Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Strong in places, weak in others. The weak point is cost of living (C−) — the typical home is worth about $525K, 6.7 years of the Palm Bay metro’s $78K median household income. It also trails on hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 88% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Its strongest is health (A−): CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 77% of the country. Schools are another plus: its public schools beat 74% of Florida towns on state tests and graduation. Put together, the subjects come to a C+ overall, ranking 249th of 634 in Florida. Nationally, it does better than just over two fifths of U.S. towns. Just over a tenth of the land in North Merritt Island is conserved, above both Florida’s towns (3%) and U.S. towns (4.3%).
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index · USGS PAD-US.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far North Merritt Island is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Where North Merritt Island beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
The archive holds 3 maps from 1949 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →11.8% of the town is conserved land, across 6 parks and preserves.
Ordered by what stands out in North Merritt Island.
North Merritt Island has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns and has less no health insurance than most of Florida, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Florida.
Across 6 parks and preserves: 18 miles of trail. Pine Island Conservation Area, at 984 acres with 6.3 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. The concentration of trails for North Merritt Island comes to 0.6 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pine Island Conservation Area | 6.3 mi | 984 |
| 2. Mitchell Ellington Park | 2.7 mi | 118 |
| 3. Kings Park | 0.3 mi | 246 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Two of its 3 schools are shown below, with the reason for each.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calvary Chapel Christian School PrivateLargest elementary schoolGrades PK–3 | Grades PK–3 | 107 | – |
| Faces PrivateLargest high schoolGrades K–12 | Grades K–12 | 14 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
69% of North Merritt Island’s expected losses from natural hazards come from hurricanes, followed by inland flooding at 14%. The town has had 46 paid flood insurance claims since 2008.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its widest gap with Florida is no health insurance: 8.4% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 15.9% statewide.
For adults in North Merritt Island, the share who have been diagnosed with depression is 18%. Against the Florida average, North Merritt Island comes out ahead on 12 CDC measures out of 31, and behind on 2. In North Merritt Island, 15% of adults report frequent mental distress, and 21% get no exercise outside work.
| North Merritt Island | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 37% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 25% | 25% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 18% | 23% |
| What stands out | North Merritt Island | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 8.4% | 15.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 8.9% | 13.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.1% | 9.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here fell from 1,800 in 2013 to 1,192.
For half of commuters, work is under 15 miles away. Since 2013, North Merritt Island has lost 608 jobs, to 1,192 in 2023. Most working residents leave North Merritt Island for work: only 4% work in town. Also worth knowing: the typical household income here is $105,000.
| North Merritt Island | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $105,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 18% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 6.9% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
January nights average 52.6°, milder than in 99% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 89.9°.
For North Merritt Island, the January low is 53°F. Snow is a rarity.
| North Merritt Island | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 53°F | 51°F | 22°F |
| July high | 90°F | 91°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
In North Merritt Island, 38% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. People 65 and older are 28% of residents (21% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 14% of residents (21% statewide). The town’s age of the median resident is 52.6 years.
| North Merritt Island | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 52.6 years | 42.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 28% | 20% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 17% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 38% | 31% | 29% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6 points. Across Florida, 50.9% of residents are women.
| North Merritt Island | FL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.3% | 10.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.8% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.6% | 8.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.7% | 12.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.9% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.1% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 18.7% | 13.4% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.8% | 11.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 15.1% | 9.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2.7% | 10.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23% | 27.2% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.6% | 18.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.1% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 22.7% | 21.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.8% | 12.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
At 6.7 years of the Palm Bay metro’s $78K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 80% of Florida towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living.
Among households in North Merritt Island, 87% are owner-occupiers. Its typical rent comes in at $1,274 a month. Homes sold in North Merritt Island spent a median 46 days on the market.
| North Merritt Island | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 87% | 72% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,274 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around North Merritt Island. Close and well known come first.
5 mi MuseumKennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
10 mi Ancient siteWindover Archaeological Site
31 mi Stadium & arenaAcrisure Bounce House
5 mi LandmarkSpace Mirror Memorial
5 mi MuseumUnited States Astronaut Hall of Fame
14 mi BeachPlayalinda BeachKennedy Space Center Visitor Complex: Bill White, Public domain · Windover Archaeological Site: ROY KLOTZ MD, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Acrisure Bounce House: DampFrijoles, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Space Mirror Memorial: Seth Buckley, CC BY-SA 3.0 · United States Astronaut Hall of Fame: Håkan Dahlström from Malmö, Sweden, CC BY 2.0 · Playalinda Beach: User:JohnWalton031954, CC BY-SA 3.0
North Merritt Island is unincorporated, so Brevard County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 17, 2025.
Where North Merritt Island’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
None within 15 miles of North Merritt Island; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 North Merritt Island residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Florida.
Census-designated place in Florida, United States
North Merritt Island is a census-designated place (CDP) in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It occupies a portion of the physical Merritt Island, north of the CDP of Merritt Island and south of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Florida State Road 3 is the main highway through the community, leading north to Florida State Road 405 and south to Florida State Road 528. Situated on an Atlantic coast peninsula, North Merritt Island is a portion of the larger Merritt Island area in Brevard County, Florida. The area is close to the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and the Kennedy Space Center. North Merritt Island was first listed as a CDP prior to the 2020 census. The population w…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with North Merritt Island.
| Town | FL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Merritt Island | #249 | C+ | C− | — | B+ | A− |
| Sharpes | #292 | C+ | B | — | B+ | C− |
| Merritt Island | #125 | B | C− | — | B+ | B+ |
North Merritt Island, Sharpes and Merritt Island report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare North Merritt Island with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
North Merritt Island grades C+ overall, better than 41% of U.S. towns and #249 of 634 in Florida. It grades A− for health and B+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. The typical home is worth about $525,000, 40% above the Florida typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
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