Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 99% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Overall it grades C+, 117th among North Carolina's 286 graded towns. It is more walkable than 83% of U.S. towns. Swansboro’s median household income is $114,000, above both North Carolina’s towns ($69,000) and U.S. towns ($80,000). Swansboro has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them William Edward Mattocks House and Swansboro Historic District (Additional Documentation). Only 4 of the 159 North Carolina towns we compare have a lower violent crime rate than Swansboro.
Where Swansboro beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 801 in 1850, a low of 128 in 1880, 3,744 in 2020. The archive holds 13 old photos and papers going back to 1933 and 5 maps from 1942 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Swansboro is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Swansboro, 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 Swansboro.
Swansboro draws workers from Jacksonville and beyond and owes part of its health edge to its incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of North Carolina (mostly hurricanes).
2,131 jobs are based in Swansboro, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 1,090 in 2013 to 2,131.
Most working residents leave Swansboro for work: only 12% work in town. Since 2013, Swansboro has added 1,041 jobs, to 2,131 in 2023. 14% of residents live below the poverty line in Swansboro.
| Swansboro | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 12% | 6.8% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Onslow County Schools. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swansboro ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 592 | A− |
| Salt and Light Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 1–12 | Grades 1–12 | 16 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of North Carolina towns, with expected losses of about $2,507 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on. 111 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 17 properties have flooded more than once.
Since 1993, 111 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Swansboro.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 6,533 U.S. towns with household incomes like Swansboro’s, it is less healthy than 57%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
Swansboro beats the North Carolina average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 21% of Swansboro adults get no exercise outside work.
| Swansboro | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 24% | 25% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 81% | 80% | 79% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 12% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Swansboro | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.1% | 8.1% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 11.5% | 15.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.6% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Swansboro 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
The median household earns $114,425, against $72,388 across North Carolina, one input to its B− for jobs and income.
Adults 18 to 34 are 15% of residents (23% statewide); people 65 and older are 22% of residents (17% statewide). Swansboro’s median age is 44.7 years. 40% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across North Carolina.
| Swansboro | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 40% | 29% | 29% |
| Median age | 44.7 years | 40.1 years | 40.5 years |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±5 points. Across North Carolina, 51.1% of residents are women. Among residents 18 to 24, 100% are men (NC 51%).
| Swansboro | NC | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14.9% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.8% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 3.7% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.2% | 13.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.4% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 16.2% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.4% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 16.7% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.7% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.3% | 9.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 16.1% | 24.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.4% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 16.5% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.5% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 20.3% | 13.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,200, single groups can be off by several points
Reported crimes fell from 121 to 75 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The property crime rate in Swansboro is 18.7 per 1,000 residents. Within North Carolina, it does better than 73% of towns.
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
Home values rose 39% in five years, to about $356K, against 22% across North Carolina.
The typical Swansboro home is worth about $356,000, up 1.3% in a year, 7% above the North Carolina typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
| Swansboro | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.2% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Swansboro Municipal Park | — | 18 |
| 2. Riverview Park | 0.1 mi | 3 |
| 3. Pirates Den Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Swansboro
About 4 of every 100 Swansboro residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across North Carolina.
2,663 counted in 2010 and 3,744 in 2020; an estimated 4,174 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 11.6% since 2020, after 40.6% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Town in North Carolina, United States
Swansboro is a resort town in Onslow County, North Carolina, United States. It is located along the Crystal Coast. The population was 3,744 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Swansboro grades C+ overall, better than 44% of U.S. towns and #117 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades B+ for health, C+ for safety and B− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within North Carolina, it does better than 73% of towns.
That is 5.2 years of the area's median household income ($68,148 across the Jacksonville, NC metro 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+.