Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Haines City earns a D, ranked 575th of 634 in Florida, mostly because of health and schools. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 88% of the country. Its schools rank behind 88% of the state's. What it does well: crime is low: it reports less per resident than 71% of U.S. towns. Haines City’s average commute is 36 minutes, above both Florida’s towns (27 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Haines City's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 99% of U.S. towns. Haines City has 5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Downtown Haines City Commercial District and Polk Hotel.
Where Haines City beats most towns.
20,535 counted in 2010 and 26,669 in 2020; an estimated 45,973 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 67.4% since 2020, after 29.9% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Haines City is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 651 in 1920, 26,669 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 3 maps from 1953 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Haines City. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi Theme parkWalt Disney World Resort
Big draw27 mi Theme parkUniversal Studios Florida9.5M visitors a year
Big draw25 mi Theme parkUniversal Epic Universe
Big draw26 mi Theme parkUniversal's Islands of Adventure9.5M visitors a year
Big draw32 mi Stadium & arenaCamping World Stadium
23 mi Theme parkSeaWorld Orlando4.3M visitors a yearWalt Disney World Resort: Anthony Quintano from Westminster, United States, CC BY 2.0 · Universal Studios Florida: Radiobroadcastcenter, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Universal Epic Universe: Martin Lewison, CC BY 2.0 · Universal's Islands of Adventure: David Bjorgen, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Camping World Stadium: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0 · SeaWorld Orlando: SeaWorld, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Haines City, 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 Haines City.
Haines City fares better on crime within Florida than nationally, has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns and has home values still below their peak.
16% of Haines City adults smoke cigarettes. CDC measures, 31 in all: Haines City beats Florida on 1 and trails on 20.
| Haines City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 14% | 8.1% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 37% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 32% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 20% | 19% |
| What stands out | Haines City | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7% | 9.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 20.9% | 12.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Polk school district. Two of the 15 schools are below, and why each made the list. Public school enrollment in Haines City: 3,264 students across 4 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shelley S. Boone Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,329 | D |
| Haines City Senior High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 3,105 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
At 11.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 87% of Florida’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 345 to 296 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
In Haines City, the level of property crime is 5.5 per 1,000 residents. Its violent crime rate comes in at 0.8 per 1,000 residents.
| Haines City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.5 per 1,000 residents | 12.6 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.8 per 1,000 residents | 2.1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
12 flood insurance claims have been paid here since 1998. Haines City’s FEMA hazard score stands at 71 of 100. 42% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from hurricanes, followed by inland flooding at 34%. Federal aid has come to Haines City households in 9 declared disasters; the latest was in 2024.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical value, about $293K, is 10% below its September 2022 peak.
A home in Haines City typically sold within 64 days of listing. Typical home values fell 2.9% in the year to September 2026. In Haines City, the median rent is $1,224 a month.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The Mtn Lake weather station, 12 miles away, records that about 129 days a year reach 90°, more than in 98% of U.S. towns. January nights average 49.8°, milder than in 99% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 92.3°.
For Haines City, the January low is 50°F. Snowfall is close to zero.
| Haines City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 50°F | 51°F | 22°F |
| July high | 92°F | 91°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 13,643 working residents takes 35.5 minutes, against 28 across Florida. Jobs based here grew from 5,736 in 2013 to 10,756.
The median household income in Haines City is $66,000. Just 7% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. 16% of residents live below the poverty line locally. Employers in Haines City added 5,020 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 10,756.
| Haines City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 10% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
There are 6.2 miles of trail across 2 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Haines City: 2, covering 3 acres. The town’s trail density is 0.3 miles per square mile.
| Haines City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.4% | 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. Haines City Park | — | 2 |
| 2. Railroad Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
2 within 15 miles of the center of Haines City
About 6 of every 100 Haines City residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Florida.
5 places in Haines City on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Haines City.
City in Florida, United States
Haines City is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Its population was 26,669 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Lakeland–Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, Haines City's population was almost half Hispanic, a quarter white, and about a fifth African American.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Haines City.
| Town | FL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haines City | #575 | D | D | B+ | D | D |
| Davenport | #533 | D | D− | A | D | C |
| Lake Hamilton | #616 | D− | C | C+ | D | D |
| Grenelefe | #632 | D− | D | — | D | D |
| Lake Alfred | #476 | C− | C− | B+ | D | C+ |
Grenelefe reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Haines City with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Haines City grades D overall, better than 6% of U.S. towns and #575 of 634 in Florida. It grades D for health, B+ for safety and D for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. That is 4.4 years of the area's median household income ($65,978 across the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
8 notable people were born here, including Sevyn Streeter and Luther Burden.
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