| | Lake Wales, FL | Hickory, NC | United States |
| Population | 16,173 | 42,831 | 329,725,481 |
| Female Population | 55.0% | 51.8% | 50.5% |
| Male Population | 45.0% | 48.2% | 49.5% |
| Median Age | 45.4 | 38.3 | 38.4 |
| space3 | | | |
| Population - 2010 | 14,169 | 40,186 | 309,327,143 |
| Population - 2000 | 10,194 | 37,222 | 285,036,114 |
| Population - 1990 | 9,670 | 28,301 | 251,960,433 |
| Pop. 2000 to Now | 73.6% | 11.4% | 15.6% |
| Pop. 1990 to Now | 83.0% | 46.5% | 30.8% |
| space4 | | | |
| Population Density | 864.2 | 1,445.2 | 93.4 |
| Land Area | 18.7 | 29.6 | 3,531,905.4 |
| Water Area | 1.3 | 0.1 | 264,836.8 |
| space | | | |
| Est. Total Population By Age | | | |
| | Lake Wales, FL | Hickory, NC | United States |
| Age 0 to 4 | 4.9% | 5.1% | 5.9% |
| Age 5 to 9 | 5.2% | 5.6% | 6.1% |
| Age 10 to 14 | 7.1% | 6.4% | 6.6% |
| Age 15 to 17 | 3.5% | 4.2% | 3.9% |
| Age 18 to 20 | 2.3% | 5.7% | 4.0% |
| Age 21 to 24 | 2.9% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
| Age 25 to 34 | 12.1% | 13.8% | 13.8% |
| Age 35 to 44 | 11.6% | 11.9% | 12.9% |
| Age 45 to 54 | 9.6% | 13.5% | 12.6% |
| Age 55 to 59 | 6.2% | 6.4% | 6.7% |
| Age 60 to 64 | 7.6% | 5.8% | 6.3% |
| Age 65 to 74 | 16.2% | 9.7% | 9.6% |
| Age 75 to 84 | 7.9% | 4.7% | 4.5% |
| Age 85 and over | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1.9% |
| space1 | | | |
| Race | | | |
| | Lake Wales, FL | Hickory, NC | United States |
| White | 49.4% | 64.7% | 59.4% |
| Black | 20.0% | 13.7% | 12.2% |
| Asian | 0.5% | 5.5% | 5.6% |
| Native American | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.6% |
| Hawaiian, Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Other | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.4% |
| Two or More Races | 1.9% | 3.6% | 3.2% |
| Hispanic | 27.6% | 12.4% | 18.4% |
| space2 | | | |
| Marriage & Family | | | |
| | Lake Wales, FL | Hickory, NC | United States |
| Married Population | 49.0% | 46.2% | 49.8% |
| Currently Married | 45.9% | 44.2% | 48.0% |
| Married but Separated | 3.1% | 2.0% | 1.8% |
| Single Population | 51.0% | 53.8% | 50.2% |
| Never Married | 29.0% | 36.3% | 33.8% |
| Divorced | 14.9% | 11.7% | 10.8% |
| Widowed | 7.1% | 5.7% | 5.6% |
| space5 | | | |
| Household Size | 2.38 | 2.38 | 2.60 |
| Households | 6,646 | 17,363 | 124,010,992 |
| Family Households | 4,191 | 10,156 | 80,755,759 |
| Married couple, w/children | 23.5% | 28.0% | 30.5% |
| Married couple, no children | 46.6% | 44.3% | 42.9% |
| Non Family Households | 2,455 | 7,207 | 43,255,233 |
| Single householder, w/children | 20.2% | 19.8% | 15.8% |
| Single householder, no children | 9.8% | 7.9% | 10.8% |