Hickory, NC

Single-footprint Census roll-up for Hickory, NC: 2 USPS ZIPs, population 79,007. Open the primary ZIP for household income, housing tenure, and commute from ACS 2023 5-Year Estimates.

U.S. Census Bureau, SimpleMaps US ZIP Code Database, delivery-area ZIP coverage

ACS city ledger plate

Sheet HICKORY-NC · Hickory, NC 2 ZIPs · 79,007 pop · #15432/25278 · Catawba County

INC-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · BOOK-FEW · OWN-MID · POP-SMALL · SPREAD-TIGHT · HOME-MID

  • INC-MID $64,933
  • RANK-LOWER #15432/25278
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Claremont
  • BOOK-FEW 2 ZIPs
  • OWN-MID 66% owners
  • POP-SMALL 79,007
  • SPREAD-TIGHT 28602→28601
  • HOME-MID $237,250

Nearest income peer: Claremont, NC (+ $789 income $)

Instrument codes from this city’s ACS household income, national rank, county-peer gap, ZIP book, owner tenure, population scale, intra-city income spread, and home-value band, not a moving recommendation.

Income neighbourhood around Hickory

Lowest/highest poles plus county-sharing cities nearest Hickory on average ZIP median household income. Full ladder: /cities.

median HH income

What this shows County-sharing peers only, not the full US city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the mosaic is wide.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-25

National city placement

According to ACS 5-Year Estimates, Hickory, NC sits among US cities with a below-median household income, on a small-city population base, across a handful of delivery areas.

39th pct
household income vs 25,278 US cities
79,007
city population (Census)
2
USPS ZIP codes covered
$64,933
avg ZIP median income

Income percentile ranks this city's average ZIP median household income against 25,278 US cities with ACS income on at least one ZIP. Scale and ZIP-spread words come from Census population and USPS ZIP coverage.

Below-median income with few delivery areas (2): read cost-of-living from the primary ZIP. Household income $64,933 and poverty 14.6% concentrate in 28601.

Owner-occupancy sits in a mixed band (65.7%) - check the ZIP page's tenure split before treating Hickory as a pure owner town.

Within North Carolina, Jacksonville is the closest lower-income city and Shallotte the closest higher-income city by average ZIP household income. Their 2 and 1 ZIP footprints are the immediate statewide comparison set for Hickory.

Within-city ZIP comparison

Where the ZIP codes inside Hickory differ

The published income range is comparatively compact across the ZIPs in Hickory: $62,048 in ZIP 28602 to $67,817 in 28601. The city average is therefore a more representative summary here, though each ZIP page still carries its own housing and demographic record.

Income high-to-low ratio
1.1×

28602 to 28601

Home-value high-to-low ratio
1.2×

28602 to 28601

Poverty-rate spread
4.4 points

28601 to 28602

Derived from the published ACS 2023 ZIP-level records shown on this site. A high-to-low ratio compares the highest and lowest available ZIP values; it is not a score or forecast.

Population concentration

Lead ZIP 28601 skews compact Hickory

In this 2-ZIP cluster, 28601 covers about 63% of Hickory's 79,007 residents. City averages lean toward that lead; open a thinner sibling ZIP for the contrast the mean hides.

Census ZBP business roll-up

Employer-heavy short list in Hickory

Citywide ZBP: 2,651 establishments, 50,339 employees , annual payroll $2,628,294k (~34 establishments per 1,000 residents) across 2 of 2 ZIPs. Peak business ZIP 28601 (1,368 units) ; leading NAICS Retail trade (472) · also Health care and social assistance · Other services (except public administration) .

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ZIP Codes in Hickory, NC

These ZIP codes sit in Catawba County, which covers 9 ZIP codes in all; 2 of them fall in Hickory. See the Catawba County roll-up →

Hickory sits in the lower half of Catawba County on income: Newton, Maiden and Sherrills Ford report more, and only Conover reports less. Terrell marks the far end of that range at $129,390, 99% above Hickory.

Side-by-side: Compare 28601 vs 28602 →

ZIP Code Population Median income Establishments Density
28601 50,026 $67,817 1,368 420
28602 28,981 $62,048 1,283 161

Hickory roll-ups here are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial or relocation advice. ACS and Census ZBP figures are estimates; confirm the current table against Census before a money or move decision involving Hickory, .