Best PlacesMcNairy County, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in McNairy County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages are not the whole story, and the strongest areas score well above them. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
McNairy County ranks 2,343rd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in McNairy 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 McNairy County
The parts of McNairy 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.
Michie
Selmer
It is noisier and fewer households have young kids.
Adamsville
Tree cover is thinner and more homes sit empty.
Scores across McNairy County run from about the 8th to the 50th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
McNairy County's strengths and weaknesses
Where McNairy County ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 95% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than 92% of counties
- QuietBetter than 82% of counties
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 80% of counties
Where McNairy County ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 7% of counties
- BikingBetter than only 9% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 9% of counties
- Household income$54,153 median, better than only 15% of counties
- Cell coverageBetter than only 17% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in McNairy County
A household needs to earn about $39,000 a year to comfortably buy the median McNairy County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $54,153, 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 McNairy County's effective rate of 0.39%, 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 McNairy County
McNairy County runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for McNairy County.
Who works in McNairy County, and how
Work in McNairy County centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in McNairy County
McNairy County has more restaurants and bars per resident than 74% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of McNairy County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is McNairy County growing, and who is moving in?
McNairy County has held roughly flat in population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Hardin County, TN.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving McNairy County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in McNairy County, month by month
McNairy County sees roughly 74 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 34. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 42° | 34° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 51° |
| July | 90° | 80° | 72° |
| October | 76° | 62° | 52° |
Flying in and out of McNairy County
The nearest airport, McKellar-Sipes Regional, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Memphis International, about 82 miles away.
The best schools in and around McNairy County
Schools across McNairy County average a C+, better than 48% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Michie ElementaryB+ · 51% proficient
- Adamsville ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
- Ramer ElementaryB− · 42% proficient
Top middle schools
- Selmer Middle SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- Mcnairy Central High SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Adamsville High SchoolD · 20% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every McNairy County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
McNairy 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 McNairy County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who McNairy County suits
Common questions about living in McNairy County
Is McNairy County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, McNairy County ranks 2,343rd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on tree cover, state finances, and low property taxes, and lowest on health outcomes and biking. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is McNairy County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $160,048. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $54,153 median income, cost of living beats 22% of counties.
Is McNairy County safe?
McNairy County is safer than 39% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $483 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in McNairy County?
July highs average about 90 degrees, and January highs near 52 with lows near 34. That works out to about 74 pleasant days a year, more than 28% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in McNairy County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Michie, Selmer, and Adamsville. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare McNairy County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to McNairy County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in McNairy 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.
McNairy County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for McNairy County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in McNairy County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of McNairy County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in McNairy County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
McNairy 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.