Best PlacesPutnam County, GA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Putnam 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.
Putnam County ranks 1,963rd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Putnam 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.
Putnam County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Putnam County ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 93% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than 92% of counties
- QuietBetter than 86% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than 85% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than 70% of counties
Where Putnam County ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 3% of counties
- BikingBetter than only 7% of counties
- Heat safetyBetter than only 9% of counties
- Cell coverageBetter than only 10% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 10% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Putnam County
A household needs to earn about $74,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Putnam County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $74,038, 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 Putnam County's effective rate of 0.71%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Putnam County
Putnam 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 Putnam County.
Who works in Putnam County, and how
Work in Putnam County centers on retail trade and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Putnam County
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Putnam County.
Is Putnam County growing, and who is moving in?
Putnam County has grown about 11% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Atlanta, GA.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Putnam County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Putnam County, month by month
Putnam County sees roughly 104 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 58, with lows near 39. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 58° | 47° | 39° |
| April | 77° | 65° | 54° |
| July | 93° | 82° | 73° |
| October | 79° | 67° | 58° |
Flying in and out of Putnam County
The nearest airport, Middle Georgia Regional, is about 47 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta International, about 67 miles away.
The best schools in and around Putnam County
Schools across Putnam County average a C−, better than 22% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Putnam County Elementary SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Top middle schools
- Putnam County Middle SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Top high schools
- Putnam County High SchoolD · 20% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Putnam County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Putnam 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 Putnam County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Putnam County suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 13% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 63% of counties, health care access beats 56%, and it is quieter than 86%.
Common questions about living in Putnam County
Is Putnam County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Putnam County ranks 1,963rd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on a strong job market, tree cover, and quiet, and lowest on an overheated housing market and biking. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Putnam County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $287,252. The overall cost of living runs about 5% below the national average. Set against a $74,038 median income, cost of living beats 57% of counties.
Is Putnam County safe?
Putnam County is safer than 37% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $384 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Putnam County?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 58 with lows near 39. That works out to about 104 pleasant days a year, more than 63% of counties.
Is Putnam County good for families?
Schools beat 22% of counties, crime safety beats 37%, and childcare runs $674 a month.
Compare Putnam County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Putnam County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Putnam 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.
Putnam County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Putnam County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Putnam County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Putnam County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Putnam County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Putnam 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.