How many drug overdose deaths happen every year in North Carolina?
Updated May. 6, 2026Refreshed annually
There were 2,780 overdose deaths in 2024. That means that for every 100,000 people living in the state, 25.2 died of drug overdose. This was the 5th highest the drug overdose death rate has been in the state since data from 1999 became available.
In 2024
25
per 100,000 people died of overdoses
In 2024
2.78K
people died of overdoses
Unadjusted data about the nation is a useful starting point, but age-adjusted data tells a more complete story. Age-adjusting accounts for differences in age distributions across populations, which is crucial when comparing health outcomes since age is a major risk factor for many conditions. This adjustment enables fairer comparisons of mortality rates between different groups or over time. The rest of the data on this page is age-adjusted.
In 2024, North Carolina had a drug overdose death rate higher than the US rate overall, nearly 11% higher. The drug overdose death rate in North Carolina increased in 18 of the last 25 years in which data is available. The overdose death rate increased 15% since 2019 and increased 86% since 2014.
In 2024, North Carolina had a drug overdose death rate higher than the US rate.
Drug-involved overdose deaths in North Carolina, age-adjusted rate per 100,000 people
What drugs are most commonly involved in drug overdose deaths?
The rise in drug overdose deaths nationally has been due to growing use of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, however, this may vary by state. In 2024, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids have been involved in more overdose deaths than any other drug, making up 71% of total overdose deaths in North Carolina. The rates of drug overdose deaths involving fentanyl and cocaine increased 61.7 and 11.1 times, between 1999 and 2024 and 1999 and 2024, respectively.
In 2024, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids was involved in more overdose deaths than any other drug.
Drug-involved overdose deaths in North Carolina, age-adjusted rate per 100,000 people
How do drug overdose deaths vary by county in North Carolina?
Drug overdose death rates can vary across counties. In 2024, the death rate for overdoses in [state] ranged from 11.1 per 100,000 in Orange County to 69.1 per 100,000 in Richmond County.
Occasionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will mark data as either suppressed or unreliable. Suppression occurs when data does not meet confidentiality requirements. As a result, data may not be available for every county in this state. Age-adjusted data is also not available at the county level. County-level tables reflect the most recent year of available data.
Drug-involved overdose deaths per 100,000 people (2024)
| 1. | Richmond County | 69.1 |
| 2. | Avery County | 61.8 |
| 3. | Burke County | 56.5 |
| 4. | Vance County | 52.0 |
| 5. | Edgecombe County | 50.9 |
| 6. | Robeson County | 47.2 |
| 7. | Rockingham County | 46.0 |
| 8. | Caswell County | 44.7 |
| 9. | Rutherford County | 44.2 |
| 10. | Bladen County | 43.7 |
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
