Free parcel data in North Carolina

Yes. North Carolina publishes a free statewide parcel layer: North Carolina Parcels (Polygons), from NC OneMap / NC Center for Geographic Information and Analysis. Coverage: All 100 counties plus Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians lands. It's a public ArcGIS REST service with no API key or login.

The layer

Layer	North Carolina Parcels (Polygons)
Publisher	NC OneMap / NC Center for Geographic Information and Analysis
Coverage	All 100 counties plus Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians lands
Data vintage	County submissions aggregated by NC OneMap; item last modified 2026-09-17
Terms	Public; NC OneMap terms https://www.nconemap.gov/pages/terms; source data from NC counties
Fields	parcel number (parno, altparno, nparno); site address (siteadd); owner (ownname); subdivision
Not published	deed references, plat references
REST endpoint	`https://services.nconemap.gov/secure/rest/services/NC1Map_Parcels/MapServer/1`
Last verified	2026-10-19 with a live point and parcel-number query

Notes for GIS users

Despite '/secure/' in the path, no token is required. cntyfips is the 3-digit county FIPS as a string (e.g. '183' = Wake); cntyname also available. nparno = '37' + county FIPS + '_' + parno (statewide-unique). MapServer layer, not FeatureServer.

How to use it

QGIS: Layer > Data Source Manager > ArcGIS REST Server, add a connection with the service URL (the endpoint above without the final /0), then add the layer. Filter to your area before exporting.
ArcGIS Pro: Add Data > Data From Path, paste the endpoint.
Direct query: append /query?geometry=LON,LAT&geometryType=esriGeometryPoint&inSR=4326&spatialRel=esriSpatialRelIntersects&outFields=*&f=geojson to get the parcel at a point.
CAD: see getting a parcel into AutoCAD or Civil 3D.

Assessor parcel lines are for taxation and are often 5 to 50 ft off the legal boundary. Why.

Basesheet uses this to draw the parcel line on a base plan for any North Carolina address, with LiDAR contours, soils, flood zones and wetlands.

Build a base plan