Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Clayton is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B overall, 72nd of 286 graded towns in North Carolina, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is incomes: the median household earns $79K. Expect to pay for it: the typical home is worth about $361K, 3.6 years of the Raleigh metro’s $100K median household income. 12% of the land in Clayton is conserved, above both North Carolina’s towns (3.4%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). Its National Register listings include Sanders-Hairr House and Stallings-Carpenter House.
Where Clayton beats most towns.
Census counts: 352 in 1880, 26,307 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1912 and 3 maps from 1964 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Clayton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Clayton. Close and well known come first.
18 mi Stadium & arenaLenovo Center
18 mi Stadium & arenaCarter–Finley Stadium
38 mi Stadium & arenaKenan Memorial Stadium
20 mi Stadium & arenaWakeMed Soccer Park
14 mi MuseumNorth Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
18 mi MuseumNorth Carolina Museum of ArtLenovo Center: Edward T. Funkhouser, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Carter–Finley Stadium: SMaloney, CC BY 3.0 · Kenan Memorial Stadium: Yeungb, CC BY 3.0 · WakeMed Soccer Park: Hameltion, CC BY-SA 4.0 · North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences: Jmturner, Public domain · North Carolina Museum of Art: Justin Doub, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Clayton, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Clayton.
Clayton fares better on crime within North Carolina than nationally and has home values still below their peak.
8.1 miles of trail in 12 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is East Clayton Community Park, 77 acres with 2 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Legend Park | 4.1 mi | 65 |
| 2. East Clayton Community Park | 2 mi | 77 |
| 3. Clayton Community Park | 0.8 mi | 25 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Johnston County Public Schools. Three of its 9 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverwood MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 902 | B |
| Clayton HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,929 | B |
| Johnston Charter AcademyTop results in townGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 677 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
Most working residents leave Clayton for work: only 6% work in town. Clayton’s average trip to work is 31 minutes, above both the North Carolina town median (24 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Since 2013, Clayton has added 1,976 jobs, to 9,592 in 2023.
| Clayton | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 18% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.9% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.6% | 6.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Clayton beats the North Carolina average on 5 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 33% of adults have high blood pressure in Clayton.
| Clayton | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 38% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 12% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 24% | 25% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 16% |
| What stands out | Clayton | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 5.1% | 6.6% |
| Fewer adults with COPD | 5.8% | 7.1% |
| Fewer adults treating high blood pressure | 73.5% | 76.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Clayton has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Clayton is 90°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
People 65 and older are 10% of residents (17% statewide); children under 18 are 26% of residents (22% statewide). Clayton’s median age is 33 years. Clayton has grown 24% since 2020, to 32,633 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Clayton | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 10% | 18% | 18% |
| Median age | 33 years | 40.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 26% | 22% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 40% | 29% | 29% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.7 points. Across North Carolina, 51.1% of residents are women. Median age: women 36.1, men 29.6.
| Clayton | NC | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.2% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.9% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.2% | 13.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.1% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.1% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.3% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 6.6% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 3.6% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.4% | 9.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.1% | 24.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 19% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 13.4% | 13.5% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The typical value, about $361K, is 8% below its August 2022 peak.
The typical Clayton home is worth about $361,000, down 1.6% in a year, 9% above the North Carolina typical home. 63% of Clayton households own their home.
| Clayton | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,661 a month | $1,084 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 63% | 67% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 57% of U.S. communities. Since 1996, 6 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Clayton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 18.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 81% of North Carolina’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 521 to 393 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
6 within 15 miles of the center of Clayton
About 6 of every 100 Clayton residents are enrolled in college, about the same as North Carolina.
16,116 counted in 2010 and 26,307 in 2020; an estimated 32,633 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 24% since 2020, after 63.2% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
5 places in Clayton on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Clayton.
Town in North Carolina, United States
Clayton is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States, and is considered a suburb of Raleigh. As of 2020, Clayton's population was 26,307, up from 16,116 at the 2010 census. By 2024, the town's estimated population was 30,621. Much of that growth can be attributed to the town's proximity to the Research Triangle area and access to major highways such as I-40 and US 70.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Clayton.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clayton | #72 | B | C | B− | B+ | B+ |
| Archer Lodge | #28 | A− | B | — | B+ | A− |
Archer Lodge reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Clayton with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Clayton grades B overall, better than 57% of U.S. towns and #72 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades B+ for health, B− for safety and B+ for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
7 notable people were born here, including William Dodd and Valerie Ashby.
