Census-designated place · McDowell County, North Carolina

West Marion, North Carolina

West Marion is a census-designated place in McDowell County, North Carolina, part of the Marion, NC metro area. It has 1,066 residents. West Marion, North Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 30 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,922 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Carolina it ranks #281 of 458 cities and towns. It ranks best on unemployment rate (low), effective property tax rate (low) and income inequality (Gini index) (low). It ranks worst on median household income (low), drug overdose deaths (high) and primary care shortage (high).

30Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,922 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Carolina: #281 of 458 in NC
Population: 1,066 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 705.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 3772600

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.

Safety32#10,572/15,637
Economy28#11,217/15,631
Housing49#7,661/14,977
Health13#13,620/15,609
Healthcare32#10,671/15,650
Environment82#2,787/15,453
Education25#11,702/15,649
Infrastructure46#8,390/15,650
Community61#6,149/15,651
Leisure & amenities15#13,350/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where West Marion, North Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “McDowell 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 · low0.0%
98/100North Carolina 3.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Effective property tax rate · low0.32%
97/100North Carolina 0.66%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090High uncertainty
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.328
84/100North Carolina 0.477United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low6.5 µg/m³
82/100North Carolina 7.5 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMcDowell County value
Mammography screening · high52.0%
81/100North Carolina 50.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMcDowell County value
Social associations · high12.5 /10k
80/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMcDowell County value

Weaknesses

Median household income · low$36,715
4/100North Carolina $74,055United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Drug overdose deaths · high31.2 /100k
8/100North Carolina 20.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMcDowell County value
Primary care shortage · high17.0
9/100North Carolina 9.8United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationMcDowell County value
Average weekly wage · low$936
9/100North Carolina $1,376United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMcDowell County value
Property crime rate · high2,146 /100k
11/100North Carolina 1,780 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationMcDowell County value
Depression · high28.7%
14/100North Carolina 24.8%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
1,392 (2015-2019) → 1,066 (2020-2024)
−23%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
76.4% (2015-2019) → 90.8% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
6.1% (2015-2019) → 19.8% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
55.0% (2015-2019) → 68.6% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.7× (2015-2019) → 4.4× (2020-2024)
+61%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
12.6% (2015-2019) → 3.8% (2020-2024)
−8.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, West Marion, North Carolina improved on 0 of 9 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 9 measures

Change of every measure of West Marion, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.5 min2015-2019	19.2 min2020-2024	−2.3 min	Within the margin of error	74%
Bachelor's degree or higher	9.1%2015-2019	15.7%2020-2024	+6.5 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Broadband subscriptions	76.4%2015-2019	90.8%2020-2024	+14 points	Within the margin of error	78%
High school diploma or higher	90.5%2015-2019	87.3%2020-2024	−3.2 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	4.4×2020-2024	+1.7×	Within the margin of error	7%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3772015-2019	0.3282020-2024	−0.049	Within the margin of error	83%
Median household income	$35,3132015-2019	$36,7152020-2024	+4%	Within the margin of error	10%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	31.0%2015-2019	33.3%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	38%

“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 West Marion, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of West Marion, 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, West Marion, North Carolina itself moved −0.8 points in standing on average over the same 8 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

1,066 residents (±329)

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: 10–19 men (+11.9 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

1,066 residents (±329)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

White86%†922
Black0.6%†6
Hispanic or Latino13%†

Education

709 residents (±180)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

No high school diploma13%†90
High school or GED28%†199
Some college35%†

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

542 households (±131)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k29%†158
$25k–50k46%†247
$50k–75k17%†94
$75k–100k2.0%†11
$100k–150k5.9%†32
$150k–200k0.0%0
$200k or more0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $75k–100k (−7.2 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

542 households (±131)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own63%†343
Rent37%†199

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

156 households (±105)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $75017%†26
$750–1,00055%†86
$1,000–1,50028%†

Home values

343 homes (±118)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $150k44%†152
$150k–250k30%†104
$250k–400k22%†

Age of homes

643 homes (±146)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

2010 or later5.3%†34
2000–20094.0%†26
1980–199949%†316

Size of homes

643 homes (±146)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms53%†343

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

377 workers (±142)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone98%†370
Carpool0.0%0
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home1.9%†7
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Carpool (−9.1 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 B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

370 workers (±143)

West Marion, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under 15 min37%†136
15–29 min48%†177
30–44 min8.4%†

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 Marion, 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 McDowell County, the county holding most of West Marion's residents.

McDowell County has 822 employer establishments, 183 for every 10,000 residents (0.74× the US rate of 248; 0.77× North Carolina's), with 13,495 paid employees at an average annual pay of $46,727. The Census Bureau also counts 3,079 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 822; 3,079 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 183; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 13,495
Average annual pay: $46,727; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	73	16.2	0.88×About typical	1,144	$18,423	29
Specialty trade contractors	68	15.1	0.98×About typical	522	$48,205	350
Ambulatory health care services	65	14.5	0.69×Fewer than typical	531	$60,392	141
Religious organizations	51	11.3	2.05×More than typical	305	$25,030	—
Limited-service restaurants	34	7.6	0.94×About typical	717	$19,153	9
Services to buildings and dwellings	33	7.3	1.09×About typical	122	$36,590	354
Construction of buildings	32	7.1	0.94×About typical	115	$54,417	149
Building equipment contractors	31	6.9	1.15×About typical	206	$48,602	49
Full-service restaurants	30	6.7	0.87×About typical	387	$16,899	13
Lessors of real estate	30	6.7	0.54×Fewer than typical	43	$36,698	260
Gasoline stations	23	5.1	1.58×More than typical	208	$30,721	3
Offices of physicians	23	5.1	0.79×Fewer than typical	165	$96,121	22

Rank places for an industry Open McDowell County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 44,946 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in McDowell 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.

West Marion, 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.

McDowell County38100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Marion, NC36

Other cities and towns in McDowell 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/3772600