Winston-Salem

Population & Demographics

Winston-Salem, NC

Winston-Salem is home to 252,037 people. Explore its demographics, housing, and economy — plus how its 105,451 resident workers commute each day.

North CarolinaCensus ACS 5-Year · LODES 2023
252,037
people
Population

252,037 residents

Median age 35.9 · U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year (2024).

Winston-Salem population & demographics

Who lives in Winston-Salem — population, age, housing, and income, from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Population
252,037
Median age
35.9yrs
Median household income
$59,268
Median home value
$233,800
Median gross rent
$1,087/mo
Bachelor’s degree or higher
39.5%
Poverty rate
17.7%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 2024 5-Year Estimates. Values shown as “—” are suppressed or unavailable for this place.

Race & ethnicity in Winston-Salem

How Winston-Salem breaks down by race and ethnicity — each bar is that group’s share of the population, from the U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year (2024).

White43.6%
Black31.2%
Hispanic or Latino18.2%
Two or more races4.0%
Asian2.3%
Some other race0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander0.1%

Race across Winston-Salem

Each dot is a group of people, placed in their 2020 Census block and colored by race or ethnicity — the pattern shows where groups live across Winston-Salem.

Winston-Salem at a glance
Employed Residents
105,451
Fewer than the city’s total population
Median home–work distance
21.6mi
Straight-line, not road distance
Work Locally
47.6%
Share working within the area
Work from home
14.1%
Residents who work from home (ACS)
Top destination outside city
Greensboro
Excludes local — most work in-city

These figures are for Winston-Salem proper — the Census place within its city limits — not the surrounding metro area. Metro-wide totals you’ll see elsewhere are larger because they bundle in neighboring cities and suburbs.

How Winston-Salem commutes

Every dot is a worker moving between home and job. Trace where the area pulls people in from — and where its residents head each day.

69
Commute Score

69 / 100

How short the typical commute is here, on an absolute 0–100 scale (higher is shorter). How it’s calculated.

Winston-Salem

105,451 commutes, one dot at a time

Winston-Salem

Where 105,451 workers commute

Each dot ≈ 75 workers

Where residents work

Top destinations for people who live in Winston-Salem, by worker count.

1Winston-Salem0.0 mi50,211
2Greensboro25.0 mi7,601
3Charlotte69.2 mi5,642
4High Point17.0 mi3,658
5Kernersville10.0 mi2,967
6Raleigh92.9 mi2,886
7Clemmons8.3 mi1,910
8Durham76.7 mi1,651

Who commutes in

Top origin places for workers who travel into Winston-Salem.

1Winston-Salem0.0 mi50,211
2Greensboro25.0 mi6,305
3High Point17.0 mi5,286
4Charlotte69.2 mi4,267
5Clemmons8.3 mi3,813
6Kernersville10.0 mi3,122
7Lewisville8.6 mi2,765
8Raleigh92.9 mi1,542

Top industries

The sectors that employ Winston-Salem’s workforce. Each bar is scaled to that sector’s share of all local jobs — the top sectors shown don’t add up to 100%.

Bar length = each sector’s share of all local jobs (0–100%)
HCHealth Care and Social Assistance26.9%
RTRetail Trade11.1%
AFAccommodation and Food Services8.6%
ADAdministrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services7.3%
FIFinance and Insurance6.6%
MFManufacturing6.6%
EDEducational Services6.1%
PTProfessional, Scientific, and Technical Services5.1%
PAPublic Administration4.8%
Connectivity

Internet options for Winston-Salem

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