# Polk, North Carolina — #417 of 3,144 counties

> Liberty Moving composite score 7.03 of 10. FIPS 37149. Population 20,060. v4 — beta, 30 October 2026, sourced values.

About 20,100 people live in Polk, North Carolina. It ranks #417 of 3,144 counties for liberty, and #3 of 100 in North Carolina. The combined sales tax is 6.75%, higher than in 48% of counties. Property tax takes about 0.5% of a home's value each year, less than in 79% of counties. Local government employs a smaller share of working residents than in almost every other county. The homicide rate is higher than in 65% of counties. Life expectancy is about 76.2 years, longer than in 54% of counties. Air quality is better than in 51% of counties (a typical day's air quality index is 41), and flood and hurricane risk is lower than in 52% of counties. On this site's state scores, North Carolina gets 7.59 of 10 for economic freedom, based on the Fraser Institute's ranking, and 10 of 10 for gun rights.

## Scores

| Factor | Level | Score (0–10) | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fraser Institute state ranking | state | 7.59 |  |
| 2A | state | 10.00 |  |
| Air quality | county | 5.92 |  |
| GOP + LP vote for President | county | 6.24 |  |
| Homicide rate | county | 7.70 |  |
| Sales tax | county | 3.86 |  |
| Property tax | county | 7.50 |  |
| Floods / hurricanes | county | 3.91 |  |
| Life expectancy | county | 6.20 |  |
| Government employees | county | 9.93 |  |
| Single-parent households | county | 7.71 |  |

"est" marks a derived or placeholder value with no published county figure.

## Neighbors

- #1930 Spartanburg, South Carolina — https://libertymoving.org/counties/45083.md
- #1436 Greenville, South Carolina — https://libertymoving.org/counties/45045.md
- #855 Henderson, North Carolina — https://libertymoving.org/counties/37089.md
- #1694 Rutherford, North Carolina — https://libertymoving.org/counties/37161.md

## Links

- Page: https://libertymoving.org/counties/37149
- Compare: https://libertymoving.org/compare?a=37149
- Methodology: https://libertymoving.org/methodology
- Sources and terms: https://libertymoving.org/privacy