Groundwork

Funeral services · County · North Carolina

Funeral homes in Wake County, NC

How Wake County, NC compares with other counties and the U.S. for funeral homes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #180 of 1,472 scored counties
#9 of 67 scored counties in North Carolina

Listings
49
6 chain locations (12%)
Official establishments
30
+7.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$51.1M
On funerals · $111 a household
Spending per listing
$1M
54% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
1.1
48% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,257,235
+11.2% since 2020

See the funeral homes around any address in Wake County

The site report maps the funeral homes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Wake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 49 funeral homes in Wake County. 6 of them (12%) are chain locations, against 10% across the U.S. That is 1.1 per 10,000 households, 48% below the U.S. rate of 2.1.

Households in Wake County spend about $51.1M a year on funerals, or $111 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1M per home, 54% above the U.S. figure of $679K.

In 2023, official counts showed 30 businesses with payroll in Wake County classed as funeral homes and funeral services, up 7.1% from 2019. That is one for every 15,339 households, against one for every 8,510 across the U.S.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Wake County grew 11.2%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Wake County scores 73 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for funeral homes, ranking #180 of 1,472 scored counties and #9 of 67 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Wake County compares

The same measures for North Carolina and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all funerals by the funeral homes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Funeral homes in Wake County, NC compared with North Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureWake CountyNorth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households1.12.32.1
Spending per listing$1M$582K$679K
Households per official establishment15,3398,2678,510
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+7.1%+0.4%−1.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+11.2%+7.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on funerals$111$135$143
Median household income$105,768$72,388$80,734
Groundwork market score7353

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
28 → 30+7.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
245
Annual payroll, 2023
$11.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
496 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
75The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as funeral homes and funeral services in Wake County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in Wake County

Population, 2025 estimate
1,257,235+11.2% since 2020
Households
460,175
Median age
38.2
Homes lived in by their owners
64%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
835 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,412
Median household income
$105,768+31.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$139,587
Median home value
$461,300
Jobs located here
687,531
Daytime population
1,293,967Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Wake County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the funeral homes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Wake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Funeral homes across North Carolina

Every North Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for funeral homes, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Wake County marked.

Top counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina ranked for funeral homes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Brunswick County, NC94111.6$1.1M+26.5%#14 of 1,472
2Henderson County, NC9071.4$1.3M+5.0%#23 of 1,472
3Chatham County, NC8972.1$861K+11.0%#27 of 1,472
4Lincoln County, NC8261.6$927K+13.2%#50 of 1,472
5Carteret County, NC7872.2$763K+4.1%#93 of 1,472
6Burke County, NC7561.7$1M+1.6%#145 of 1,472
7Iredell County, NC75131.7$803K+12.9%#150 of 1,472
8Buncombe County, NC75232.3$784K+2.9%#151 of 1,472
9Wake County, NC73491.1$1M+11.2%#180 of 1,472
10Davidson County, NC72111.6$930K+6.6%#196 of 1,472

Other business types in Wake County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many funeral homes are in Wake County, NC?

There are 49 funeral homes on map listings in Wake County as of September 2026. 6 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count funeral homes, mortuaries and cremation services. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as funeral homes and funeral services in 2023, up 7.1% from 2019.

How much do households in Wake County, NC spend on funerals?

About $51.1M a year, or $111 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 49 funeral homes on map listings, it comes to $1M per home. It is estimated from the incomes of the 460,175 households in Wake County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Wake County, NC compare with the U.S. for funeral homes?

Wake County has 1.1 funeral homes per 10,000 households, 48% below the U.S. rate of 2.1. Spending per home is $1M, 54% above the U.S. figure of $679K. At the national ratio of funeral homes to household spending, Wake County would have about 75, against 49 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 15,339 households, against one for every 8,510 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.1% from 2019 to 2023, against −1.7% for the U.S.

How fast is Wake County, NC growing?

Population estimates put Wake County at 1,257,235 people in 2025, up 11.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 460,175 households. Median household income in Wake County is $105,768, 31% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 31.2%, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Wake County scores 73 for funeral homes (upper middle), #180 of 1,472 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Wake County. It maps the funeral homes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for funeral homes · All 56 business types in Wake County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Wake County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Wake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.