Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
New Bern earns a D, 230th among North Carolina's 286 graded towns, mostly because of safety. It reports more crime per resident than 75% of U.S. towns, including 130 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. It also has a long history, with 54 places on the National Register. 40% of working residents work locally in New Bern, above both North Carolina’s towns (6.8%) and U.S. towns (8%). Its National Register listings include Central Elementary School and New Bern Historic District. On hazard risk, just 35 of North Carolina’s 451 towns do worse.
Where New Bern beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Its founding year, 1710, is the earliest of any North Carolina town we grade. Its 53 National Register listings are more than in 97% of North Carolina towns with a listing.
Census counts: 2,467 in 1800, 31,291 in 2020. The archive holds 24 old photos and papers going back to 1772 and 5 maps from 1901 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far New Bern is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in New Bern, 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 New Bern.
New Bern draws workers from Trent Woods and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of North Carolina (mostly hurricanes).
19,986 jobs are based in New Bern, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 18.8 minutes, against 25.1 across North Carolina.
The average trip to work in New Bern is 19 minutes. Jobs based in New Bern grew to 19,986 in 2023, 2,472 more than in 2013. 17% of New Bern residents live below the poverty line.
| New Bern | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 17% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 8.8% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Craven County Board of Education school district. Three of its 14 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| H J MacDonald MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 632 | C+ |
| New Bern HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,637 | B+ |
| Craven Early College HighTop results in townGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 221 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of North Carolina towns, with expected losses of about $765 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on. 1,621 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 270 properties have flooded more than once.
New Bern’s FEMA risk score is 98 of 100. Since 1981, 1,621 flood insurance claims have been paid out in New Bern.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
17 miles of trail in 11 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Martin Marietta Park, 832 acres with 2.5 miles of trail.
| New Bern | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 8.4% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Martin Marietta Park | 2.5 mi | 832 |
| 2. Glenburnie Park | 0.7 mi | 41 |
| 3. Lawson Creek Nature Area | 0.5 mi | 41 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
New Bern reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 75% report less. Within North Carolina, it does better than 57% of towns.
| New Bern | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.7 per 1,000 residents | 3.1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 16.8 per 1,000 residents | 21.8 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
New Bern has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 35° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
25% of residents are 65 or older in New Bern. New Bern has grown 11% since 2020, to 34,724 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 29% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across North Carolina.
| New Bern | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 25% | 18% | 18% |
| Median age | 38.9 years | 40.1 years | 40.5 years |
54% women, 46% men
About 84 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1.4 points). Across North Carolina, 51.1% of residents are women. Median age: women 40.5, men 36.8.
| New Bern | NC | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.6% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.8% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.5% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.2% | 13.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.3% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.1% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.5% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.1% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.2% | 9.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.9% | 24.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 26.8% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.7% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15.6% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 13.8% | 13.5% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The typical New Bern home is worth about $283,000, up 1.7% in a year, 15% below the North Carolina typical home.
| New Bern | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 60% | 67% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 47% | 49% | 48% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 9,181 U.S. towns with household incomes like New Bern’s, it is healthier than 71%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income. All 3 graded neighbors score healthier than its B−, from James City (B) to Trent Woods (A+).
New Bern beats the North Carolina average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 7.
| New Bern | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 38% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 80% | 79% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 13% | 12% |
| What stands out | New Bern | NC |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.5% | 76.7% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4.5% | 3.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
2 within 15 miles of the center of New Bern
About 7 of every 100 New Bern residents are enrolled in college, about the same as North Carolina.
53 places in New Bern on the National Register of Historic Places.
44 notable people were born in New Bern.
City in North Carolina, United States
New Bern (pronounced /'nu bərn/ NEW-bern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 31,291 at the 2020 census. It is located at the confluence of the Neuse and the Trent Rivers, near the headwaters of Pamlico Sound on the North Carolina coast. It lies 112 miles (180 km) east of Raleigh, 89 miles (143 km) north of Wilmington, and 162 miles (261 km) south of Norfolk, Virginia. New Bern was founded in October 1710 by the Palatines and Swiss under the leadership of Christoph von Graffenried. The new colonists named their settlement after Bern, the Swiss region from which many of the colonists and their patron had emigrated. New Bern i…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with New Bern.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D; James City (C+) is closest.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Bern | #230 | D | C | C | C+ | B− |
| Trent Woods | #87 | B− | C+ | — | C+ | A+ |
| James City | #139 | C+ | B− | — | C+ | B |
| Brices Creek | #136 | C+ | C+ | — | C+ | B+ |
Trent Woods, James City and Brices Creek report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare New Bern with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
New Bern grades D overall, better than 11% of U.S. towns and #230 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades B− for health, C for safety and C+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within North Carolina, it does better than 57% of towns.
That is 4.4 years of the area's median household income ($64,475 across the New Bern, NC area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
44 notable people were born here, including Linda McMahon and Kevin Williamson.
