Reference

North Carolina API county codes

Every North Carolina API well number starts with 32, the state code. The next three digits are the county code, one of the 100 listed below, so a number beginning 32-001 belongs to a well in Alamance County.

To decode a whole number, including the sidetrack and completion digits, paste it into the API well number decoder.

How to read a North Carolina API number

32State: North Carolina
001County: Alamance
12345Well, unique within the county

The first ten digits identify one well. Two more digits can follow for a sidetrack, and two after that for a later completion. The county is the one where the well starts at the surface, so a horizontal well that crosses a county line keeps its surface county's code. A few state regulators assign the producing county instead, so the state record is the final word on a well near a boundary.

All 100 North Carolina counties

County code County API numbers start
001 Alamance 32-001-
003 Alexander 32-003-
005 Alleghany 32-005-
007 Anson 32-007-
009 Ashe 32-009-
011 Avery 32-011-
013 Beaufort 32-013-
015 Bertie 32-015-
017 Bladen 32-017-
019 Brunswick 32-019-
021 Buncombe 32-021-
023 Burke 32-023-
025 Cabarrus 32-025-
027 Caldwell 32-027-
029 Camden 32-029-
031 Carteret 32-031-
033 Caswell 32-033-
035 Catawba 32-035-
037 Chatham 32-037-
039 Cherokee 32-039-
041 Chowan 32-041-
043 Clay 32-043-
045 Cleveland 32-045-
047 Columbus 32-047-
049 Craven 32-049-
051 Cumberland 32-051-
053 Currituck 32-053-
055 Dare 32-055-
057 Davidson 32-057-
059 Davie 32-059-
061 Duplin 32-061-
063 Durham 32-063-
065 Edgecombe 32-065-
067 Forsyth 32-067-
069 Franklin 32-069-
071 Gaston 32-071-
073 Gates 32-073-
075 Graham 32-075-
077 Granville 32-077-
079 Greene 32-079-
081 Guilford 32-081-
083 Halifax 32-083-
085 Harnett 32-085-
087 Haywood 32-087-
089 Henderson 32-089-
091 Hertford 32-091-
093 Hoke 32-093-
095 Hyde 32-095-
097 Iredell 32-097-
099 Jackson 32-099-
101 Johnston 32-101-
103 Jones 32-103-
105 Lee 32-105-
107 Lenoir 32-107-
109 Lincoln 32-109-
111 McDowell 32-111-
113 Macon 32-113-
115 Madison 32-115-
117 Martin 32-117-
119 Mecklenburg 32-119-
121 Mitchell 32-121-
123 Montgomery 32-123-
125 Moore 32-125-
127 Nash 32-127-
129 New Hanover 32-129-
131 Northampton 32-131-
133 Onslow 32-133-
135 Orange 32-135-
137 Pamlico 32-137-
139 Pasquotank 32-139-
141 Pender 32-141-
143 Perquimans 32-143-
145 Person 32-145-
147 Pitt 32-147-
149 Polk 32-149-
151 Randolph 32-151-
153 Richmond 32-153-
155 Robeson 32-155-
157 Rockingham 32-157-
159 Rowan 32-159-
161 Rutherford 32-161-
163 Sampson 32-163-
165 Scotland 32-165-
167 Stanly 32-167-
169 Stokes 32-169-
171 Surry 32-171-
173 Swain 32-173-
175 Transylvania 32-175-
177 Tyrrell 32-177-
179 Union 32-179-
181 Vance 32-181-
183 Wake 32-183-
185 Warren 32-185-
187 Washington 32-187-
189 Watauga 32-189-
191 Wayne 32-191-
193 Wilkes 32-193-
195 Wilson 32-195-
197 Yadkin 32-197-
199 Yancey 32-199-

County names are the US Census names for these codes. The API standard does not promise the two match, so we checked them against state well records. Across 35 states, where this table names a county it matched the one the agency recorded on 85,091 of 85,100 wells. Offshore state and federal waters use their own pseudo-county codes, which are not listed here.

Finding the well itself

The API number stops at the county. It does not hold the well's coordinates, lease, survey section or operator. Those sit in the well record, which you find by searching the full number in the state agency's system. Search it at the North Carolina oil and gas regulator.

Frequently asked questions

What is the API state code for North Carolina?

32. API state codes run alphabetically from 01 for Alabama to 49 for Wyoming, then 50 for Alaska and 51 for Hawaii. They are not the Census FIPS state codes, which is a common source of wrong lookups.

How do I find the county from a North Carolina API number?

Read digits three to five and find them in the table on this page. In 32-001-12345, the county code is 001, which is Alamance County. If the code is missing from the table, it is usually an offshore area rather than an onshore county.

Does a North Carolina API number give the well's exact location?

No. The number stops at the county. Coordinates, the lease and the survey location are in the well record held by the state agency, which you search with the full API number.

State codes: American Petroleum Institute Bulletin D12A well numbering standard. County names: US Census county FIPS names, checked against state well records. Reference generated .

How to cite this page

Sources: American Petroleum Institute Bulletin D12A well numbering standard; US Census county FIPS codes.

TetraSoft. (2026). North Carolina API county codes. Reference generated 2026-09-24. https://tetrasoftco.com/tools/api-county-codes/north-carolina/