Sunset Beach is a town in Brunswick County, North Carolina, home to about 4,351 people across 7.0 square miles. Its ZIP code is 28468, and parts of 28469 are in Sunset Beach too.
Homes sold for a median of $244 per square foot in the three months ending August 2026, a balanced market.
Mostly Sunset Beach; also Calabash
Part is in Sunset Beach, part in Ocean Isle Beach
Each card is that ZIP code’s whole market, including any part outside Sunset Beach. Seller’s market: under 4 months of supply; buyer’s market: over 6. Methodology
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| Nearest major airport | Myrtle Beach International Airport (MYR)27 miles away |
|---|---|
| Nearest city of 250,000+ | Raleigh, NC135 miles away |
| Nearest city of 1 million+ | Philadelphia, PA462 miles away |
Straight-line distances from the center of Sunset Beach; driving is longer.
Source: Airports from OurAirports (scheduled passenger service); city centers and populations from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Source: Members of Congress from the congress-legislators project; districts from the Census Bureau’s relationship files; governor and mayor from Wikidata.
Sunset Beach had 4,175 residents in the 2020 census, up 129% since 2000.
It’s the 196th largest of 771 towns in North Carolina by population.
Brunswick County grew from 12,657 residents in 1900 to 136,693 in 2020.
Brunswick County, 1900–2020
Source: U.S. Census Bureau decennial censuses (counties 1900–1990 from the Bureau’s historical county file).
Average highs peak around 87°F in summer, and winter lows average 36°F. About 56.7 inches of rain and melted snow fall in a typical year.
Source: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Shallotte Ag, NC weather station (8 miles away).
33,646 jobs at 3,093 businesses in Brunswick County. The biggest industries by employees:
Source: U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023 (private employers; jobs counted where people work).
25 doctors and other health care providers list an office in Sunset Beach.
Nearest hospitals
Providers with an office here
| Primary care doctors | 1 |
|---|---|
| Specialist doctors | 2 |
| Dentists | 2 |
| Nurse practitioners and physician assistants | 4 |
| Mental health providers | 1 |
| Physical and occupational therapists | 15 |
| Pharmacies | 1 |
Source: Hospitals from CMS Hospital General Information (ratings are CMS overall star ratings); straight-line distances; providers from the CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), by practice address and primary specialty.
Parks (1 nearby)
Grocery stores (2 nearby)
Pharmacies
Libraries
Museums (1 nearby)
Counts are within about 2 miles of the center of town.
Source: Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (openstreetmap.org/copyright), as mapped by volunteers; it can miss places or include closed ones.
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Shares ZIP codes with Calabash and Ocean Isle Beach.
Town boundaries don’t always match ZIP codes: a ZIP code can cross into neighboring towns, and a town can share a ZIP code with its neighbors. Facts describe the town itself; market figures describe whole ZIP codes.