North Carolina Highway 53 is a state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina that mainly runs west–east in the eastern part of the state.

The highway begins near Fayetteville in Cumberland County. It runs through mostly rural areas in Bladen County, Pender County, and Onslow County before emerging near Jacksonville, NC.

The NCDOT extended the highway in August 2010 along the NC 24 bypass around the southern side of the city, then continuing onto Western Boulevard. This thoroughfare consists of the most commercially used area in the city. It was done to facilitate ease of obtaining future funding to maintain the roadway there.