Ranked from NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
Highest Cooling Demand in North Carolina
Cooling degree days are the mirror of heating degree days: how far and how long the temperature sits above 65°F. In the counties at the top of this list, cooling is the largest single line on the summer electricity bill. Figures are NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals from the weather station nearest each county seat, so they describe a thirty-year average rather than any single year.
Where does yours land?
Every county in America is somewhere on this scale, including the one you live in.
North Carolina ranked
| # | County | Cooling degree days | Summer high | Monthly to own |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pender County | 2,133 | 90.0°F | $2,122 |
| 2 | New Hanover County | 2,131 | 90.1°F | $2,706 |
| 3 | Scotland County | 2,107 | 92.2°F | $1,023 |
| 4 | Robeson County | 2,087 | 91.0°F | $867 |
| 5 | Wayne County | 2,083 | 91.0°F | $1,386 |
| 6 | Richmond County | 2,081 | 92.0°F | $1,105 |
| 7 | Hyde County | 2,052 | 89.5°F | $1,066 |
| 8 | Beaufort County | 2,026 | 88.9°F | $1,512 |
| 9 | Onslow County | 2,022 | 89.3°F | $1,775 |
| 10 | Lenoir County | 2,014 | 90.6°F | $1,032 |
| 11 | Carteret County | 1,977 | 86.7°F | $2,324 |
| 12 | Pitt County | 1,916 | 90.4°F | $1,629 |
| 13 | Craven County | 1,897 | 89.6°F | $1,684 |
| 14 | Jones County | 1,897 | 89.6°F | $1,100 |
| 15 | Cumberland County | 1,890 | 90.9°F | $1,574 |
| 16 | Johnston County | 1,871 | 91.7°F | $2,124 |
| 17 | Bladen County | 1,865 | 91.0°F | $1,139 |
| 18 | Brunswick County | 1,865 | 87.2°F | $2,427 |
| 19 | Gaston County | 1,854 | 90.7°F | $1,914 |
| 20 | Wilson County | 1,842 | 90.2°F | $1,463 |
| 21 | Greene County | 1,841 | 90.7°F | $1,049 |
| 22 | Chowan County | 1,840 | 89.0°F | $1,674 |
| 23 | Anson County | 1,835 | 90.7°F | $1,094 |
| 24 | Washington County | 1,803 | 89.3°F | $1,021 |
| 25 | Montgomery County | 1,779 | 89.8°F | $1,292 |
| 26 | Wake County | 1,779 | 90.6°F | $3,237 |
| 27 | Sampson County | 1,778 | 89.5°F | $1,149 |
| 28 | Martin County | 1,769 | 88.5°F | $1,038 |
| 29 | Mecklenburg County | 1,769 | 90.3°F | $2,879 |
| 30 | Columbus County | 1,763 | 90.1°F | $1,154 |
| 31 | Camden County | 1,759 | 88.2°F | $2,264 |
| 32 | Currituck County | 1,759 | 88.2°F | $2,650 |
| 33 | Gates County | 1,759 | 88.2°F | $1,399 |
| 34 | Pasquotank County | 1,759 | 88.2°F | $1,810 |
| 35 | Perquimans County | 1,759 | 88.2°F | $1,714 |
| 36 | Cabarrus County | 1,755 | 91.8°F | $2,506 |
| 37 | Bertie County | 1,754 | 89.1°F | $911 |
| 38 | Alamance County | 1,737 | 90.8°F | $1,787 |
| 39 | Union County | 1,735 | 91.1°F | $2,860 |
| 40 | Dare County | 1,705 | 85.8°F | $3,189 |
| 41 | Pamlico County | 1,697 | 88.2°F | $1,698 |
| 42 | Edgecombe County | 1,687 | 89.3°F | $1,092 |
| 43 | Halifax County | 1,681 | 90.5°F | $989 |
| 44 | Nash County | 1,681 | 90.5°F | $1,450 |
| 45 | Harnett County | 1,676 | 90.3°F | $1,801 |
| 46 | Lee County | 1,669 | 90.2°F | $1,761 |
| 47 | Chatham County | 1,652 | 89.6°F | $3,044 |
