County rankings
Best and Worst Counties in South Carolina, Ranked by Public Data
South Carolina includes coastal counties, fast-growing Upstate counties, Columbia-area counties, retirement and lifestyle counties, and rural counties. The best county depends on whether a household prioritizes affordability, taxes, schools, safety, coast access, or quieter living.
Key takeaways
- Best overall county: York County leads the current South Carolina ranking with an overall score of 69.1.
- Most affordable county: Allendale County has the strongest affordability score in this state ranking.
- Strongest schools county: York County posts the strongest schools score in the current model.
- Safest county: McCormick County ranks highest on the Safety score among South Carolina counties.
- Biggest common tradeoff: Counties that scored lower in our model most often lost ground in schools.
What the rankings show
South Carolina's rankings highlight the tradeoff between coastal lifestyle counties, Upstate growth counties, Columbia-area counties, and affordability-focused rural counties. Counties can score well for very different reasons depending on whether cost, schools, safety, taxes, or quieter living matters most.
The tables below are useful starting points, but the more helpful pattern is the tradeoff profile: a county can score well overall while still being expensive, tax-heavy, less quiet, or weaker in one category that matters to your household.
South Carolina county score snapshot
The chart shows the top overall counties in this public-data model. The cards underneath show how different priorities can produce different winners.
Best county for families
Abbeville County
Family score 72.3
Best value county
Edgefield County
Value score 72.2
Most affordable county
Allendale County
Affordability 83.5
Best schools county
York County
Schools 76.3
Safest county
McCormick County
Safety 83.8
Lowest taxes county
Chesterfield County
Taxes 95
Best peace & quiet county
Calhoun County
Peace & Quiet 85.5
Best overall counties in South Carolina
These are the highest-scoring counties in the state based on the current overall public-data score.
| Rank | County | Overall | Schools | Safety | Afford. | Typical home |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | York County FIPS 45091 | 69.1 | 76.3 | 77.6 | 50.6 | $389,727 |
| 2 | Abbeville County FIPS 45001 | 66.9 | 74 | 74.1 | 63.3 | $203,731 |
| 3 | Dorchester County FIPS 45035 | 66.9 | 70 | 71.6 | 51.9 | $345,663 |
| 4 | Lexington County FIPS 45063 | 64.7 | 54.8 | 53.7 | 66.8 | $271,339 |
| 5 | Berkeley County FIPS 45015 | 63.7 | 39.8 | 71.3 | 51 | $368,748 |
| 6 | Kershaw County FIPS 45055 | 61.4 | 31.6 | 57.1 | 65.8 | $251,652 |
| 7 | Horry County FIPS 45051 | 59.4 | 66.7 | 52.8 | 43.7 | $316,676 |
| 8 | Pickens County FIPS 45077 | 59.2 | 55.3 | 68.6 | 44.1 | $299,970 |
| 9 | Anderson County FIPS 45007 | 58.8 | 62 | 37.2 | 53.4 | $290,746 |
| 10 | Greenville County FIPS 45045 | 58.1 | 57.8 | 44.8 | 49.3 | $336,411 |
Counties with the biggest tradeoffs in South Carolina
These are the lowest-scoring counties in the current model. Lower scores usually reflect tradeoffs in cost, safety, schools, taxes, local economy, or peace & quiet factors.
