Spartanburg County, South Carolina


Spartanburg County is a county located on the northwestern border of the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 327,997, making it the fifth-most populous county in South Carolina. Its county seat is Spartanburg. Spartanburg County is the largest county within the Spartanburg, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC Combined Statistical Area.
WWW spartanburgcounty.org

History

The county was founded in 1785 and was named after the Spartan Rifles which was a local militia during the American Revolutionary War. The largest community and the county seat is Spartanburg, which resides in Upstate South Carolina.
The ship is named after the county.
Spartan County was the center of the 2025-2026 South Carolina measles outbreak. By the end of January 2026, South Carolina exceeded any other state in terms of confirmed measles cases with over 700 cases mostly centered around Spartan County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

State and local protected areas/sites

Major water bodies

Adjacent counties

Major highways

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Major infrastructure

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 327,997 people, 125,836 households, and 83,432 families residing in the county.
The median age was 38.8 years, with 23.2% of residents under the age of 18 and 16.9% aged 65 years or older; for every 100 females there were 94.2 males and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.3 males.
The racial makeup of the county was 66.9% White, 19.6% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.5% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 4.6% from some other race, and 6.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 8.5% of the population.
70.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 29.5% lived in rural areas.
Of the 125,836 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 28.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 137,009 housing units, of which 8.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 70.6% were owner-occupied and 29.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.3%.

2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 284,307 people, 109,246 households, and 75,404 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 122,628 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 72.3% white, 20.6% black or African American, 2.0% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 3.1% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.9% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 13.6% were American, 10.5% were Irish, 9.6% were English, and 8.8% were German.
Of the 109,246 households, 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 15.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.0% were non-families, and 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.05. The median age was 38.0 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,680 and the median income for a family was $53,149. Males had a median income of $41,445 versus $31,602 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,924. About 11.0% of families and 14.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

Government and politics

Spartanburg County has long been a Republican stronghold, having not voted for a Democratic presidential nominee since 1976. No Democrat has won 40% of the county’s vote since 1980. In 2024 the county saw a strong rightward trend, with Donald Trump performing better than any Republican in the county since Reagan in 1984.
Spartanburg County County Council has seven members, six Republicans and one Democrat. A. Manning Lynch serves as the county council chairman, having been in that role since 2019. Meetings are usually in the middle of the month on the third week and take place at the Spartanburg County administration building in the county council chamber.

Economy

In 2022, the GDP was $19.5 billion, and the real GDP was $16.7 billion in chained 2017 dollars.
, some of the largest employers in the county include Adidas, BMW, Ingles, Michelin, Optum, QuikTrip, Sage Automotive Interiors, Siemens, and Walmart.
IndustryEmployment CountsEmployment Percentage Average Annual Wage
Accommodation and Food Services13,0598.721,736
Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services7,8005.240,300
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting2930.241,652
Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation1,3780.920,696
Construction7,2454.862,868
Educational Services9,8966.649,140
Finance and Insurance2,8421.973,996
Health Care and Social Assistance22,10514.765,104
Information9850.768,016
Management of Companies and Enterprises1,8431.299,060
Manufacturing36,29124.164,896
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction1030.166,092
Other Services 3,3532.247,944
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services4,7483.171,552
Public Administration3,8212.550,752
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing1,7521.253,456
Retail Trade16,41010.934,424
Transportation and Warehousing9,0116.053,872
Utilities6930.567,704
Wholesale Trade7,1634.864,428
Total150,791100.0%54,303

Education

Primary and secondary schools

There are eight school districts which cover portions of the county. Seven of them are within the Spartanburg County School System.
Some of the districts share a vocational school, and also share the McCarthy Teszler School, a special education school.
South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind is in an unincorporated area in the county, near Spartanburg.
Spartanburg Day School, a private school, is in an unincorporated area.

Colleges and universities

Healthcare

Spartanburg County's healthcare is mainly provided by Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. Spartanburg Regional is a public, not-for-profit, integrated health care delivery system with several facilities in Spartanburg, including:
  • Bearden-Josey Center for Breast Health, a state-of-the-art imaging center for digital mammography, ultrasound, stereotactic breast biopsy and bone densitometry.
  • Gibbs Cancer Center & Research Institute, providing an inpatient oncology unit and outpatient care, along with access to clinical trials and the latest cancer technology. With locations across Upstate S.C., including Spartanburg and Greer in Spartanburg County.
  • Medical Group of the Carolinas, a physician group with offices located throughout Spartanburg and Upstate South Carolina.
  • Pelham Medical Center, in Greer, provides emergency services, general surgery, a medical office building and numerous practices.
  • Regional HealthPlus, a network of hospitals and physicians of a wide range of specialty.
  • Spartanburg Hospital for Restorative Care, a 97-bed long-term, acute-care hospital with a 25-bed skilled nursing facility.
  • Spartanburg Medical Center, a research and teaching hospital with two locations: Spartanburg Medical Center campus on East Wood Street and Spartanburg Medical Center — Mary Black Campus on Skylyn Drive. Together, these campuses share a history that stretches back to the 1920s. Spartanburg Medical Center includes a total of 747 beds, and services that include emergency, surgical, maternity, cancer, a Heart Center and inpatient rehabilitation.
  • The Sports Medicine Institute, located at Upward Star Center, where doctors, athletic trainers, and physical therapists serve professional and recreational athletes.
  • Woodruff Manor, an 88-bed skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in Woodruff.

Cancer care expansion

In early 2018, Spartanburg Regional began construction on an expansion of its Gibbs Cancer Center & Research Institute at Pelham location. The expansion is intended to provide cancer care for more patients along the border of Spartanburg and Greenville counties. The expansion of the building was completed and began accepting patients in March 2020.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Notable people