63,048 people (2024 Census estimate, +1.3% since 2020)
554 square miles of land · 114 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.
10 active community water systems list Haywood County in the area they serve, reporting 48,958 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| WAYNESVILLE, TOWN OF surface water · local government · NC0144010 | 19,758 served |
| MAGGIE VALLEY SANITARY DIST surface water · local government · NC0144040 | 9,629 served |
| CANTON, TOWN OF surface water · local government · NC0144015 | 7,850 served |
| JUNALUSKA SANITARY DISTRICT buys surface water · local government · NC0144035 | 5,138 served |
| CLYDE, TOWN OF buys surface water · local government · NC0144025 | 3,228 served |
| LAKE JUNALUSKA ASSEMBLY buys surface water · private · NC0144107 | 2,223 served |
| SMOKY MTN RETREAT-EAGLE`S NEST buys surface water · local government · NC1044004 | 422 served |
| SPRINGDALE WATER AND SEWER, LLC groundwater · private · NC0144113 | 300 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 98 people were held in Haywood County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2024), or 260 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2019 it was about 130.
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.
1 school district has its office in Haywood County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $90.3 million — $82.3 million to run schools, about $12,459 per student, plus $6.8 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $22.3 million local (mostly property tax), $51.3 million state, $15.3 million federal. Long-term debt: $8.2 million.
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 Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Haywood County about $31.7 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Relatively High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
287 bridges in Haywood County: 89 in good condition, 153 fair, and 45 poor (15.7%). “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.
| US19 23 74 over SR1527 · built 1969 | 39,000 vehicles a day |
| US74 over SOUTHERN RAILROAD · built 1961 | 32,000 vehicles a day |
| I-40 over PIGEON RIVER · built 1966 | 27,500 vehicles a day |
| I40 WB over SR1613 · built 1961 | 25,000 vehicles a day |
| I-40 over SR1513 · built 1961 | 24,750 vehicles a day |
| US23 74 NBL over RICHLAND CREEK · built 1965 | 21,000 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $240.1 million of work in Haywood County in fiscal 2025, about $3,868 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 Haywood 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 Haywood County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of North Carolina: the state government and every county in North Carolina.
Nearby counties: Jackson County (20 mi) · Buncombe County (26 mi) · Transylvania County (26 mi) · Cocke County, TN (26 mi) · Madison County (26 mi) · Swain County (27 mi).