28478 Zip Code Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for the zip code 28478, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

28478 is a zip code in Duplin County, Pender County, and Sampson County, North Carolina, which covers Rockfish, Burgaw, Columbia, Holly, Union, and Franklin, with a total population of 5,115 people.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in the 28478 zip code. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in 28478.

The estimated population of people living in 28478 is 5,115, with a median age of 44.7.

We can look back at data from previous years to see how the population in the 28478 area has changed over the last 5 years.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
5,115
+6.5%
+7.50%
2020
4,803
+0.97%
-
2019
4,757
 -6.98% -
2018
5,114
+7.48%
-
2017
4,758
 - -

Population of 28478 by Race and Ethnicity

How much has the race and ethnicity of the population in the 28478 zip code changed? The US Census Bureau gives us a few defined types that the population is broken down into.

Let's look at the total numbers and also the change over the last 5 years.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
65%
62%
 +4.84%
Black/African American
25.7%
32.2%
 -20.19%
Native
0%
0.2%
 -100.00%
Hispanic
9%
4.7%
 +91.49%
Asian
0%
0%
 0.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
0.3%
0.8%
 -62.50%
Other
0%
0%
 0.00%

This data can be very important for anybody studying the 28478 zip for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of 28478 by Age and Gender

We can also monitor the change of the age and gender in the 28478 zip code to track track trends in the population over time.

We can see how the population in 28478 has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 44.7 -0.89% 48.5 -6.01% 37.7 +0.27%
2020 45.1 +9.47% 51.6 +18.08% 37.6 -1.05%
2019 41.2 -9.45% 43.7 -7.22% 38 -15.93%
2018 45.5 +0.22% 47.1 +8.03% 45.2 -3.42%
2017 45.4 - 43.6 - 46.8 -

The median age of the 28478 zip gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population in the 28478 area, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 258 -36.95% 171 +85.31% 170 345
10 to 19 423 -36.48% 411 +25.07% 246 522
20 to 29 244 +23.09% 265 +8.13% 269 268
30 to 39 180 +21.74% 218 +40.92% 213 321
40 to 49 248 +40.1% 292 -21.78% 331 214
50 to 59 345 +22.5% 330 +66.1% 426 558
60 to 69 409 +21.43% 437 -19.21% 477 338
70+ 229 -21.02% 298 -20.99% 181 236

Median Household Income

The latest median household income for the 28478 zip code is $55,689.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less.

The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for 28478.

  • Under 25
    $72,963.00
  • 25 to 44
    $41,250.00
  • 45 to 64
    $74,514.00
  • 65 and over
    $34,453.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in the 28478 zip code, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in 28478, and then dividing that number by the total number of households.

This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of 28478 is currently $68,717.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

2.47% of households in 28478 are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of 28478 against other zip codes.

  • Less than $24,999
    26.00%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    20.22%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    23.33%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    15.27%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    10.68%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    2.03%
  • $200,000 or more
    2.47%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in 28478 is $28,120.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of 28478 by the total population of 28478.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people living in the 28478 area, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in 28478 to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    7.41%
  • Bachelor's degree
    15.79%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    12.39%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    59.19%
  • Less than high school diploma
    5.23%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in 28478 that are over the age of 16.

Currently, the total population of the 28478 zip over the age of 16 is 4,086.

Of those people, a total of 59.50% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in 28478 is 53.50%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate. Here's how that breaks down for the 28478 zip code.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 254 28.70% 57.50%
20 to 24 years 309 84.50% 7.30%
25 to 29 years 228 72.40% 2.50%
30 to 34 years 145 77.20% 7.10%
35 to 44 years 600 88.50% 13.00%
45 to 54 years 857 76.90% 10.20%
55 to 59 years 461 47.50% 9.60%
60 to 64 years 501 64.70% 0.00%
65 to 74 years 475 15.80% 0.00%
75 years and over 256 5.10% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in 28478. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau (which we mentioned earlier in this article).

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 2,924 63.70% 9.40%
Black or African American 979 48.80% 11.20%
American Indian and Alaska Native 36 0.00% 0.00%
Asian 0 0.00% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 133 66.90% 0.00%
Two or more races 14 14.30% 0.00%
Hispanic or Latino 258 65.50% 8.40%
Not Hispanic or Latino 2,836 62.90% 9.10%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations for people living in the 28478 area as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in 28478 is 2,184, with median earnings of $32,434.00.

