The 10 South Carolina Cities With The Largest Black Population For 2023


We used Saturday Night Science to determine the cities in South Carolina with the largest African American population.

Most African American cities in South Carolina research summary. We analyzed South Carolina’s most recent Census data to determine the blackest cities in South Carolina based on the percentage of Black residents. Here are the results of our analysis:

  • The city with the largest African American population in South Carolina is Marion based on the most recent Census data.

  • Marion is 77.36% Black.

  • The least African American city in South Carolina is North Myrtle Beach.

  • North Myrtle Beach is 1.11% Black.

  • South Carolina is 26.0% Black.

  • South Carolina is the 6th blackest state in the United States.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The Black community is one of the fastest-growing communities in America this decade.

Roughly 42 million people identifying as Black or African American live in the United States, making up 12% of the total population. According to the most recent American Community Survey, the Black population in South Carolina is 1,319,130 – at 26.0% of the total population of South Carolina.

The percentage growth of Blacks in America is the third largest percentage change for any race according to the Census’s race and ethnicity definition. Most scholars and historians agree that increasing diversity in America is a good thing.

We agree.

But how has the increase in the black population impacted South Carolina? Which cities and towns in South Carolina have seen the greatest increase in its Black population?

We broke down the most recent census data to determine the cities in South Carolina with the largest African American population in 2023:

What’s the blackest city in South Carolina? The city with the largest Black population in South Carolina for 2023 is Marion. See if Marion ranked as one of the most african american places in America.

And if you already knew these places were Black, check out the best places to live in South Carolina or the most diverse places in South Carolina.

The 10 Blackest Cities In South Carolina For 2023

1. Marion

Marion, SC

Source: Wikipedia User Cat person | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 6,472
% African American: 77.36%
# Of African American Residents: 5,007
Percent Change Since 2010: -0.83%
More on Marion:  Data | Cost Of Living

2. Orangeburg

Orangeburg, SC

Source: Wikipedia User Akhenaton06 at English Wikipedia | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 12,779
% African American: 70.81%
# Of African American Residents: 9,049
Percent Change Since 2010: -11.54%
More on Orangeburg:  Data | Cost Of Living

3. Lake City

Lake City, SC

Source: Wikipedia User Evanoco | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 6,028
% African American: 70.64%
# Of African American Residents: 4,258
Percent Change Since 2010: -12.22%
More on Lake City:  Data | Cost Of Living

4. Chester

Chester, SC

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 5,283
% African American: 62.73%
# Of African American Residents: 3,314
Percent Change Since 2010: -2.62%
More on Chester:  Data | Cost Of Living

5. Bennettsville

Bennettsville, SC

Source: Flickr User MikeKalasnik | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 7,306
% African American: 62.44%
# Of African American Residents: 4,562
Percent Change Since 2010: -26.9%
More on Bennettsville:  Data | Cost Of Living

6. Darlington

Darlington, SC

Source: Flickr User Roadgeek Adam | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 6,153
% African American: 57.71%
# Of African American Residents: 3,551
Percent Change Since 2010: -6.26%
More on Darlington:  Data | Cost Of Living

7. Georgetown

Georgetown, SC

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 8,435
% African American: 53.01%
# Of African American Residents: 4,471
Percent Change Since 2010: -11.31%
More on Georgetown:  Data | Cost Of Living

8. Walterboro

Walterboro, SC

Source: Wikipedia User BeaufortTiger | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 5,514
% African American: 52.39%
# Of African American Residents: 2,889
Percent Change Since 2010: -6.08%
More on Walterboro:  Data | Cost Of Living

9. Lancaster

Lancaster, SC

Source: Wikipedia User Calatayudboy | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 8,489
% African American: 51.53%
# Of African American Residents: 4,374
Percent Change Since 2010: 3.55%
More on Lancaster:  Data | Cost Of Living

10. Greenwood

Greenwood, SC

Source: Wikipedia User change-of-venue from Greenville, South Carolina, USA | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 22,363
% African American: 49.6%
# Of African American Residents: 11,092
Percent Change Since 2010: 3.47%
More on Greenwood:  Data | Cost Of Living

Methodology: How We Determined The Cities In South Carolina With The Largest Black Population For 2023

We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the Census. So that’s where we went to get the race breakdown across South Carolina.

