50,054 people (2024 Census estimate, −0.8% since 2020)
938 square miles of land · 53 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
15 active community water systems list Columbus County in the area they serve, reporting 31,459 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| COLUMBUS CO WATER DISTRICTS II, III, V groundwater · local government · NC7024007 | 10,442 served |
| WHITEVILLE, CITY OF groundwater · local government · NC0424010 | 5,426 served |
| TABOR CITY, TOWN OF buys surface water · local government · NC0424015 | 3,277 served |
| COLUMBUS COUNTY WATER DIST IV groundwater · local government · NC7024013 | 2,598 served |
| LAKE WACCAMAW, TOWN OF groundwater · local government · NC0424045 | 2,572 served |
| CHADBOURN, TOWN OF groundwater · local government · NC0424020 | 2,370 served |
| COLUMBUS CO WATER DISTRICT I buys surface water · local government · NC0424060 | 1,700 served |
| FAIR BLUFF, TOWN OF groundwater · local government · NC0424030 | 800 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 196 people were held in Columbus County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2024), or 631 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2019 it was about 158.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
2 school districts have their office in Columbus County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $81.9 million — $74.7 million to run schools, about $14,007 per student, plus $5.4 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $11.3 million local (mostly property tax), $46.6 million state, $23.6 million federal. Long-term debt: $40.3 million.
Spent $32.9 million — $30.2 million to run schools, about $14,347 per student, plus $2.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $6.1 million local (mostly property tax), $18.3 million state, $8.6 million federal.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Moderate compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Columbus County about $42.1 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Low; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
230 bridges in Columbus County: 147 in good condition, 80 fair, and 3 poor (1.3%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| NC87 over WEYMAN CREEK · built 1965 | 7,500 vehicles a day |
| SR1158 over BEAVER DAM SWAMP · built 1958 | 160 vehicles a day |
| NC PARK DR(CLOSED) over BOAT ACCESS · built 2019 | 100 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $44.5 million of work in Columbus County in fiscal 2025, about $878 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-09. Early voting: 2026-10-15 to 2026-10-31. Mail ballot request deadline: 2026-10-20. Election Day: 2026-11-03.
Source: NC State Board of Elections: upcoming election · NC State Board of Elections: vote in person · NC State Board of Elections: voter ID
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Columbus County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Columbus County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of North Carolina: the state government and every county in North Carolina.
Nearby counties: Bladen County (23 mi) · Brunswick County (28 mi) · Horry County, SC (31 mi) · Robeson County (37 mi) · Marion County, SC (43 mi) · Dillon County, SC (43 mi).