66,186 people (2024 Census estimate, +0.5% since 2020)
754 square miles of land · 88 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 Wilkes County in the area they serve, reporting 45,828 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| WEST WILKES WTR ASSOCIATION INC buys surface water · private · NC0197020 | 12,573 served |
| BLUE RIDGE WATER ASSOCIATION buys surface water · private · NC0197030 | 8,486 served |
| MULBERRY-FAIRPLAINS WTR ASSOC buys surface water · private · NC0197015 | 8,150 served |
| NORTH WILKESBORO, TOWN OF surface water · local government · NC0197010 | 4,265 served |
| WILKESBORO, TOWN OF surface water · local government · NC0197025 | 3,687 served |
| BROADWAY WATER ASSOCIATION buys surface water · private · NC0197035 | 3,556 served |
| MORAVIAN FALLS WATER SYSTEM buys surface water · private · NC0197040 | 3,455 served |
| RONDA, TOWN OF buys surface water · local government · NC0197050 | 938 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 172 people were held in Wilkes County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2024), or 428 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2019 it was about 176.
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 Wilkes County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $121.1 million — $105.4 million to run schools, about $12,152 per student, plus $14.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $25.3 million local (mostly property tax), $81.5 million state, $21.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $16.1 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 Moderate compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Wilkes County about $33.1 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.
350 bridges in Wilkes County: 118 in good condition, 181 fair, and 51 poor (14.6%). “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.
| US421B over REDDIES RIVER · built 1935 | 18,000 vehicles a day |
| NC268 over ROCK CREEK · built 1938 | 7,600 vehicles a day |
| SR1001 over CUB CREEK · built 1969 | 5,600 vehicles a day |
| SR1185 over YADKIN RIVER · built 1952 | 5,500 vehicles a day |
| NC268 over WARRIOR CREEK · built 1960 | 2,000 vehicles a day |
| SR2333 over MULBERRY CREEK · built 1973 | 1,600 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $50.2 million of work in Wilkes County in fiscal 2025, about $761 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 Wilkes 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 Wilkes County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of North Carolina: the state government and every county in North Carolina.
Nearby counties: Alleghany County (19 mi) · Alexander County (20 mi) · Ashe County (25 mi) · Caldwell County (26 mi) · Yadkin County (28 mi) · Surry County (30 mi).