| Rank | County | Overall | Schools | Safety | Afford. | Typical home |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orangeburg County FIPS 45075 | 37.6 | 2.4 | 12.4 | 64.1 | $160,249 |
| 2 | Jasper County FIPS 45053 | 39.3 | 0.5 | 30 | 28.9 | $401,192 |
| 3 | Colleton County FIPS 45029 | 39.4 | 3.7 | 16.4 | 46.2 | $251,055 |
| 4 | Marlboro County FIPS 45069 | 40.2 | 1.7 | 28.7 | 81.6 | $83,302 |
| 5 | Darlington County FIPS 45031 | 41.4 | 10.9 | 5.9 | 67.6 | $165,455 |
| 6 | Williamsburg County FIPS 45089 | 41.7 | 2 | 25.6 | 80.7 | $130,757 |
| 7 | Fairfield County FIPS 45039 | 41.9 | 4.6 | 15 | 61.4 | $188,559 |
| 8 | Dillon County FIPS 45033 | 42.3 | 7.4 | 12.6 | 81.6 | $109,966 |
| 9 | Marion County FIPS 45067 | 42.5 | 1.4 | 50.6 | 63.7 | $137,378 |
| 10 | Clarendon County FIPS 45027 | 43.8 | 10.4 | 19.5 | 66.6 | $183,163 |
Best counties for families
Families usually do not just want the cheapest county. This view balances schools, safety, affordability, taxes, economy, and peace and quiet.
#1
Abbeville County
Family score
72.3
Schools
74
Safety
74.1
Taxes
88.8
#2
York County
Family score
70.0
Schools
76.3
Safety
77.6
Taxes
83.1
#3
Dorchester County
Family score
66.8
Schools
70
Safety
71.6
Taxes
76.6
#4
Pickens County
Family score
59.7
Schools
55.3
Safety
68.6
Taxes
93.1
#5
Lexington County
Family score
59.6
Schools
54.8
Safety
53.7
Taxes
86.8
#6
Horry County
Family score
58.7
Schools
66.7
Safety
52.8
Taxes
93.1
#7
Berkeley County
Family score
57.5
Schools
39.8
Safety
71.3
Taxes
87.9
#8
Anderson County
Family score
56.0
Schools
62
Safety
37.2
Taxes
89.5
#9
Charleston County
Family score
55.4
Schools
52.5
Safety
83.6
Taxes
88.3
#10
Kershaw County
Family score
54.3
Schools
31.6
Safety
57.1
Taxes
87.8
Best value counties in South Carolina
Value blends affordability, taxes, safety, economy, and peace and quiet. It is not simply the cheapest county.
Best affordability / low-cost tradeoff
These counties rank highest on the affordability score, which can reflect home-price and income tradeoffs.
Best schools
These counties lead the current school score within this state.
Best peace & quiet
These counties score best on lower-density, quieter-living, and built-environment signals.
What the rankings suggest
South Carolina's highest-scoring counties average 62.8 overall and tend to stand out most in taxes. The counties with the biggest tradeoffs average 41.0 overall, with the most common pressure point showing up in schools. Use the state ranking page to compare the full list before drawing conclusions about any one county.
Popular comparisons
Compare counties side by side to see how scores, home values, taxes, schools, safety, and quiet-living signals differ.
Compare Greenville County vs Charleston County
Open a side-by-side comparison using the same generated county score data.
Compare Lexington County vs Richland County
Open a side-by-side comparison using the same generated county score data.
Compare York County vs Spartanburg County
Open a side-by-side comparison using the same generated county score data.
Compare Beaufort County vs Horry County
Open a side-by-side comparison using the same generated county score data.
Compare Berkeley County vs Dorchester County
Open a side-by-side comparison using the same generated county score data.
Read next
Use this article as a quick overview, then dig into the interactive tools to compare your own shortlist. You can scan the map, search the national rankings, compare two counties side by side, or open the full South Carolina ranking page.
South Carolina state rankings
Open the full state ranking page for South Carolina.
National rankings
Search, filter, and sort all counties nationally.
Compare counties
Compare two counties side by side across scores and metrics.
Interactive map
Explore county scores geographically across the U.S.
More insights
Read data-backed relocation and county-ranking articles.
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See why households compare taxes, housing, schools, and lifestyle differently across regions.
Sources
- Best Counties to Live generated public-data county scores.
- U.S. Census ACS county population, income, housing, and affordability inputs.
- BLS unemployment data and BEA regional economic data.
- Zillow/home value data where available.
- FBI reported crime and modeled safety estimates.
- Public education data and property tax estimates used in the scoring model.