Clay County
County
Clay County Government Center
Motto:  "Clay County – It's Good for the Soul"
Location within the U.S. state of North Carolina
North Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°03′11″N 83°45′08″W / 35.052997°N 83.752264°W / 35.052997; -83.752264
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Founded	1861
Named for	Henry Clay
Seat	Hayesville
Largest community	Hayesville
Area
• Total	220.78 sq mi (571.8 km2)
• Land	214.98 sq mi (556.8 km2)
• Water	5.80 sq mi (15.0 km2)  2.63%
Population  (2020)
• Total	11,089
• Density	51.58/sq mi (19.92/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	11th
Website	www.clayconc.com

Clay County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. During the 2020 United States Census, 11,089 people lived there.^[1] Its county seat is Hayesville.

The county was made in 1861 from the southeastern part of Cherokee County.

Clay County is part of the local Southwestern Commission council of governments.

These counties are connected to Clay County:

• Macon County, North Carolina - northeast
• Rabun County, Georgia - southeast
• Towns County, Georgia - south
• Union County, Georgia - southwest
• Cherokee County, North Carolina - northwest

These cities and towns are in Clay County:

• Hayesville
• Warne