Best PlacesSchley County, GA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Schley 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.
Schley County ranks 1,953rd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and cell coverage ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Schley 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.
Schley County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Schley County ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 95% of counties
- QuietBetter than 94% of counties
- Cheap childcare$502 a month, better than 90% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than 75% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than 72% of counties
Where Schley County ranks low
- Cell coverageBetter than only 8% of counties
- BikingBetter than only 9% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than only 12% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 16% of counties
- Short commute29.4 minutes each way, better than only 18% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Schley County
A household needs to earn about $35,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Schley County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $60,578, 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 Schley County's effective rate of 0.92%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Schley County
Schley County's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Schley County.
Who works in Schley County, and how
Work in Schley 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 86%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Schley County
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Schley County.
Is Schley County growing, and who is moving in?
Schley County has lost about 13% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Sumter County, GA.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Schley County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Schley County, month by month
Schley County sees roughly 84 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 60, with lows near 40. The comfortable stretch runs February through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 60° | 49° | 40° |
| April | 79° | 66° | 55° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 73° |
| October | 81° | 68° | 58° |
Flying in and out of Schley County
The nearest airport, Columbus, is about 42 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta International, about 97 miles away.
The best schools in and around Schley County
Schools across Schley County average a C, better than 41% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Schley County Elementary SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- Webster County Elementary/middle SchoolD+ · 22% proficient
- Taylor County ElementaryD · 16% proficient
Top middle schools
- Taylor County Middle SchoolD · 22% proficient
- Chattahoochee County Middle SchoolD− · 17% proficient
- Sumter County Middle SchoolF · 9% proficient
Top high schools
- Schley Middle High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
- Marion County Middle/high SchoolD+ · 24% proficient
- Taylor County High SchoolD · 20% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Schley County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Schley 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 Schley County against the other 3,143 counties.
Common questions about living in Schley County
Is Schley County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Schley County ranks 1,953rd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on low crime, quiet, and affordable childcare, and lowest on cell coverage and biking. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Schley County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $132,893. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $60,578 median income, cost of living beats 16% of counties.
Is Schley County safe?
Yes, Schley County is safer than 95% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $188 per resident a year.
Compare Schley County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Schley County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Schley 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.
Schley County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Schley County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Schley County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Schley County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Schley County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Schley 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.