Polk County, North Carolina
County seat: Columbus · Population 20,533 (2025) · 238 sq mi
Polk County is the 80th most populous of North Carolina's 100 counties, with 20,533 people (2025 estimate). Its county seat is Columbus. 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 4 neighboring counties.
Polk County facts
- County seat
- Columbus
- Population (2025 estimate)
- 20,533 +6.3% since 2020
- Land area
- 238 sq mi 94th largest of 100
- Water area
- 1 sq mi
- Population density
- 86 per sq mi
- Established
- 1855
- Same name
- One of 12 Polk Counties in the US
- Named after
- William Polk American politician and military officer (9 July 1758 – 14 January 1834)
- Largest city
- Tryon 1,634
- Median household income
- $67,758
- Cities and towns
- 3
- ZIP codes
- 7
- Time zone
- Eastern
- FIPS code
- 37149
Cities and towns in Polk County
Polk County has 3 incorporated cities, towns and villages. Populations count the people living inside Polk County; cities that cross a county line also list the other counties.
| Name | Type | Population 2025 | Also in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tryon | Town | 1,634 | |
| Columbus (county seat) | Town | 1,042 | |
| Saluda | City | 658 | Henderson County |
ZIP codes in Polk County
7 ZIP codes reach into Polk County. ZIP codes ignore county lines, so some also cover a neighboring county.
- 28139 also Rutherford County
- 28722
- 28731 also Henderson County
- 28756 also Rutherford County
- 28773 also Henderson County
- 28782
- 28792 also Henderson and Buncombe counties
Population of Polk County, 2020–2025
Polk County grew by 1,211 people (+6.3%) between April 2020 and July 2025: 1,045 more deaths than births and a net gain of 2,262 people from migration.
| Year (July 1) | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 19,378 |
| 2021 | 19,701 |
| 2022 | 19,998 |
| 2023 | 20,032 |
| 2024 | 20,388 |
| 2025 | 20,533 |
Neighboring counties
- Rutherford County northeast · 65,745 people
- Henderson County west · 122,375 people
- Spartanburg County, South Carolina southeast · 380,857 people
- Greenville County, South Carolina southwest · 583,125 people
Printable Polk 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) (89 KB)
- PNG (2400 px) (65 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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