Sugar Mountain, North Carolina Demographics & Population 2026

A note before these figures: with a population of 539, Sugar Mountain's ACS estimates come from a small number of survey responses and carry wide margins of error. Individual percentages below — particularly rates that round to 0% or 100% — are approximations, not precise measurements. See data.census.gov for the published margins of error.

Population Overview

Sugar Mountain is a small community located in North Carolina, within Avery County. The total population is 539. It ranks as the 575th most populous out of 772 Census-designated places in North Carolina.

Age Demographics

The median age in Sugar Mountain is 66.8 years. This is 71% higher than the state median of 39.1 years. Only 9.3% of residents are under 18, indicating fewer families with children. 22.1% of residents are 75 or older, suggesting a significant retirement-age population with implications for healthcare services and senior housing.

Economy, Income & Housing

The median household income in Sugar Mountain is $96,094. This is 33% higher than the state median of $72,388. It is also 19% higher than the national median of $80,734. The poverty rate stands at 6.3%. This is 52% lower than the state poverty rate of 13.0%. The unemployment rate is 8.4%. This is 78% higher than the state rate of 4.7%. The median home value is $343,800. Housing costs are 19% higher than the state median of $288,900. The home-value-to-income ratio is 3.6x. 93.0% of occupied housing units are owner-occupied. This homeownership rate is 40% higher than the state average of 66.6%.

Race & Ethnicity

Sugar Mountain has a predominantly White (non-Hispanic) population, comprising 95.5% of all residents. Hispanic or Latino residents account for 1.1%. The White (non-Hispanic) population is significantly higher than the state average (95.5% vs 60.0%). The Hispanic or Latino population (1.1%) is well below the state average of 11.3%. The Asian population (0.9%) is well below the state average of 3.3%.

Education

65.3% of residents aged 25 and older hold a bachelor's degree or higher. This places Sugar Mountain in the top 10% of all cities in the state for educational attainment. This is 83% higher than the state rate of 35.6%. Nationally, 35.7% of adults hold at least a bachelor's degree. The high school graduation rate (or equivalent) is 98.5%. Notably, 30.7% of adults hold a graduate or professional degree, indicating a highly educated workforce.

Data Sources & Methodology

All demographic data for Sugar Mountain, North Carolina is sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 2020–2024 5-Year Estimates. The ACS collects data from approximately 3.5 million households annually and pools five years of responses so that even small communities can be measured, though the margin of error widens as the population falls. Comparisons are made against North Carolina state averages and national averages calculated from the same dataset. Rankings reflect the city's position among all 772 Census-designated places in North Carolina. Read more about how these figures are produced on our methodology page, or visit data.census.gov for official data.