Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,804, settled in 1882. A regional job hub with 3,043 jobs.
Chipley gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $229K for a typical one, or 3.2 years of the Panama City metro’s $72K median household income. It grades C− overall, ranked 485th of 634 in Florida. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top, and residents are less healthy than 88% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On history, just 58 of Florida’s 779 towns do better. Chipley's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 87% of U.S. towns. Only 4 of the 638 Florida towns we compare have a lower January low than Chipley.
Where Chipley beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Where Chipley’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Chipley is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 354 in 1890, 3,660 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 1919 and 3 maps from 1950 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chipley, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 17, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Chipley.
Chipley trades lower home prices for longer drives to work, draws workers from Bonifay and beyond and has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns.
3,043 jobs are based in Chipley, 2.1 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 5 of Chipley’s working residents works in town. Chipley’s median household income is $46,000, below both the Florida town median ($73,000) and the median of U.S. towns ($80,000). Chipley’s average trip to work is 30 minutes.
| Chipley | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 22% | 5% | 8% |
| Median household income | $46,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Washington school district. Two of its 6 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kate M. Smith Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 933 | B+ |
| Washington Institute for Specialized EducationLargest public high schoolGrades 6–12 | Grades 6–12 | – | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
Against the 4,410 U.S. towns with household incomes like Chipley’s, it is less healthy than 62%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
43% of Chipley adults sleep under 7 hours, against 37% in Florida’s towns and 36% across U.S. towns. 24% of adults worry about having enough food in Chipley. Chipley beats the Florida average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 21.
| Chipley | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 37% | 36% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 15% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 37% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Chipley | FL |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 22% | 12.7% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 12.8% | 8.6% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 13.2% | 9.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Since 2002, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Chipley.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Homes are within reach (about $229K for the typical one, A− for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 23 miles. The median property tax bill is $1,090, against $2,730 across Florida, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The median rent in Chipley is $761 a month. The typical Chipley home is worth about $229,000, up 1.7% in a year, 39% below the Florida typical home. 66% of Chipley households own their home.
| Chipley | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $761 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 66% | 72% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
1.5 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Pal's Park, at 37 acres with 1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Chipley | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.8% | 3% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pal's Park | 1 mi | 37 |
| 2. Shivers Park | 0.3 mi | 5 |
| 3. Bill Lee Stadion Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Chipley weather station records that about 98 days a year reach 90°, more than in 95% of U.S. towns. The Chipley weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 263 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 93% of Florida places with climate records.
Chipley has mild winters and hot summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 92°, January nights drop to 40° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1 within 15 miles of the center of Chipley
About 2 of every 100 Chipley residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
4 places in Chipley on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Chipley.
City in Florida, United States
Chipley is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Florida, United States, located between Tallahassee and Pensacola. Its population was 3,660 in the 2020 census, up from 3,605 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Panama City, Florida metropolitan area. The area is served by Chipley High School.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Chipley grades C− overall, better than 16% of U.S. towns and #485 of 634 in Florida. It grades D for health and C+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
10 notable people were born here, including Artis Gilmore and Mary Lena Faulk.
