North Carolina ranks #13 among US states for total patents filed in 2020, with 11,779 patents from 5,993 inventors across 315 cities. On a per-capita basis that is 1.1 patents per 1,000 residents, a standard benchmark for comparing state-level R&D intensity.
Top Cities in North Carolina 2020
| Rank ↑ | City ↕ | Patents ↕ | Inventors ↕ |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Raleigh, NC | 2,034 | 895 |
| #2 | Cary, NC | 1,648 | 635 |
| #3 | Durham, NC | 1,084 | 617 |
| #4 | Charlotte, NC | 1,058 | 588 |
| #5 | Chapel Hill, NC | 634 | 346 |
| #6 | Morrisville, NC | 455 | 203 |
| #7 | Apex, NC | 450 | 237 |
| #8 | Winston-Salem, NC | 378 | 172 |
| #9 | Greensboro, NC | 209 | 151 |
| #10 | Wake Forest, NC | 164 | 93 |
| #11 | Hickory, NC | 161 | 77 |
| #12 | Wilmington, NC | 154 | 106 |
| #13 | Huntersville, NC | 135 | 77 |
| #14 | Mooresville, NC | 105 | 59 |
| #15 | Holly Springs, NC | 102 | 57 |
| #16 | Clemmons, NC | 96 | 44 |
| #17 | Matthews, NC | 85 | 45 |
| #18 | Concord, NC | 79 | 49 |
| #19 | Asheville, NC | 77 | 54 |
| #20 | Waxhaw, NC | 77 | 46 |
| #21 | Cornelius, NC | 76 | 35 |
| #22 | Carrboro, NC | 72 | 36 |
| #23 | Pittsboro, NC | 68 | 20 |
| #24 | Oak Ridge, NC | 64 | 23 |
| #25 | Oxford, NC | 61 | 2 |