Best PlacesSouth Carthage, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around South Carthage, 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.
South Carthage ranks 33,298th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and thin health care access ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in South Carthage
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.
South Carthage's strengths and weaknesses
Where South Carthage ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 96% of towns
- Low vacancyBetter than 85% of towns
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 84% of towns
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 84% of towns
- State infrastructureBetter than 83% of towns
Where South Carthage ranks low
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 13% of towns
- Short commute35.5 minutes each way, better than only 13% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 64 pleasant days a year, better than only 14% of towns
- Health outlookBetter than only 15% of towns
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 16% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in South Carthage
A household needs to earn about $57,000 a year to comfortably buy the median South Carthage home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $56,465; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 South Carthage's effective rate of 0.48%, 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 South Carthage
South Carthage runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for South Carthage.
Who works in South Carthage, and how
Work in South Carthage centers on retail trade and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 93%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in South Carthage
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across South Carthage.
What the weather is like in South Carthage, month by month
South Carthage sees roughly 64 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 28. The comfortable stretch runs April through June and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 37° | 28° |
| April | 71° | 58° | 46° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 68° |
| October | 73° | 59° | 47° |
Flying in and out of South Carthage
Nashville International sits about 41 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 12.6 million passengers in 2025, with 158 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around South Carthage
Schools across South Carthage average a C, better than 29% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Forks River ElementaryC · 35% proficient
- Carthage ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Smith County Middle SchoolB− · 39% proficient
Top high schools
- Smith County High SchoolD · 21% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every South Carthage school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
South Carthage 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 South Carthage against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in South Carthage
Is South Carthage a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, South Carthage ranks 33,298th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on state finances, few empty homes, and low taxes, and lowest on thin health care access and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is South Carthage expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $229,403. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $56,465 median income, cost of living beats 23% of towns.
Is South Carthage safe?
Yes, South Carthage is safer than 70% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $314 per resident a year.
Compare South Carthage with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to South Carthage. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in South Carthage 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.
South Carthage detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for South Carthage: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in South Carthage: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of South Carthage: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in South Carthage: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
South Carthage 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.
- 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.