Gates County, North Carolina
County seat: Gatesville · Population 10,234 (2025) · 341 sq mi
Gates County is the 96th most populous of North Carolina's 100 counties, with 10,234 people (2025 estimate). Its county seat is Gatesville. It is part of the Northeast Region region, one of the 8 Prosperity Zones of North Carolina. The map shows its 1 city or town and the 7 neighboring counties.
Gates County facts
- County seat
- Gatesville
- Population (2025 estimate)
- 10,234 −2.3% since 2020
- Land area
- 341 sq mi 76th largest of 100
- Water area
- 5 sq mi
- Population density
- 30 per sq mi
- Established
- 1779
- Named after
- Horatio Gates American general in the American Revolutionary War (1727–1806)
- Largest city
- Gatesville 260
- Median household income
- $66,333
- Cities and towns
- 1 plus 1 CDPs
- ZIP codes
- 7
- Time zone
- Eastern
- FIPS code
- 37073
Cities and towns in Gates County
Gates County has 1 incorporated place. Populations count the people living inside Gates County; cities that cross a county line also list the other counties.
| Name | Type | Population 2025 | Also in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gatesville (county seat) | Town | 260 |
Unincorporated communities (CDPs)
Census-designated places are communities without their own city government; the county provides their services.
| Community | Population | Also in |
|---|---|---|
| Sunbury | 251 |
ZIP codes in Gates County
7 ZIP codes reach into Gates County. ZIP codes ignore county lines, so some also cover a neighboring county.
- 27926
- 27935
- 27937
- 27938
- 27946 also Chowan and Perquimans counties
- 27969
- 27979
Population of Gates County, 2020–2025
Gates County shrank by 242 people (−2.3%) between April 2020 and July 2025: 383 more deaths than births and a net gain of 138 people from migration.
| Year (July 1) | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 10,450 |
| 2021 | 10,402 |
| 2022 | 10,368 |
| 2023 | 10,360 |
| 2024 | 10,288 |
| 2025 | 10,234 |
Neighboring counties
- Hertford County west · 19,015 people
- Suffolk city, Virginia north · 104,699 people
- Chowan County south · 14,082 people
- Pasquotank County southeast · 42,201 people
- Perquimans County southeast · 13,490 people
- Camden County east · 11,315 people
- Southampton County, Virginia northwest · 18,110 people
Printable Gates County map
The PDF is a vector file with real text: it prints sharp on Letter paper and you can search it for a town. The PNG is 2400 pixels wide for slides and documents. Both are free to use with a credit to WhichCounty.
- PDF (Letter) (99 KB)
- PNG (2400 px) (69 KB)
Paste this code to embed the map on your site:
Sources
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Cartographic Boundary Files (1:500,000).
- Population: Census Bureau county and city estimates, Vintage 2025. CDP populations: American Community Survey 2020–2024.
- Places and ZIP codes: Census Bureau 2026 Gazetteer and 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Area relationship files.
- County seat, founding year and name origin: Wikidata (CC0), checked against state sources.
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