Durham County, North Carolina

Durham County
County
Durham County Courthouse
Flag Seal Logo
Motto:  "Live. Grow. Thrive."
Location within the U.S. state of North Carolina
North Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 36°02′N 78°53′W / 36.03°N 78.88°W / 36.03; -78.88
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Founded	1881
Named for	Bartlett Snipes Durham
Seat	Durham
Largest community	Durham
Area
• Total	297.86 sq mi (771.5 km2)
• Land	286.53 sq mi (742.1 km2)
• Water	11.33 sq mi (29.3 km2)  3.80%
Population  (2020)
• Total	324,833
• Estimate  (2023)	336,892
• Density	1,133.68/sq mi (437.72/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	4th
Website	www.dconc.gov

Durham County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 324,833,^[1] making it the sixth-most populous county in North Carolina. Its county seat is Durham,^[2] which is the only incorporated municipality predominantly in the county, though very small portions of cities and towns mostly in neighboring counties also extend into Durham County. The central and southern parts of Durham County are highly urban, consisting of the city as well as several unincorporated suburbs. Southeastern Durham County is dominated by the Research Triangle Park, most of which is in Durham County. The northern third of Durham County is rural in nature.

Durham County is the core of the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC Combined Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023.^[3]