Johnston County, North Carolina
County seat: Smithfield · Population 256,448 (2025) · 792 sq mi
Johnston County is the 9th most populous of North Carolina's 100 counties, with 256,448 people (2025 estimate). Its county seat is Smithfield. It is part of the North Central Region region, one of the 8 Prosperity Zones of North Carolina. The map shows its 12 cities and towns and the 7 neighboring counties.
Johnston County facts
- County seat
- Smithfield
- Population (2025 estimate)
- 256,448 +18.7% since 2020
- Land area
- 792 sq mi 10th largest of 100
- Water area
- 4 sq mi
- Population density
- 324 per sq mi
- Established
- 1746
- Named after
- Gabriel Johnston governor of North Carolina from 1734 to 1752
- Largest city
- Clayton 32,633 in the county
- Median household income
- $83,384
- Cities and towns
- 12
- ZIP codes
- 22
- Time zone
- Eastern
- FIPS code
- 37101
Cities and towns in Johnston County
Johnston County has 12 incorporated cities, towns and villages. Populations count the people living inside Johnston County; cities that cross a county line also list the other counties.
| Name | Type | Population 2025 | Also in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clayton | Town | 32,633 | Wake County |
| Smithfield (county seat) | Town | 13,114 | |
| Selma | Town | 7,406 | |
| Archer Lodge | Town | 5,649 | |
| Benson | Town | 4,660 | Harnett County |
| Wilson's Mills | Town | 2,987 | |
| Four Oaks | Town | 2,978 | |
| Pine Level | Town | 2,405 | |
| Princeton | Town | 1,544 | |
| Kenly | Town | 1,520 | Wilson County |
| Micro | Town | 537 | |
| Zebulon | Town | 0 | Wake County |
ZIP codes in Johnston County
22 ZIP codes reach into Johnston County. ZIP codes ignore county lines, so some also cover a neighboring county.
- 27501 also Harnett and Wake counties
- 27504 also Harnett County
- 27520 also Wake County
- 27524 also Wayne County
- 27527
- 27529 also Wake County
- 27542 also Wilson and Wayne counties
- 27555
- 27557 also Nash, Wilson and Franklin counties
- 27568
- 27569 also Wayne County
- 27576
- 27577
- 27591 also Wake County
- 27592 also Wake and Harnett counties
- 27593
- 27597 also Wake, Franklin and Nash counties
- 27603 also Wake County
- 27610 also Wake County
- 27863 also Wayne and Greene counties
- 28334 also Sampson, Harnett and Cumberland counties
- 28366 also Sampson County
Population of Johnston County, 2020–2025
Johnston County grew by 40,434 people (+18.7%) between April 2020 and July 2025: 4,192 more births than deaths and a net gain of 36,331 people from migration.
| Year (July 1) | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 217,450 |
| 2021 | 226,965 |
| 2022 | 234,667 |
| 2023 | 242,010 |
| 2024 | 249,522 |
| 2025 | 256,448 |
Neighboring counties
- Wake County northwest · 1,257,235 people
- Wayne County southeast · 122,278 people
- Harnett County west · 150,137 people
- Sampson County south · 61,504 people
- Wilson County northeast · 81,150 people
- Nash County northeast · 99,365 people
- Franklin County north · 82,037 people
Printable Johnston 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) (129 KB)
- PNG (2400 px) (97 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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