Caroline County, Virginia
County seat: Bowling Green · Population 34,413 (2025) · 527 sq mi
Caroline County is the 50th most populous of Virginia's 133 counties, with 34,413 people (2025 estimate). Its county seat is Bowling Green. It is part of the George Washington Regional Commission (PD 16) region, one of the 21 Planning District Commissions of Virginia. The map shows its 2 cities and towns and the 7 neighboring counties.
Caroline County facts
- County seat
- Bowling Green
- Population (2025 estimate)
- 34,413 +11.4% since 2020
- Land area
- 527 sq mi 18th largest of 133
- Water area
- 10 sq mi
- Population density
- 65 per sq mi
- Established
- 1728
- Named after
- Caroline of Ansbach Queen consort of Great Britain and Ireland from 1727 to 1737
- Largest city
- Lake Land'Or 4,390
- Median household income
- $87,407
- Cities and towns
- 2 plus 2 CDPs
- ZIP codes
- 11
- Time zone
- Eastern
- FIPS code
- 51033
Cities and towns in Caroline County
Caroline County has 2 incorporated cities, towns and villages. Populations count the people living inside Caroline County; cities that cross a county line also list the other counties.
| Name | Type | Population 2025 | Also in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowling Green (county seat) | Town | 1,284 | |
| Port Royal | Town | 220 |
Unincorporated communities (CDPs)
Census-designated places are communities without their own city government; the county provides their services.
| Community | Population | Also in |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Land'Or | 4,390 | |
| Lake Caroline | 2,862 |
ZIP codes in Caroline County
11 ZIP codes reach into Caroline County. ZIP codes ignore county lines, so some also cover a neighboring county.
- 22408 also Spotsylvania County and Fredericksburg city
- 22427
- 22438 also Essex County
- 22514 also King and Queen County
- 22535
- 22538
- 22546 also Hanover and Spotsylvania counties
- 22580 also Spotsylvania County
- 23015 also Hanover, Spotsylvania and Louisa counties
- 23047 also Hanover County
- 23069 also Hanover and King William counties
Population of Caroline County, 2020–2025
Caroline County grew by 3,533 people (+11.4%) between April 2020 and July 2025: 121 more births than deaths and a net gain of 3,397 people from migration.
| Year (July 1) | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 30,922 |
| 2021 | 31,412 |
| 2022 | 31,973 |
| 2023 | 32,745 |
| 2024 | 33,586 |
| 2025 | 34,413 |
Neighboring counties
- Hanover County south · 116,423 people
- King George County northeast · 29,646 people
- Essex County east · 10,654 people
- Spotsylvania County northwest · 155,388 people
- King William County southeast · 19,617 people
- King and Queen County southeast · 6,743 people
- Stafford County north · 170,803 people
Printable Caroline 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) (142 KB)
- PNG (2400 px) (115 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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