Best Places30824, GA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 30824, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
30824 ranks 25,457th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. The schools pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on affordable childcare.
The best neighborhoods in 30824
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
30824's strengths and weaknesses
Where 30824 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$649 a month, better than 81% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 77% of zip codes
- Short commute22.5 minutes each way, better than 73% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 73% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 70% of zip codes
Where 30824 ranks low
- School gradeD−, better than only 3% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 24% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 30824
A household needs to earn about $48,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 30824 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,851, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 30824's effective rate of 0.80%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 30824
30824 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 30824.
Who works in 30824, and how
Work in 30824 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 30824
30824 has more parkland per resident than 69% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 30824 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 30824, month by month
30824 sees roughly 70 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 58, with lows near 36. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 58° | 46° | 36° |
| April | 77° | 64° | 52° |
| July | 92° | 80° | 72° |
| October | 78° | 65° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 30824
The nearest airport, Augusta Regional at Bush Field, is about 31 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta International, about 112 miles away.
The best schools in and around 30824
Schools across 30824 average a D−, better than 3% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- North Columbia Elementary SchoolA · 68% proficient
- Lincoln County Elementary SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
- Dearing Elementary SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lincoln County Middle SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Harlem Middle SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Washington-wilkes Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Washington-wilkes Comprehensive High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Harlem High SchoolD · 23% proficient
- Lincoln County High SchoolD− · 14% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 30824 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
30824 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 30824 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 30824
Is 30824 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 30824 ranks 25,457th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, state finances, and short commutes, and lowest on the schools and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 30824 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $183,739. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $63,851 median income, cost of living beats 45% of zip codes.
Is 30824 safe?
30824 is safer than 29% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $397 per resident a year.
Compare 30824 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 30824. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 30824 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
30824 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 30824: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 30824: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 30824: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 30824: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
30824 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.