Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Mississippi ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety

DTupeloSafer than 9% of U.S. towns –PearlNot graded

Schools

B+TupeloBetter than 74% of districts in the state APearlBetter than 93% of districts in the state

Health

C+TupeloHealthier than 45% of U.S. towns C+PearlHealthier than 38% of U.S. towns

13Tupelo

9Pearl

Lists won, of 22 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Closest to a top hospitalHealth · 104 towns #18#100 Most trailsOutdoors · 64 towns #6#42 Highest graduation rateSchools · 93 towns #45#3 Shortest commuteGetting around · 104 towns #15#61 Lowest property taxCost of living · 102 towns #83#43 Most walkableOutdoors · 104 towns #70#37 Lowest depressionHealth · 104 towns #27#50 Best schoolsSchools · 92 towns #41#24

Left end = #1 in Mississippi. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Tupelo’s rankings →

Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Tupelo$1,270/mo

Typical home $215K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.78% · or rent about $976/mo · Housing →

Pearl$1,230/mo

Typical home $211K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.66% · or rent about $1,175/mo · Housing →

Within $50 a month of each other.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

TupeloPearl

Snow a year0″1″

January low—37°F

July high—92°F

Growing season (days)—245d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)45th 62nd

Outdoors & history

TupeloPearl

Trails33 mi 5 mi

Conserved land4%4.3%

Settled1860 1865

National Register places20 —

Archive photos12 —

Famous people born here57 —

Community

TupeloPearl

Library hours a week57 hrs 59 hrs

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

159 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

TupeloMS PearlMS

Tupelo ↔ Pearl159 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Mississippi average

TupeloPearl

People

Population 37,791Highest 27,737Lowest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +9.8%Highest +8.1%Lowest

Median age 38.3±1.1Highest about the MS average 36.4±1.7Lowest 6% below MS

Tupelo and Pearl are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 23.8%±1.9Highest MS: 23.3% 21.2%±2.4Lowest MS: 23.3%

Tupelo and Pearl are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 17%±1.4Highest MS: 17.2% 14.4%±1.8Lowest MS: 17.2%

Tupelo and Pearl are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 34.5%Highest MS: 25.1% 28.1%Lowest MS: 25.1%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 5%±1Lowest MS: 6.1% 7.3%±1.7Highest MS: 6.1%

Pearl and Tupelo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $66,257±$4kHighest 17% above MS $61,695±$8kLowest 9% above MS

Tupelo and Pearl are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $212,800±$8kHighest 25% above MS $182,500±$8kLowest 7% above MS

Rentmedian gross, monthly $976±$74Lowest about the MS average $1,175±$60Highest 23% above MS

Property taxmedian, yearly $1,651Highest 36% above MS $1,209Lowest about the MS average

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 57.9%±7.6Lowest MS: 51.3% 58%±8.9Highest MS: 51.3%

Pearl and Tupelo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 15.1%Highest MS: 18.9% 12.2%Lowest MS: 18.9%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 63.4%Highest MS: 70% 61.6%Lowest MS: 70%

Typical home builtmedian year 1981Lowest 5 yrs older than MS 1982Highest 4 yrs older than MS

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 18 minLowest 30% below MS 24 minHighest 7% below MS

Work from home 6%±1.8Lowest MS: 5.9% 7.2%±2.5Highest MS: 5.9%

Pearl and Tupelo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 52.8%Highest 14.3%Lowest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 5.8 miLowest 7.3 miHighest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 2.48Highest 1.19Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Oxford (2%)Jackson (28%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in PearlFew work in Tupelo

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 4%Lowest 4.3%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 33.1 miHighest 4.8 miLowest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.5 miHighest 0.2 miLowest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 9Highest 5Lowest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 27.9Lowest 43.5Highest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #41 of 92 in MS #24 of 92 in MS

School district Tupelo Public School DistrictPearl Public Schools

High school in town Tupelo High SchoolPearl High School

Students per teacherat that high school 13.9Lowest 14.1Highest

Mississippi average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Tupelo neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Tupelo’s Town Square.

Pearl neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Pearl’s Town Square.

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Set another town beside Tupelo and Pearl

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Bordering Tupelo

+ Compare

Verona2,748 people · $118K homes

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Saltillo4,952 people · $205K homes

Towns like Tupelo

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Long Beach17,009 people · $215K homes

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Southaven56,226 people · $236K homes

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Biloxi48,861 people · $225K homes

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Clinton27,195 people · $226K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Tupelo vs Pearl

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they part ways

Tupelo places higher on 13 of 22 MS lists

A typical home costs about the same each month

What daily life feels like in each

159 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Tupelo and Pearl

Bordering Tupelo

Towns like Tupelo

Post to Tupelo

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