Skip to main content
Ham Recruiter FCC ULS

Ham radio operators in North Carolina: new licenses by county

23,519 licensed amateur radio operators; 913 new in the past 12 months. Updated weekly from FCC data.

At a glance · Data as of

New hams · last 30 days
79
New hams · last 12 months
913
▼ 21% vs prior 12 mo
Active licensed hams
23,519
Upgrades · 12 mo
415
Vanity callsigns · 12 mo
272
Address updates · 12 mo
362
Often a move into the area
Expiring · next 6 mo
1,117

About ham radio in North Carolina

New licenses slowed in North Carolina: 913 new hams in the past 12 months, 21% fewer than the year before. North Carolina ranks #6 of 52 states and territories for new licenses. Wake County leads the state with 126 new hams. Among larger counties, Guilford County is growing fastest. Technicians make up 46% of the state’s licensees, close to the U.S. average of 48%.

New hams by month

New hams per month in North Carolina, October 2025 to September 2026 913 in total. Highest: 103 in May 2026. Lowest: 0 in October 2025. Down 21% from the prior 12 months. Oct 2025: 0 new hams 0 Oct 2025 Nov 2025: 87 new hams 87 Nov Dec 2025: 73 new hams 73 Dec Jan 2026: 77 new hams 77 Jan 2026 Feb 2026: 80 new hams 80 Feb Mar 2026: 88 new hams 88 Mar Apr 2026: 92 new hams 92 Apr May 2026: 103 new hams 103 May Jun 2026: 96 new hams 96 Jun Jul 2026: 63 new hams 63 Jul Aug 2026: 70 new hams 70 Aug Sep 2026: 84 new hams 84 Sep
Complete calendar months only, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026. The current month is left out until it ends.
Show data table
New hams per month in North Carolina
MonthNew hams
Oct 20250
Nov 202587
Dec 202573
Jan 202677
Feb 202680
Mar 202688
Apr 202692
May 2026103
Jun 202696
Jul 202663
Aug 202670
Sep 202684
Total913

License classes

Active licensees in North Carolina by license class, compared with U.S.
ClassHamsShareU.S.
Technician 10,73546%48%
General 6,16226%25%
Amateur Extra 5,41323%21%
Advanced 7873%3%
Novice / Other 4222%2%

Bar = North Carolina share · Tick = U.S. share

In the past 12 months, 188 operators upgraded to General and 190 to Amateur Extra.

How North Carolina compares

#6 of 52 states and territories for new hams in the past 12 months

Rates per 1,000 active licensees
Per 1,000 active hamsNorth CarolinaU.S.
New hams, past 12 months38.832.3
Upgrades, past 12 months17.614.7
Expiring, next 6 months47.557.3

913 new hams in North Carolina this past year. Get next month’s list free.

Sign Up Free →

Top 10 North Carolina counties for new hams

Scroll sideways for more columns →

#CountyNew hams 12 moChange vs prior yearActive hamsNew per 1,000
1Wake County126▲ 4%2,93343.0
2Cumberland County78▲ 1%78299.7
3Buncombe County56▼ 15%84066.7
4Mecklenburg County52▼ 29%1,29340.2
5Guilford County29▲ 7%85234.0
6Durham County26▲ 37%54248.0
7Onslow County18▼ 28%38446.9
8Gaston County16▼ 36%49632.3
9Harnett County16▼ 50%40839.2
10Henderson County16▼ 27%45335.3

All North Carolina counties

65 counties with their own page. Numbers are new hams in the past 12 months.

Smaller North Carolina counties

These 35 counties have too few licensees or too little recent activity for a page of their own, so their numbers are listed here.

Show all 35 smaller counties
CountyActive hamsNew hams · 12 mo
Anson County211
Avery County592
Bertie County80
Bladen County580
Camden County320
Caswell County331
Chowan County330
Clay County751
Columbus County511
Currituck County772
Edgecombe County461
Gates County190
Graham County431
Greene County241
Halifax County401
Hertford County191
Hyde County70
Jones County353
Madison County910
Martin County320
Mitchell County683
Montgomery County422
Northampton County270
Pamlico County1271
Perquimans County461
Person County521
Sampson County802
Scotland County411
Swain County491
Tyrrell County90
Vance County441
Warren County240
Washington County220
Wilson County952
Yadkin County1053

Neighboring states

Share North Carolina’s numbers

Select the text to copy it.

Email Share on Facebook (opens in a new tab)

Figures may be reused with credit to Ham Recruiter (CC BY 4.0).

Questions about hams in North Carolina

How many ham radio operators are in North Carolina?

23,519 active amateur radio licensees are on file for North Carolina as of Oct 1, 2026.

How many new hams were licensed in North Carolina last year?

913 people in North Carolina received their first FCC amateur radio license in the 12 months ending Oct 1, 2026.

Which North Carolina counties have the most new hams?

In the past 12 months: Wake County (126), Cumberland County (78) and Buncombe County (56).

Where does this data come from?

From the FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) public amateur license database, which we download every Monday. Addresses are matched to counties with the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder. This page shows totals only.

Can I see the names or call signs on this page?

No. Public pages show totals only. Verified Ham Recruiter users can search and export lists for outreach; see how licensee information is handled.

About this data

Data as of . Source: FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) weekly amateur license database; county from U.S. Census Bureau geocoding. Aggregates only, no individual licensee data is shown. Aggregate figures © Ham Recruiter, CC BY 4.0.

How we count

  • New ham: an active licensee whose first license was granted in the period.
  • Address updates: a change of FCC mailing address, often a move into the area.
  • Counts use each licensee’s current FCC address. Someone licensed here who later moved is counted where they live now.
  • Each license keeps only its most recent event of each type, so two upgrades in one year count once.
  • PO-box-only addresses often can’t be matched to a county, so rural counties are slightly undercounted.

100% of North Carolina licensees could be matched to a county.