Best PlacesNorthampton County, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Northampton County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Northampton County ranks 2,972nd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Crime pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on state finances.
The best neighborhoods in Northampton 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.
Northampton County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Northampton County ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 87% of counties
- QuietBetter than 83% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than 81% of counties
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 80% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than 72% of counties
Where Northampton County ranks low
- Crime safetyBetter than only 2% of counties
- School gradeD−, better than only 3% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 6% of counties
- Local economyBetter than only 9% of counties
- Health outlookBetter than only 10% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Northampton County
A household needs to earn about $34,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Northampton County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $53,040, 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 Northampton County's effective rate of 0.83%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Northampton County
Northampton County runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Northampton County.
Who works in Northampton County, and how
Work in Northampton County centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Northampton County
Northampton County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties. That concentrates in some parts of Northampton County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Northampton County growing, and who is moving in?
Northampton County has lost about 20% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Halifax County, NC.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Northampton County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Northampton County, month by month
Northampton County sees roughly 76 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 40° | 31° |
| April | 72° | 59° | 48° |
| July | 88° | 78° | 69° |
| October | 73° | 61° | 51° |
Flying in and out of Northampton County
The nearest airport, Pitt-Greenville, is about 56 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Richmond International, about 74 miles away.
The best schools in and around Northampton County
Schools across Northampton County average a D−, better than 3% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Meherrin ElementaryA− · 58% proficient
- Central ElementaryC− · 28% proficient
- West Bertie ElementaryD · 19% proficient
Top middle schools
- Bertie MiddleC · 31% proficient
- Conway MiddleD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Hertford Co Early CollegeA · 70% proficient
- Southeast Halifax Collegiate Prep AcademD · 20% proficient
- Northampton County High SchoolF · 10% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Northampton County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Northampton 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 Northampton County against the other 3,143 counties.
Common questions about living in Northampton County
Is Northampton County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Northampton County ranks 2,972nd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on state finances, quiet, and clean air, and lowest on crime and the schools. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Northampton County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $129,558. The overall cost of living runs about 15% below the national average. Set against a $53,040 median income, cost of living beats 13% of counties.
Is Northampton County safe?
Northampton County is safer than 2% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $905 per resident a year.
Compare Northampton County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Northampton County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Northampton 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.
Northampton County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Northampton County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Northampton County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Northampton County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Northampton County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Northampton 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.