Weaknesses

Hospital quality rating · low2.0
9/100North Carolina 3.3United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCatawba County value
Drug overdose deaths · high29.2 /100k
10/100North Carolina 20.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataCatawba County value
Homicide rate · high7.3 /100k
16/100North Carolina 6.9 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataCatawba County value
Life expectancy · low74.1 yrs
19/100North Carolina 76.1 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCatawba County value
Time spent in the emergency room · high204 min
20/100North Carolina 189 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCatawba County value
Premature death · high10,938 /100k
20/100North Carolina 9,400 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCatawba County value

Trends

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

Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
30.1% (2015-2019) → 60.6% (2020-2024)
+31 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
23.5% (2015-2019) → 35.9% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Unemployment rateImproving
10.5% (2015-2019) → 1.1% (2020-2024)
−9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
81.0% (2015-2019) → 90.4% (2020-2024)
+9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
13.2% (2015-2019) → 22.4% (2020-2024)
+9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
18.4% (2015-2019) → 25.7% (2020-2024)
+7.4 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, St. Stephens, North Carolina improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 7 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.

Improved4

Unemployment−9.4 points10.5% → 1.1%
Bachelor's++7.4 points18.4% → 25.7%
Broadband+9.4 points81.0% → 90.4%
Household income+25%$48,231 → $60,394

Declined3

Rent burden+31 points30.1% → 60.6%
Rent / income+12 points23.5% → 35.9%
Price / income+0.8×2.7× → 3.5×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of St. Stephens, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.6 min2015-2019	22.3 min2020-2024	+1.6 min	Within the margin of error	30%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.4%2015-2019	25.7%2020-2024	+7.4 points	Improved	81%
Broadband subscriptions	81.0%2015-2019	90.4%2020-2024	+9.4 points	Improved	57%
Child poverty rate	13.2%2015-2019	22.4%2020-2024	+9.2 points	Within the margin of error	13%
Effective property tax rate	0.72%2015-2019	0.49%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	64%
High school diploma or higher	83.2%2015-2019	85.8%2020-2024	+2.6 points	Within the margin of error	64%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	3.5×2020-2024	+0.8×	Declined	31%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4322015-2019	0.4562020-2024	+0.023	Within the margin of error	31%
Median household income	$48,2312015-2019	$60,3942020-2024	+25%	Improved	45%
Poverty rate	9.8%2015-2019	16.2%2020-2024	+6.4 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Rent as share of income	23.5%2015-2019	35.9%2020-2024	+12 points	Declined	6%
Rent-burdened households	30.1%2015-2019	60.6%2020-2024	+31 points	Declined	3%
Unemployment rate	10.5%2015-2019	1.1%2020-2024	−9.4 points	Improved	99%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	13.3%2015-2019	10.8%2020-2024	−2.5 points	Within the margin of error	73%

“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 St. Stephens, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of St. Stephens, 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, St. Stephens, North Carolina itself moved −15.1 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

9,457 residents (±913)

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: 20–29 women (−3.1 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

9,457 residents (±913)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

White65%6,182
Black4.4%†417
Hispanic or Latino17%†1,581
Asian4.9%†460
American Indian and Alaska Native0.0%0
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races8.6%†817

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Other or two or more races (+8.4 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

6,748 residents (±723)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

No high school diploma14%†959
High school or GED30%2,044
Some college17%1,116
Associate degree13%†892
Bachelor's degree20%1,331
Graduate degree6.0%†406

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Bachelor's degree (+6.2 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

3,969 households (±454)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k21%†815
$25k–50k22%885
$50k–75k19%758
$75k–100k12%†485
$100k–150k17%†668
$150k–200k5.2%†205
$200k or more3.9%†153

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $100k–150k (+8.2 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 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

3,969 households (±454)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own84%3,318
Rent16%651

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+12.9 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

627 households (±176)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $75029%†183
$750–1,00029%†180
$1,000–1,50040%†

Home values

3,318 homes (±447)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $150k28%917
$150k–250k39%1,304
$250k–400k22%745

Age of homes

4,179 homes (±458)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

2010 or later5.4%†225
2000–200913%†525
1980–199925%1,029

Size of homes

4,179 homes (±458)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom2.0%†85
2 bedrooms22%917

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

4,350 workers (±660)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone88%3,814
Carpool5.7%†246
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home5.5%†241
Other1.1%†49

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+4.3 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

4,109 workers (±627)

St. Stephens, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under 15 min27%1,089
15–29 min53%2,182
30–44 min9.9%†406

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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, 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 Catawba County, the county holding most of St. Stephens's residents.

Catawba County has 4,349 employer establishments, 264 for every 10,000 residents (1.06× the US rate of 248; 1.11× North Carolina's), with 85,704 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,893. The Census Bureau also counts 13,133 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,349; 13,133 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 264; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 85,704
Average annual pay: $52,893; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	328	19.9	1.08×About typical	6,954	$20,052	64
Ambulatory health care services	276	16.7	0.80×About typical	4,500	$65,692	545
Specialty trade contractors	270	16.4	1.06×About typical	1,979	$56,185	949
Religious organizations	205	12.4	2.24×More than typical	1,278	$22,930	—
Lessors of real estate	195	11.8	0.96×About typical	647	$38,015	1,420
Limited-service restaurants	141	8.6	1.07×About typical	2,873	$18,551	28
Full-service restaurants	132	8	1.04×About typical	3,411	$22,074	20
Construction of buildings	122	7.4	0.98×About typical	542	$70,411	479
Services to buildings and dwellings	114	6.9	1.03×About typical	709	$35,347	1,027
Building equipment contractors	113	6.9	1.14×About typical	1,045	$57,071	167
Truck transportation	112	6.8	1.34×More than typical	2,877	$56,303	276
Automotive repair and maintenance	105	6.4	1.26×More than typical	630	$46,238	250

Rank places for an industry Open Catawba County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 164,901 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 $369.2K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in St. Stephens, North Carolina: $39.04 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $369.2K; −3.8% vs FY2025
Per resident: $39.04; US $1,994
Sole-source: 61%; US 30%
Single offer: 39%; 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

Department of State$257.8K70%
Department of Veterans Affairs$106.9K29%
Social Security Administration$29.2K7.9%
Department of the Navy$6,7021.8%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$79.010.0%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

190.8KFY2017
511.3KFY2018
562.6KFY2019
305.4KFY2020
601.8KFY2021
657.5KFY2022
914.6KFY2023
392.3K

Top industries (NAICS)

Household and institutional furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing · 3371$179.5K49%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$106.9K29%
Office furniture (including fixtures) manufacturing · 3372$69.1K19%
Business support services · 5614$29.2K7.9%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$11K3.0%
Communications equipment manufacturing · 3342

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

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

See federal money in Catawba 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.

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

House

Pat HarriganR-NC-10 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.8%

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.

Catawba County63100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC46

Other cities and towns in Catawba 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/3758730

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends