28168
ZIP 28168 is Vale, North Carolina, mostly in Lincoln County; Eastern time.
- Type
- Standard
- Time zone
- America/New_York
- County
- Lincoln +3 more
- Metro area
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
- Population
- 10,484
- Coordinates
- 35.5524, -81.4251
Weather right now
Asking the National Weather Service…
Where 28168 is
Approximate ZIP boundary (Census ZCTA 2020). ZIP codes are mail routes, not areas, so the shape shown is the Census tabulation area that approximates it.
- 🔢 Type 28168 into a pocket calculator and turn it upside down: BgIBZ — not quite a word, sorry.
- ➕ As a number, 28,168 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 7 × 503. Its digits add up to 25, a total 2,242 other ZIP codes share.
- 💾In binary, the way a computer stores it:
110111000001000 - 🏠 Its numerical neighbours: 28167 (Union Mills, NC, 30 mi away) and 28169 (Waco, NC, 13 mi away).
- 🔄 Backwards, 28168 becomes 86182, which is not a ZIP code at all.
- 👥 17 other ZIP codes are made of exactly the same digits (12886, 16828, 16882, 18628, 18826, 26818, …). The farthest-flung twin is 88126 in Pep, NM, 1,250 miles away.
- 🧭 Farther south than 71% of all ZIP codes, and farther east than 69%.
- 🎯982 miles east of the geographic center of the Lower 48, near Lebanon, Kansas.
- 🌏 Dig straight through the Earth from 28168 and you would come out at 35.55°S, 98.57°E — 1,022 miles from Perth, Australia, the nearest big city to that spot.
- ☀Longest day of the year: 14h 34m of daylight. Shortest: 9h 45m.
- 📏 At 87.0 square miles of land, 28168 is bigger than 74% of ZIP codes — room for about 66 Central Parks.
- Working out the sun…
- Checking the USGS…
Source: USGS.
People and housing
| Population | 10,484This ZIP10,484 |
|---|---|
| Households | 4,324This ZIP4,324 |
| Housing units | 4,694This ZIP4,694 |
| Median age | 47.0This ZIP47.0North Carolina39.1US 38.9 |
| Median household income | $61,220This ZIP$61,220North Carolina$72,388US $80,734 |
| Median home value | $205,000This ZIP$205,000North Carolina$288,900US $332,700 |
| Median gross rent | $821This ZIP$821North Carolina$1,228US $1,413 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 14.3%This ZIP14.3% |
| Mean commute | 33.5 minThis ZIP33.5 min |
| Population density | 120.5 / sq miThis ZIP120.5 / sq mi |
Business and tax activity
| Business establishments | 119This ZIP119 |
|---|---|
| Employees | 621This ZIP621 |
| Annual payroll | $21,696,000This ZIP$21,696,000 |
| Tax returns filed | 4,510This ZIP4,510 |
| Total adjusted gross income | $283,799,000This ZIP$283,799,000 |
Land area
| Land area | 87.03 sq miThis ZIP87.03 sq mi |
|---|---|
| Water area | 0.35 sq miThis ZIP0.35 sq mi |
Counties 28168 spans
A ZIP code is a mail route and ignores county lines. Shares are by overlapping land area.
| County | Share of this ZIP |
|---|---|
| Lincoln County | 59.4% |
| Catawba County | 40.4% |
| Burke County | 0.2% |
| Cleveland County | 0.1% |
Other place names in 28168
Census places whose land this ZIP code overlaps. The Postal Service may accept other city names in an address, too.
ZIP codes near 28168
| ZIP | City | Distance |
|---|---|---|
28602 | Hickory, NC | 8.7 mi |
28612 | Connelly Springs, NC | 9.3 mi |
28042 | Fallston, NC | 10.1 mi |
28090 | Lawndale, NC | 10.1 mi |
28021 | Cherryville, NC | 10.5 mi |
28033 | Crouse, NC | 10.7 mi |
28092 | Lincolnton, NC | 10.8 mi |
28637 | Hildebran, NC | 11.4 mi |
28093 | Lincolnton, NC | 11.4 mi |
28603 | Hickory, NC | 11.7 mi |
Find every ZIP code within 10 miles of 28168 →
Questions about this ZIP code
Where is ZIP code 28168?
28168 is in Vale, North Carolina, in Lincoln County, part of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metropolitan area. Its published point location is 35.5524, -81.4251.
What county is 28168 in?
28168 spans 4 counties: Lincoln County, Catawba County, Burke County and Cleveland County. Most of it falls in Lincoln County, measured by overlapping land area — the county holding the most land in a ZIP code is not always the one holding the most residents.
What time zone is 28168 in?
28168 uses America/New_York.
How many people live in 28168?
About 10,484 people live in ZIP code 28168, in 4,324 households, at 120.5 people per square mile. These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area, not a headcount.
What is the median household income in 28168?
$61,220 a year, against $72,388 across North Carolina.
What ZIP codes are near 28168?
The closest are 28602 (8.7 mi), 28612 (9.3 mi), 28042 (10.1 mi), 28090 (10.1 mi) and 28021 (10.5 mi).
Is 28168 a PO Box ZIP code?
28168 is a standard ZIP code. A normal ZIP code with street delivery.
Download or cite
Cite this page
zipcodes.pro. “28168 ZIP Code — Vale, North Carolina (Lincoln County).” Data release 2026-10-12. Retrieved 2026-10-20. https://zipcodes.pro/zip/28168
Machine-readable version of these facts:
curl https://zipcodes.pro/zip/28168.json Underlying data is public domain or openly licensed — sources, vintages and licences.