New rural travel data in North Carolina shows economic benefits of hosting
New report shows North Carolinians in rural counties collectively earned over $370 million in supplemental income in 2022, more than a 350 percent increase compared to pre-pandemic travel in 2019.
New report shows North Carolinians in rural counties collectively earned over $370 million in supplemental income in 2022, more than a 350 percent increase compared to pre-pandemic travel in 2019.
Millions of workers and their families are embracing the opportunity to live and work anywhere, allowing them to spread out to thousands of towns and cities, and staying for weeks, months, or even longer. This has created significant opportunities for rural communities, allowing many to directly benefit from the tourism economy by hosting on Airbnb.
We are sharing new data on how this travel revolution – and hosting – are empowering rural communities across North Carolina:
- In 2022, over 13,000 Hosts in rural counties across North Carolina collectively earned a total of more than $370 million, more than a 350% increase compared to pre-pandemic travel in 2019.1
- New Hosts in rural North Carolina collectively earned over $5 million in 2022.2
- The typical Host in rural North Carolina earned over $14,000 in 2022.3
- Nearly 35% of Hosts who have reported their gender in rural North Carolina are women.4
- Across the US, women Hosts earned more than $7 billion in 2022.
- Nearly 30% of Airbnb Hosts in rural North Carolina have reported that they are over the age of 60.5
We have also partnered with Visit North Carolina for the Dream Big in Small Town NC campaign. The campaign, funded by the General Assembly as part of North Carolina’s Rural Tourism Recovery Pilot Program, is led by Visit North Carolina and Airbnb, in coordination with the North Carolina Department of Commerce, to support the state’s post-pandemic recovery and the many unique local shops, restaurants and communities who rely on the local tourism industry. The collaborative campaign aims to promote travel to 16 rural counties in three distinct regions designated as the Scenic Mountains, the Northeast Lakes & Rivers, and the Inner Banks.
We are also sharing a breakdown of total Host income in each rural county in North Carolina, which you can see below.
For those in rural North Carolina who are interested in earning extra income by hosting, we have made it easier than ever to get started. In November, we introduced Airbnb Setup, the all-new, super easy way to Airbnb your home, with free one-to-one guidance from a Superhost. Anyone can visit airbnb.com/host to learn how much their property could make on Airbnb, sign up for a hosting webinar, read about how we support our Hosts and more.
Below is a breakout of Host earnings in rural North Carolina counties in 20226:
| Rural County | Approximate total Host income in 2022 |
| Alexander | $592,000 |
| Alleghany | $1,124,000 |
| Anson | $48,000 |
| Ashe | $5,631,000 |
| Avery | $15,243,000 |
| Beaufort | $1,289,000 |
| Bertie | $71,000 |
| Bladen | $392,000 |
| Brunswick | $34,603,000 |
| Burke | $2,444,000 |
| Caldwell | $1,888,000 |
| Camden | $51,000 |
| Carteret | $21,316,000 |
| Caswell | $660,000 |
| Chatham | $2,064,000 |
| Cherokee | $5,154,000 |
| Chowan | $684,000 |
| Clay | $1,576,000 |
| Cleveland | $517,000 |
| Columbus | $480,000 |
| Craven | $2,872,000 |
| Currituck | $11,452,000 |
| Dare | $71,444,000 |
| Davie | $277,000 |
| Duplin | $84,000 |
| Edgecombe | $260,000 |
| Franklin | $392,000 |
| Gates | $57,000 |
| Graham | $3,381,000 |
| Granville | $189,000 |
| Greene | $58,000 |
| Halifax | $690,000 |
| Harnett | $1,051,000 |
| Haywood | $19,798,000 |
| Hertford | $312,000 |
| Hoke | $323,000 |
| Hyde | $990,000 |
| Jackson | $11,164,000 |
| Jones | $144,000 |
| Lee | $539,000 |
| Lenoir | $326,000 |
| Macon | $11,757,000 |
| Madison | $8,329,000 |
| Martin | $44,000 |
| McDowell | $4,923,000 |
| Mitchell | $1,800,000 |
| Montgomery | $880,000 |
| Moore | $8,827,000 |
| Nash | $744,000 |
| Northampton | $1,118,000 |
| Pamlico | $1,170,000 |
| Pasquotank | $702,000 |
| Pender | $10,389,000 |
| Perquimans | $308,000 |
| Person | $1,274,000 |
| Polk | $5,393,000 |
| Randolph | $1,013,000 |
| Richmond | $141,000 |
| Robeson | $279,000 |
| Rockingham | $535,000 |
| Rutherford | $11,948,000 |
| Sampson | $185,000 |
| Scotland | $46,000 |
| Stanly | $527,000 |
| Stokes | $694,000 |
| Surry | $1,534,000 |
| Swain | $16,271,000 |
| Transylvania | $11,793,000 |
| Tyrrell | $169,000 |
| Vance | $281,000 |
| Warren | $2,292,000 |
| Washington | $66,000 |
| Watauga | $36,133,000 |
| Wayne | $788,000 |
| Wilkes | $2,018,000 |
| Wilson | $401,000 |
| Yadkin | $202,000 |
| Yancey | $4,417,000 |
For this report, we compiled data for the 78 North Carolina counties officially designated as “rural” by the NC Rural Center. That map can be found here.