Best PlacesMcMinn County, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in McMinn County, 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.
McMinn County ranks 1,691st of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in McMinn County
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.
The best areas in McMinn County
The parts of McMinn County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Riceville
Fewer homes sit empty, more residents vote, and local pay stretches further.
Englewood
Prices have run up less and heat risk is lower.
Niota
More households have young kids, though it is noisier.
Etowah
Incomes run lower and advertised internet is slower.
Athens
Streets are more walkable, though crime runs higher.
Scores across McMinn County run from about the 9th to the 72nd percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
McMinn County's strengths and weaknesses
Where McMinn County ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than 94% of counties
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 80% of counties
- State infrastructureBetter than 79% of counties
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 79% of counties
Where McMinn County ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 67 pleasant days a year, better than only 15% of counties
- Health outlookBetter than only 17% of counties
- BikingBetter than only 20% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 28% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 30% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in McMinn County
A household needs to earn about $52,000 a year to comfortably buy the median McMinn County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,593, 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 McMinn County's effective rate of 0.35%, 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 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in McMinn County
McMinn County runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for McMinn County.
Who works in McMinn County, and how
Work in McMinn County centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in McMinn County
McMinn County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties and more late-night spots per resident than 70% of counties. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of McMinn County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is McMinn County growing, and who is moving in?
McMinn County has grown about 8% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Cleveland, TN.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving McMinn County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in McMinn County, month by month
McMinn County sees roughly 67 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 54, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54° | 42° | 32° |
| April | 77° | 62° | 49° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 79° | 64° | 52° |
Flying in and out of McMinn County
The nearest airport, McGhee Tyson, is about 43 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta International, about 124 miles away.
The best schools in and around McMinn County
Schools across McMinn County average a B−, better than 60% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Westside ElementaryA− · 57% proficient
- Englewood ElementaryB · 47% proficient
- Etowah ElementaryB · 47% proficient
Top middle schools
- Athens City Middle SchoolB− · 39% proficient
- Meigs Middle SchoolC · 31% proficient
- Sweetwater Jr High SchoolD+ · 26% proficient
Top high schools
- Polk County High SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- Mcminn High SchoolB− · 45% proficient
- Walker Valley High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every McMinn County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
McMinn County 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 McMinn County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who McMinn County suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 6% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in McMinn County
Is McMinn County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, McMinn County ranks 1,691st of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on state finances, low property taxes, and affordable childcare, and lowest on the weather and health outcomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is McMinn County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $210,693. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $63,593 median income, cost of living beats 43% of counties.
Is McMinn County safe?
McMinn County is safer than 53% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $444 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in McMinn County?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 54 with lows near 32. That works out to about 67 pleasant days a year, more than 15% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in McMinn County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Riceville, Englewood, and Niota. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare McMinn County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to McMinn County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in McMinn County 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.
McMinn County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for McMinn County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in McMinn County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of McMinn County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in McMinn County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
McMinn County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.