Pickens ranks #35 in South Carolina for graduation rate
Pickens is ranked on 33 lists against the 173 South Carolina towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 0 and the top quarter on 2.
Cooler summers than 98% of South Carolina
Not better or worse, just Pickens’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
The lists Pickens does best on
Each list ranks every SC town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Pickens marked.
Pickens lands in the top half on 14 of 20 lists
Each dot is Pickens’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in SC, the right end is last. Areas where Pickens does best come first.
Every SC list, and where Pickens lands
38 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Denmark · 0.9 yrs
#78
Cheapest rent#1 Landrum · $486/mo
#39
Lowest property tax#1 Cherryvale · $199/yr
#52
Rent easiest to afford#1 North Augusta · 38.3%
Schools
Best schools#1 Lake Murray of Richland · +36.8 pts
#65
Highest graduation rate#1 Fort Mill · 96%
#35 Health
Healthiest#1 Mount Pleasant · 98 / 100
#80
Lowest obesity#1 Isle of Palms · 25%
#74
Fewest smokers#1 Isle of Palms · 6%
#80
Most active#1 Isle of Palms · 14%
#69
Fewest uninsured#1 Isle of Palms · 4%
#57
Lowest depression#1 Hilton Head Island · 17%
#116
Closest to a top hospital#1 Summerville · 0.0 mi
#67 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Northlake · 36.2%
#45
Most trails#1 Pine Ridge · 3.2 mi / sq mi
S
Most walkable#1 Surfside Beach · 200 / sq mi
#77 
Safety
Safest#1 Tega Cay · 7.7
#43 People
C Most educated#1 Clemson University · 100% #112 C Youngest#1 Clemson University · 19.2 #118 K Oldest#1 Keowee Key · 65.6 #56
Most residents 65+#1 Litchfield Beach · 48.2%
#74
Most kids#1 Wellford · 39.2%
#111 Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Cheraw · 13.8 min
#152 
The number on the right is Pickens’s spot. All of South Carolina’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 SC 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.