Photo: Tradewinds · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in New Bern, NC: what to set up and who to call
New Bern runs its own electric utility, City of New Bern; its homes paid 14.8¢ per kWh in 2025. Most homes in New Bern have two wired internet choices, Optimum and Metronet.
I’m new in town
What to set up in New Bern, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in New Bern.
Power comes from City of New Bern
City of New Bern (City of New Bern - (NC)), a municipal utility, serves 87.3% of New Bern residents. Its homes paid an average of 14.8¢ per kWh in 2025, about $156 a month (its average across North Carolina).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from City of New Bern water system
The City of New Bern water system supplies New Bern: about 81% of residents live in its service area. Craven County Water System serves another 19%. It draws ground water (EPA lists Craven County Water System as seller) and serves 37,884 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 83% of the 3,525 systems serving 10,001–50,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2026–Dec 2028, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. NC0425010.
6 home internet providers serve New Bern
99% of 14,088 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 85% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Optimum | Cable | 93% | 940/35 |
| Metronet | Fiber | 80% | 5,120/5,120 |
| Brightspeed | Fiber, DSL, Fixed wireless | 75% | 2,000/2,000 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 63% | 100/20 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless | 52% | 25/3 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 52% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash day in New Bern depends on your street
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in New Bern, from the town’s own site.
Your pickup week
- TrashEvery week, on your street’s dayLook up your day on newbernnc.gov
Accepted at the curb
- Clean glass containers (clear, brown and/or green)
- Aluminum beverage cans
- Newspapers
- Plastic milk jugs
- Plastic drink bottles
- Food cans
- Envelopes
- Paper bags
- Writing paper
- Copy paper
- Magazines
- Colored ledger paper
- Chipboard
- Detergent boxes
From newbernnc.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026; pages dated © 2024. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
New Bern is in Craven County Schools.
C+School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated May 2019; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
New Bern spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where New Bern residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of New Bern | ZIP’s residents in New Bern |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28562 | New Bern, NC | 69% | 55% |
| 28560 | New Bern, NC | 31% | 35% |
28561, 28563, 28564 are P.O. box or single-organization ZIPs with no homes.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in New Bern
Who supplies New Bern’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The City of New Bern water system (EPA ID NC0425010). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 83% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan 2026–Dec 2028), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in New Bern?
City of New Bern (City of New Bern - (NC)), a municipal utility. Its homes paid about 14.8¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve New Bern?
Optimum, Metronet, Brightspeed, T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in New Bern?
28562 (69%), 28560 (31%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is New Bern in?
Craven County Schools.
How do I register to vote in New Bern?
In North Carolina you can register online until 25 days before Election Day, in person with same-day registration during the early voting period, or by mail (postmarked 25 days before). Elections here are run by the Craven County Board of Elections. Check your registration at vt.ncsbe.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: New Bern’s own website (newbernnc.gov), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.