Farmland Atlas · county record

Sampson County, North Carolina

Sampson County, NC: non-irrigated cash rent $120 an acre (2026); land and buildings $5,166 an acre in the 2022 census; median corn yield 109.9 bu/ac. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 37163. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

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Non-irrigated cash rent in Sampson County runs $120 per acre in 2026, up 23.7 percent from 2016. Irrigated land rents at $125 per acre, and the irrigated premium has been falling, from 1.55 in 2009 to 1.04 in 2026. Only 6 percent of harvested cropland is irrigated, and corn yields have trended up 2.3 bushels per acre a year across 2008-2025, with a median of 109.9 and a low of 50.3 in 2011. July nights average 70.8 F over 2017-2026, against a 1991-2020 normal of 70.2 F. Land value per the 2022 census sits at $5,166 per acre, up 5.6 percent from 2017 to 2022.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$120/ac
2026 county average
NC median $80 · 16th highest of 85
Cash rent, irrigated
$125/ac
2026 county average
NC median $120 · 4th highest of 8
Land and buildings
$5,166/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
NC median $5,711 · 38th lowest of 92
Corn yield, 2008–2025 median
109.9 bu/ac
recent level 2021–2025: 130.7
NC median 114.8 · 18th lowest of 49
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
$17.28
2016–2025, closed crop years
NC median $14.91 · 29th highest of 78
Farmland rented
43%
2022 census, rented from others
NC median 35% · 30th highest of 94

Cash rent

$0$20$40$60$80$100$1202010201520202025$64$120 dry$100$125 irrigated

Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.

Non-irrigated, 2026$120/ac
Change 2016 to 2026+23.7%nominal, $97 to $120
Irrigated, 2026$125/ac
Pasture, 2026$50/ac
Dry rent per bushel of corn$0.92$120 ÷ 130.7 bu, county yield 2021–2025

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$5,166/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$3,975/ac
Census 2017$4,891/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+5.6%+1.1% a year, nominal
Dry cropland rent ÷ census value, 20222.19%$113 ÷ $5,166; cropland 69% of land in farms

Corn yield

20082010201220142016201820202022202460.0158.9131.1median 109.9

Bushels per acre, USDA NASS county yields, all practices. The dashed line is the median of the published years.

Median, 2008–2025109.9 bu/ac17 published years
Recent level, 2021–2025130.7 bu/ac5 published years, high and low dropped
Lowest published year2011: 50.3 bu/ac46% of median
Trend, 2008–2025+2.3 bu/ac a year±3.2 (95% interval)

Crop insurance record

19952000200520102015202020255.860.641.00: claims equal premium

Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1989. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.

Claims paid per $100 of coverage, 2016–2025$17.28
Loss ratio, 2016–20251.15claims ÷ total premium
Loss ratio, 1989–20251.18$334.2 million paid
Years claims exceeded premium18 of 31
Worst year1995ratio 5.86
Largest causes of loss, 1989–2025heat and drought 34% · excess moisture 29% · wind 18%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

2000200520102015202020250320

Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.

D2 or worse for half the county, 2000–2025102 of 1,357 weeks8% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks200232 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202518 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202670.8 °F1991–2020 normal 70.2 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.47 °F a decadewarming
Rain, April to September29.9 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 109% of it
Days with hail 1 inch or larger0.8 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 20226%
Drained by tile, 202214% of cropland28,237 ac
Farmed no-till, 202229% of cropland57,765 ac
Cover crops, 20229% of cropland17,397 ac
19861991199620012006201120162021371,684312

Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.

CRP enrolled, 2025312 ac0.2% of harvested cropland + CRP
CRP expiring FY2026–2028127 ac41% of enrolled acres
CRP average rental payment, FY2025$111/acall contracts in force, old ones included; not today's offer
Solar and wind operating, 202549.7 MW solar · 0 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860
Cattle and calves, 202219,010−11.3% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202243%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentIrr. rentLand valueCorn yieldClaims per $100
Sampson County$120$125$5,166109.9$17.28
Bladen County$83$136$4,093111.9$26.43
Cumberland County$105—$5,708—$27.85
Duplin County$89$131$5,713112.5$13.47
Harnett County$121$200 2023$6,229—$19.88
Johnston County$114—$6,813104.5$15.48
Pender County$93—$5,274—$15.12
Wayne County$134—$4,258107.2$13.94
Median next door$105$134 2 co.$5,708109.6$15.48

Counties that share a stretch of boundary. An older rent carries its year and stays out of the median.

Cite this page

AGSIST Farmland Atlas. Sampson County, North Carolina. Figures as of 2026-09-20, from USDA NASS, USDA RMA, USDA FSA, the U.S. Drought Monitor and NOAA. https://agsist.com/farmland-atlas/north-carolina/sampson-county
Every figure is a county average from the sources named below. Ranks count counties with 10,000 acres or more in farms, in the same survey year for rent, within the state. Methods: how each figure is built. Downloads: all counties, CSV.
Sources, dates and arithmetic

"Figures as of" is the date this page's numbers last changed; it moves only when a figure on the page does. Source files and their retrieval dates are listed on the data page.

Rent: USDA NASS Cash Rents Survey, county. Land value: Census of Agriculture, operators' estimate of land and buildings. Yield: NASS county corn yields, trend fitted here over every published year since 2008. Loss ratio: claims (indemnity) divided by total premium, USDA RMA Summary of Business, 1989 on, open crop year left out. Drought: U.S. Drought Monitor, weeks with half the county or more in D2 or worse. July lows: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly minimum temperature. A dash means the record does not carry the figure or the source withheld it; the reason is printed beside it.