18,993 people (2024 Census estimate, +2.7% since 2020)
313 square miles of land · 61 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.
3 active community water systems list Yancey County in the area they serve, reporting 5,383 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| BURNSVILLE, TOWN OF surface water · local government · NC0100010 | 4,069 served |
| MOUNTAIN AIR groundwater · private · NC0100105 | 664 served |
| MT MITCHELL LANDS groundwater · private · NC0100103 | 650 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 36 people were held in Yancey County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2024), or 322 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2019 it was about 38.
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 Yancey County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $32.5 million — $29.5 million to run schools, about $14,455 per student, plus $2.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $5.8 million local (mostly property tax), $20.9 million state, $6.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $8.9 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: Very Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Yancey County about $8.8 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
163 bridges in Yancey County: 58 in good condition, 77 fair, and 28 poor (17.2%). “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.
| NC197 over BOWLENS CREEK · built 1939 | 2,500 vehicles a day |
| US19W over BALD CREEK · built 1940 | 2,200 vehicles a day |
| NC197 over MINE FORK CREEK · built 1947 | 2,200 vehicles a day |
| SR1153 over AYLES CREEK · built 1970 | 1,000 vehicles a day |
| US19W over CANE RIVER · built 1971 | 750 vehicles a day |
| SR1157 over SHUFORD CREEK · built 1986 | 600 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $52.3 million of work in Yancey County in fiscal 2025, about $2,832 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 Yancey 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 Yancey County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of North Carolina: the state government and every county in North Carolina.
Nearby counties: Mitchell County (12 mi) · Unicoi County, TN (16 mi) · McDowell County (20 mi) · Madison County (23 mi) · Buncombe County (23 mi) · Avery County (25 mi).