Who is the Triangle?

We are diverse and dispersed.

The best word to define the Triangle: scattered. Instead of a single downtown area, we have various downtowns in our principal cities. And while many people travel 25 miles or farther to their jobs, there are several hubs where people live, work and shop. Because of our diverse economy, our workforce transcends the traditional blue collar/white collar divide. As a result, we’ve attracted people from across the country and the world, resulting in a multi-ethnic mix of residents.

The majority of businesses in the Triangle aren’t huge Fortune 1000 public companies, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t thriving and growing economically. Interestingly the bigger companies that employ more than 1,000 individuals are spread evenly across the area.

Our population of nonprofits consists of more than 7200 organizations — some large, some fairly small, and some rather informal. Of these, two thirds are 501(c)(3)s — 13% are churches, 3% schools and universities, and 0.2% hospitals. The remaining 84% fall into a multifaceted Other category. Together they make the Triangle a friendlier, more humane place to live and do business.

The majority of the Triangle area’s population concentrates in three cities: Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill.

Divided by zip codes, larger payrolls correlate with the areas that have larger employers.

The Triangle is home to 17% of North Carolina’s nonprofits. However, those organizations control 45% of the state’s nonprofit assets.