Madison County, North Carolina
County seat: Marshall · Population 22,553 (2025) · 450 sq mi
Madison County is the 76th most populous of North Carolina's 100 counties, with 22,553 people (2025 estimate). Its county seat is Marshall. It is part of the Western Region region, one of the 8 Prosperity Zones of North Carolina. The map shows its 3 cities and towns and the 6 neighboring counties.
Madison County facts
- County seat
- Marshall
- Population (2025 estimate)
- 22,553 +6.4% since 2020
- Land area
- 450 sq mi 53rd largest of 100
- Water area
- 2 sq mi
- Population density
- 50 per sq mi
- Established
- 1851
- Same name
- One of 19 Madison Counties in the US
- Named after
- James Madison President of the United States from 1809 to 1817 (1751–1836)
- Largest city
- Mars Hill 2,280
- Median household income
- $58,531
- Cities and towns
- 3
- ZIP codes
- 6
- Time zone
- Eastern
- FIPS code
- 37115
Cities and towns in Madison County
Madison County has 3 incorporated cities, towns and villages. Populations count the people living inside Madison County; cities that cross a county line also list the other counties.
| Name | Type | Population 2025 | Also in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mars Hill | Town | 2,280 | |
| Marshall (county seat) | Town | 802 | |
| Hot Springs | Town | 548 |
ZIP codes in Madison County
6 ZIP codes reach into Madison County. ZIP codes ignore county lines, so some also cover a neighboring county.
- 28701 also Buncombe County
- 28743 also Haywood County
- 28748 also Buncombe County
- 28753 also Buncombe County
- 28754 also Yancey County
- 28787 also Buncombe County
Population of Madison County, 2020–2025
Madison County grew by 1,352 people (+6.4%) between April 2020 and July 2025: 534 more deaths than births and a net gain of 1,904 people from migration.
| Year (July 1) | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 21,292 |
| 2021 | 21,739 |
| 2022 | 21,908 |
| 2023 | 22,044 |
| 2024 | 22,466 |
| 2025 | 22,553 |
Neighboring counties
- Buncombe County southeast · 277,417 people
- Greene County, Tennessee north · 73,831 people
- Cocke County, Tennessee west · 37,889 people
- Yancey County east · 19,084 people
- Unicoi County, Tennessee northeast · 17,856 people
- Haywood County southwest · 63,369 people
Printable Madison 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) (100 KB)
- PNG (2400 px) (88 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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