Visitors spent $1.17 billion in Durham County in 2025, up 0.9%, the state's tourism office says. That ranks eighth of 100 counties and supports 7,779 jobs.
Visitors spent $1.17 billion in Durham County in 2025. That is 0.9% more than in 2024, and the eighth-highest total of North Carolina’s 100 counties.
The figures come from Visit North Carolina’s county visitor spending table for 2025, prepared by the research firm Tourism Economics. Visit North Carolina is the state’s tourism office, part of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. It published the county figures on its economic impact studies page.
Durham’s growth trailed the state. Visitor spending across North Carolina rose 1.3% to $37.2 billion, the same table shows.
The numbers for Durham County
| 2025 | Durham County |
|---|---|
| Visitor spending | $1.17 billion ($1,170.15 million) |
| Change from 2024 | Up 0.9% |
| Share of state visitor spending | 3.1% |
| Tourism jobs | 7,779 (3.4% of the state’s) |
| Tourism payroll and personal income | $319.31 million |
| State taxes generated | $41.14 million |
| Local taxes generated | $41.25 million |
| Tax savings per resident | $239.06 |
Together, visitors generated about $82.4 million in state and local taxes. Visit North Carolina expresses that as a saving of $239.06 in state and local taxes for every Durham County resident. The statewide figure is $243.67.
Where the money went
Transport was the largest category in Durham County, at $384.6 million. Visit North Carolina counts both ground and air travel there. Food and drink came next, at $324.6 million.
- Transport: $384.60 million
- Food and drink: $324.59 million
- Lodging, including second homes: $242.28 million
- Recreation: $144.78 million
- Retail: $73.91 million
How Durham ranks
Only seven counties drew more visitor spending in 2025:
| Rank | County | Visitor spending | Change from 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mecklenburg | $6.47 billion | Up 1.5% |
| 2 | Wake | $3.63 billion | Up 2.4% |
| 3 | Buncombe | $2.59 billion | Down 2.1% |
| 4 | Dare | $2.09 billion | Down 0.6% |
| 5 | Guilford | $1.85 billion | Up 2.9% |
| 6 | Brunswick | $1.25 billion | Up 1.3% |
| 7 | New Hanover | $1.21 billion | Up 5.8% |
| 8 | Durham | $1.17 billion | Up 0.9% |
| 9 | Forsyth | $1.08 billion | Down 0.8% |
Durham stayed ahead of Forsyth County, home to Winston-Salem, which slipped 0.8%.
The neighbors
Durham’s neighbors moved in different directions:
| County | Visitor spending | Change from 2024 | Tourism jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wake | $3.63 billion | Up 2.4% | 27,470 |
| Durham | $1.17 billion | Up 0.9% | 7,779 |
| Orange | $278.58 million | Down 0.5% | 1,999 |
| Chatham | $93.59 million | Up 8.9% | 721 |
| Granville | $62.59 million | Up 1.5% | 333 |
| Person | $56.69 million | Down 1.6% | 314 |
Orange County, home to Chapel Hill about nine miles southwest, was one of the counties where spending slipped.
What the figures do not say
The table counts spending, not people. Discover Durham, the county’s tourism agency, had not posted its own 2025 report with a visitor count on its website when we checked on Nov. 2. We will add the count when it does.
The figures are estimates from a model, not a tally of receipts. Visit North Carolina revises earlier years when new data arrives, so a 2024 figure in an older report may not match the growth rate here.
What it means for you
- Taxes: visitor spending brought in $41.25 million in local taxes in 2025. Our property taxes page explains what Durham homeowners pay.
- Jobs: 7,779 Durham County jobs depend on visitors, in hotels, restaurants, attractions and transport.
- Plans for the weekend: see things to do in Durham.
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