| 48 | Hoke County | 1,648 | 89.5°F | $1,616 |
| 49 | Moore County | 1,641 | 90.3°F | $2,431 |
| 50 | Tyrrell County | 1,619 | 87.8°F | $1,229 |
| 51 | Stanly County | 1,596 | 88.6°F | $1,733 |
| 52 | Guilford County | 1,567 | 88.6°F | $1,930 |
| 53 | Catawba County | 1,556 | 88.7°F | $1,757 |
| 54 | Granville County | 1,551 | 89.0°F | $1,903 |
| 55 | Vance County | 1,551 | 89.0°F | $1,276 |
| 56 | Franklin County | 1,545 | 90.2°F | $1,940 |
| 57 | Forsyth County | 1,514 | 88.0°F | $1,872 |
| 58 | Caswell County | 1,513 | 89.8°F | $1,295 |
| 59 | Northampton County | 1,494 | 89.2°F | $992 |
| 60 | Rowan County | 1,479 | 88.2°F | $1,752 |
| 61 | Lincoln County | 1,470 | 88.7°F | $2,187 |
| 62 | Warren County | 1,462 | 89.4°F | $1,125 |
| 63 | Cleveland County | 1,459 | 90.6°F | $1,503 |
| 64 | Davidson County | 1,455 | 89.1°F | $1,635 |
| 65 | Duplin County | 1,419 | 88.0°F | $1,103 |
| 66 | Randolph County | 1,388 | 88.3°F | $1,446 |
| 67 | Rutherford County | 1,387 | 88.9°F | $1,491 |
| 68 | Hertford County | 1,386 | 87.7°F | $1,038 |
| 69 | Polk County | 1,383 | 86.3°F | $2,194 |
| 70 | Orange County | 1,380 | 88.0°F | $3,364 |
| 71 | Person County | 1,357 | 89.3°F | $1,589 |
| 72 | Durham County | 1,350 | 87.0°F | $2,766 |
| 73 | Rockingham County | 1,340 | 87.5°F | $1,344 |
| 74 | Stokes County | 1,298 | 87.2°F | $1,539 |
| 75 | Caldwell County | 1,289 | 87.5°F | $1,452 |
| 76 | Alexander County | 1,265 | 87.2°F | $1,563 |
| 77 | Iredell County | 1,257 | 87.3°F | $2,286 |
| 78 | Burke County | 1,251 | 87.7°F | $1,435 |
| 79 | Davie County | 1,221 | 87.7°F | $1,890 |
| 80 | McDowell County | 1,203 | 85.3°F | $1,394 |
| 81 | Wilkes County | 1,201 | 86.9°F | $1,360 |
| 82 | Yadkin County | 1,147 | 86.9°F | $1,475 |
| 83 | Buncombe County | 1,092 | 85.9°F | $2,755 |
| 84 | Cherokee County | 1,038 | 86.6°F | $1,673 |
| 85 | Clay County | 1,038 | 86.6°F | $2,041 |
| 86 | Surry County | 973 | 86.3°F | $1,395 |
| 87 | Macon County | 903 | 84.3°F | $1,800 |
| 88 | Jackson County | 901 | 85.3°F | $1,959 |
| 89 | Henderson County | 897 | 84.5°F | $2,438 |
| 90 | Madison County | 786 | 85.1°F | $2,053 |
| 91 | Graham County | 763 | 83.0°F | $1,310 |
| 92 | Transylvania County | 740 | 82.8°F | $2,546 |
| 93 | Alleghany County | 651 | 83.6°F | $1,622 |
| 94 | Mitchell County | 635 | 83.2°F | $1,627 |
| 95 | Yancey County | 635 | 83.2°F | $1,763 |
| 96 | Haywood County | 531 | 81.5°F | $2,015 |
| 97 | Ashe County | 408 | 81.0°F | $1,767 |
| 98 | Watauga County | 300 | 79.0°F | $2,434 |
| 99 | Swain County | 143 | 73.7°F | $1,663 |
| 100 | Avery County | 103 | 71.9°F | $1,826 |
Every figure is modelled on the county's own median home with 20% down at 7.03%. Property tax and electricity are county and state specific; homeowners insurance uses the NAIC average premium for that state, which ranges from 0.16% of home value in Hawaii to 1.16% in Oklahoma. Maintenance and water are national estimates. Full methodology.
Nationwide
Highest Cooling Demand across all 3,133 US counties · Every county in North Carolina