Orange County
$1.5B in FY2025 federal spending, $10,041 per capita.
North Carolina · FIPS 37135
In FY2025, Orange County in North Carolina received $1.5B in federal spending - $10,041 per capita for a population of 148,696. This is 35.8% below the national average and 19.0% below the North Carolina average. The leading federal agency by spending share is Department of Health and Human Services. By per-capita federal spending, it ranks #29 of 100 North Carolina counties.
- Total spending
- $1.5B
- Per capita
- $10,041
- vs. national avg
- -35.8%
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
The verdict
Orange County posts above-median federal per-capita spending nationally, with spending led by Department of Health and Human Services, among several agencies.
- National per-capita rank
- Top 26%
- of 3,232 US counties
- Per-capita spending
- $10,041
- Leading agency
- Department of Health and Human Services
- 47.8% of tracked spending
- North Carolina rank
- #29 of 100
How Orange County Compares
Per-capita federal spending: Orange County vs. North Carolina and the nation
Population: 148,696 (U.S. Census Bureau estimate) - the denominator behind the per-capita figures above.
Leading Federal Agencies in Orange County
Top awarding agencies in Orange County, FY2025
Among the 1,150 US counties with agency-level spending data, Department of Health and Human Services is a comparatively unusual leading agency, topping only 3.4% of agency-tracked counties nationally -- often a sign of a single large federal facility rather than broad-based spending.
These 3 agencies together account for $1.4B (90.6%) of Orange County's $1.5B in total tracked federal spending.
All 3 individually-tracked agencies are shown above - Orange County has no smaller residual awarding agencies broken out beyond this set, a compact agency footprint rather than a long tail of minor awardees.
Read the agency breakdown as a table
| Agency | Spending | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Human Services | $646.0M | 47.8% |
| Social Security Administration | $643.5M | 47.6% |
| Department of Education | $63.2M | 4.7% |
How Orange County Ranks Nationally
Per-capita federal spending vs. all US counties
All 3,232 US counties, FY2025
$10,041 Top 26% higher than 74% of 3,224 US counties
Each bar is a $1K-wide band; taller bars hold more US counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source USASpending.gov FY2025 + U.S. Census Bureau population estimates
Orange County Among North Carolina's Largest Counties
Population vs. per-capita spending: North Carolina's biggest counties
Read the chart as a table
| County | Population | Per capita | Total spending |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wake County | 1,129,410 | $11,428 | $12.9B |
| Mecklenburg County | 1,115,482 | $5,240 | $5.8B |
| Guilford County | 541,299 | $7,579 | $4.1B |
| Forsyth County | 382,590 | $7,451 | $2.9B |
| Cumberland County | 334,728 | $12,871 | $4.3B |
| Durham County | 324,833 | $18,868 | $6.1B |
| Buncombe County | 269,452 | $13,420 | $3.6B |
| Union County | 238,267 | $5,561 | $1.3B |
| Gaston County | 227,943 | $6,974 | $1.6B |
| Cabarrus County | 225,804 | $5,453 | $1.2B |
| New Hanover County | 225,702 | $8,720 | $2.0B |
| Johnston County | 215,999 | $6,735 | $1.5B |
| Onslow County | 204,576 | $11,691 | $2.4B |
| Iredell County | 186,693 | $7,826 | $1.5B |
| Alamance County | 171,415 | $6,612 | $1.1B |
| Orange County (this county) | 148,696 | $10,041 | $1.5B |
Federal Spending Guides
Nearby Counties With Similar Federal Spending
Counties with per-capita federal spending closest to Orange County's $10,041 - prioritizing North Carolina peers first.
Northampton County
North Carolina
$9,921 per capita
$173.3M total
Beaufort County
North Carolina
$9,849 per capita
$439.8M total
Perquimans County
North Carolina
$9,819 per capita
$127.7M total
Graham County
North Carolina
$10,309 per capita
$82.8M total
Bladen County
North Carolina
$9,582 per capita
$283.7M total
Frequently Asked Questions
How much federal spending did Orange County, North Carolina receive?
How does Orange County's per capita spending compare to the national average?
What is the population of Orange County, North Carolina?
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and presented.
Verify with USASpending.gov → Verify population with U.S. Census Bureau →
Every figure on PlainSpending is computed directly from USASpending.gov award-transaction data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page aggregates every federal award with a place-of-performance in this county, live from the dataset. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.