That leads us to the Census’s most recently available data, the 2017-2021 American Community Survey data from the US Census.

Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:

  • Hispanic or Latino
  • White alone*
  • Black or African American alone*
  • American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
  • Asian alone*
  • Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
  • Some other race alone*
  • Two or more races*
* Not Hispanic or latino

Our particular column of interest was the number of people who identified as Black or African American.

We limited our analysis to non-CDPs with a population greater than 5,000 people in South Carolina. That left us with 58 cities.

We then calculated the percentage of residents that are Black or African American. The percentages ranked from 77.4% to 1.1%.

Finally, we ranked each city based on the percentage of the Black population, with a higher score being more Black than a lower score. Marion took the distinction of being the most Black, while North Myrtle Beach was the least African American city.

We updated this article for 2023. This is our tenth time ranking the cities in South Carolina with the largest African American population.

Read on for more information on how the cities in South Carolina ranked by population of African American residents or, for a more general take on diversity in America, head over to our ranking of the most diverse cities in America.

Summary: Black Populations Across South Carolina

If you’re looking for a breakdown of African American populations across South Carolina according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious enough, here are the least African American places in South Carolina:

  1. North Myrtle Beach
  2. Mount Pleasant
  3. Tega Cay

For more South Carolina reading, check out:

African American Population By City In South Carolina

Rank City % African American Population
1 Marion 77.36% 6,472
2 Orangeburg 70.81% 12,779
3 Lake City 70.64% 6,028
4 Chester 62.73% 5,283
5 Bennettsville 62.44% 7,306
6 Darlington 57.71% 6,153
7 Georgetown 53.01% 8,435
8 Walterboro 52.39% 5,514
9 Lancaster 51.53% 8,489
10 Greenwood 49.6% 22,363
11 Hartsville 49.46% 7,565
12 Batesburg-Leesville 48.29% 5,322
13 Dillon 48.27% 6,354
14 Sumter 48.05% 42,920
15 Newberry 47.52% 10,496
16 Florence 47.41% 39,816
17 Union 45.66% 8,119
18 Spartanburg 44.31% 37,990
19 North Charleston 43.07% 114,542
20 Cheraw 43.01% 5,090
21 Gaffney 42.24% 12,560
22 Columbia 40.34% 137,276
23 Laurens 40.09% 9,251
24 Rock Hill 38.54% 72,883
25 York 35.5% 8,423
26 Aiken 34.64% 31,516
27 Conway 33.97% 22,001
28 Moncks Corner 33.59% 12,685
29 Anderson 32.95% 28,796
30 Camden 32.53% 7,666
31 Beaufort 30.13% 12,899
32 Clinton 29.28% 7,753
33 Fountain Inn 26.31% 10,237
34 Cayce 25.62% 13,637
35 Irmo 25.55% 11,581
36 Mauldin 23.57% 24,735
37 Greenville 23.1% 69,725
38 Seneca 20.74% 8,734
39 Port Royal 20.58% 12,734
40 Charleston 19.6% 147,928
41 Summerville 19.16% 50,318
42 Goose Creek 19.09% 44,502
43 Simpsonville 18.75% 23,190
44 West Columbia 18.27% 17,265
45 Myrtle Beach 17.29% 35,116
46 Greer 16.24% 35,151
47 Forest Acres 15.32% 10,621
48 North Augusta 14.42% 24,013
49 Fort Mill 11.32% 24,069
50 Easley 10.71% 22,643
51 Lexington 10.46% 23,068
52 Hanahan 9.96% 20,381
53 Bluffton 7.96% 27,596
54 Clemson 7.34% 17,238
55 Hilton Head Island 5.65% 38,068
56 Tega Cay 4.17% 12,336
57 Mount Pleasant 3.32% 88,900
58 North Myrtle Beach 1.11% 18,502
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.

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