Women in 28478 are earning approximately 54.80% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 2,184 $32,434.00
Male 1,231 $43,773.00
Female 953 $23,980.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings for 28478 even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 194 $24,286.00
Business and Financial 13 $107,969.00
Computer and Mathematical 8 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 10 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 33 $0.00
Community and Social Service 1 $0.00
Legal 5 $0.00
Educational and Library 51 $46,875.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 11 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 93 $16,250.00
Healthcare Support 115 $29,044.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 27 $0.00
Law Enforcement 28 $44,318.00
Food Preparation and Serving 116 $22,697.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 114 $29,259.00
Personal Care and Service 27 $0.00
Sales 150 $29,405.00
Office and Administrative Support 176 $22,269.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 1 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 150 $37,500.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 385 $58,655.00
Production 143 $31,902.00
Transportation and Material Moving 230 $32,763.00

Occupations by Gender

Now we can also look at the occupations by category for 28478 when it is broken down by male and female.

This lets us see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings for 28478.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 108 $23,571.00 86 $44,773.00
Business and Financial 1 $0.00 12 $108,125.00
Computer and Mathematical 8 $0.00 0 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 10 $0.00 0 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 20 $0.00 13 $0.00
Community and Social Service 1 $0.00 0 $0.00
Legal 0 $0.00 5 $0.00
Educational and Library 20 $65,000.00 31 $46,875.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 11 $0.00 0 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 6 $0.00 87 $15,417.00
Healthcare Support 0 $0.00 115 $29,044.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 27 $0.00 0 $0.00
Law Enforcement 22 $45,000.00 6 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 9 $0.00 107 $22,993.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 49 $0.00 65 $0.00
Personal Care and Service 0 $0.00 27 $0.00
Sales 84 $27,308.00 66 $29,524.00
Office and Administrative Support 6 $0.00 170 $22,154.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 1 $0.00 0 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 111 $44,938.00 39 $4,181.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 374 $58,586.00 11 $0.00
Production 112 $97,500.00 31 $0.00
Transportation and Material Moving 198 $34,868.00 32 $0.00

Households and Family Size

A household is defined by the US Census Bureau as a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 2,023 households in 28478, with an average household size of 2.52 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 1,469 families living in the 28478 zip code with an average family size of 2.91 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each, that live in 28478:

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 1,106 111 252 554
Average Household Size 2.75 3.65 3.65 1.32
Total Families 1,106 111 252 0
Average Household Size 2.75 3.4 3.41 0

Poverty

Of the 1,469 families living in 28478, 14.80% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in 28478:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 2,350 housing units in 28478.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 2,023 86.09%
Vacant 327 13.91%

10.81% of the total 2,350 housing units in 28478 are rental units. This is approximately 254 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 1,726 are occupied by the owner - or 73.45% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in 28478 is $670.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in 28478 that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    43
  • Less than $500
    21
  • $500 to $999
    232
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    1
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    0
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in 28478 is $135,000.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in 28478 that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    160
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    457
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    338
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    297
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    233
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    210
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    28
  • $1,000,000 or more
    3

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in 28478. The chart below shows the number of properties in 28478 that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    275
  • 1940 to 1949
    71
  • 1950 to 1959
    243
  • 1960 to 1969
    116
  • 1970 to 1979
    244
  • 1980 to 1989
    294
  • 1990 to 1999
    493
  • 2000 to 2009
    460
  • 2010 to 2013
    154
  • 2014 or later
    0

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in 28478 that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    112
  • 1 vehicle available
    498
  • 2 vehicles available
    504
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    909

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in 28478 get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in 28478 that commute to work in a particular way.

32.6 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in 28478.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    29
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    251
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    211
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    389
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    93
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    92
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    202
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    95
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    133
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    378
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    138
  • 90 or more minutes
    126

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for 28478 in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

States in 28478

If you want to see how the population and demographics of 28478 compare to other zip codes in North Carolina, check out the list of all North Carolina zip codes below: