Petal makes Mississippi’s top 10 on 3 lists
Petal is ranked on 35 lists against the 104 Mississippi towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 3 and the top quarter on 7.
A podium finish, and more
Each list ranks every MS town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Petal marked.
1 spot from the top 3 for graduation rate
Lists where Petal sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Petal lands in the top half on 15 of 23 lists
Each dot is Petal’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in MS, the right end is last. Areas where Petal does best come first.
Hotter summers than 88% of Mississippi
Not better or worse, just Petal’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Petal out-ranks 0 of its 1 ranked neighbors
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Where Petal lands in every MS ranking
38 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Safety
Safest#1 Madison · 6.2
#3 
Health
Healthiest#1 Madison · 92 / 100
#34
M
Lowest obesity#1 Mississippi State · 26%
#11
M
Fewest smokers#1 Mississippi State · 8%
#35
G
Most active#1 Gluckstadt · 21%
#22
Fewest uninsured#1 Madison · 5%
#32
Lowest depression#1 Leakesville · 16%
#93
Closest to a top hospital#1 Oxford · 0.4 mi
#59 Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Oxford · 21.6%
#45
Most new homes#1 Pass Christian · 16.4 per 1,000
#16
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Batesville · +73.1%
#42
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Clinton · 5.3 per home
#23 
People
U Most educated#1 University · 80% #37 U Youngest#1 University · 19.1 #55
Oldest#1 Bay St. Louis · 53.3
#50
Most residents 65+#1 Diamondhead · 28.8%
#66
Most kids#1 New Hope · 34.5%
#38 Getting around
U Shortest commute#1 University · 9.2 min #44Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Gulf Hills · 25.3%
#81
Most trails#1 Oxford · 1.2 mi / sq mi
#21
Most walkable#1 Gulf Park Estates · 98.8 / sq mi
#54 
The number on the right is Petal’s spot. All of Mississippi’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every MS list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.