Williston HighlandsFL
It is a town of 3,666 residents in Florida.
Is Williston Highlands a good place to live?
Williston Highlands’s grades pull in different directions. Where it falls short is walkability. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 97% of U.S. towns. Overall, Williston Highlands earns a C+, which places it 264th of 634 in Florida. That leaves it better than 39% of U.S. towns. Its best grade is for cost of living: a typical home costs about $228K, 3.7 years of the Gainesville metro’s $61K median household income. 31% of residents are under 18 locally, above both Florida’s towns (20%) and U.S. towns (22%). Only 11 of Florida’s 779 towns score lower on the outdoors.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · USGS PAD-US.
Williston Highlands has grown 14% from 2010 to 2020
2,275 counted in 2010 and 2,591 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Williston Highlands grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Williston Highlands is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Williston Highlands: who provides what
Williston Highlands is unincorporated, so Levy 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Williston Highlands.
Williston Highlands trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and has a longer frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Florida; it also is a long drive from an emergency room.
Most of Williston Highlands’ workers leave town for work
Williston Highlands has 83 jobs for its 997 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
The top destinations are Gainesville (17%), Williston (12%) and Ocala (11%). Only 1% of working residents stay in Williston Highlands for work; the rest commute out. This Florida town had 83 jobs in 2023, up 79 from 2013.
| Williston Highlands | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 0.5% | 5% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 8.3% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
On CDC estimates, Williston Highlands is less healthy than seven in ten U.S. towns
The nearest emergency room, Adventhealth Ocala, is 23.2 miles away in a straight line.
The share of adults in Williston Highlands who have been diagnosed with depression: 19%. CDC measures, 31 in all: Williston Highlands beats Florida on 4 and trails on 8. Two figures for adults in the town: 17% report frequent physical distress, 15% have diabetes.
| Williston Highlands | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 12% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Williston Highlands | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 11.7% | 16.8% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.9% | 13.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.4% | 7.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
High risk in Williston Highlands, with hurricanes at the top
Williston Highlands’ FEMA risk score is 72 of 100. 43% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from hurricanes, followed by inland flooding at 24%.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The climate in Williston Highlands brings mild winters and hot summers
The Usher Twr weather station, 18 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 279 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 86% of Florida places with climate records. January nights average 43.7°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 82% of Florida places with climate records; July afternoons average 91.5°.
Williston Highlands’ July high stands at 92°F. Snow is a rarity.
| Williston Highlands | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 44°F | 51°F | 22°F |
| July high | 92°F | 91°F | 85°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median rent in Williston Highlands is lower than in most of Florida or the rest of the country
Homes are within reach (A− for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 25 miles.
The median sale price was $298,000 in May 2026. Williston Highlands: nine in ten households live in a home they own. A home in Williston Highlands typically sold within 74 days of listing.
| Williston Highlands | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $723 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 90% | 72% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and 16 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Williston Highlands. Close and well known come first.
25 mi Stadium & arenaBen Hill Griffin Stadium
7 mi Ancient siteDevil's Den
36 mi Park & preserveGinnie Springs
21 mi State parkPaynes Prairie
30 mi Zoo & aquariumSilver Springs
23 mi MuseumFlorida Museum of Natural History200K visitors a yearPhoto credits
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium: The original uploader was Hughs at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 2.5 · Devil's Den: Eric Beach, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ginnie Springs: (WT-de) Mistoffeles, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Paynes Prairie: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Silver Springs: NeilEvans, Public domain · Florida Museum of Natural History: WillMcC, CC BY-SA 3.0
Everything we know about Williston Highlands
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Williston Highlands; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Williston Highlands residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
99% of working residents leave Williston Highlands for work
Where Williston Highlands’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Williston Highlands
Census-designated place in Florida, United States
Williston Highlands is a census-designated place (CDP) in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,591 at the 2020 census, up from 2,275 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 11 sq mi
- Elevation
- 92 ft
- Area code
- 352
Questions about Williston Highlands
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Williston Highlands, FL a good place to live?
Williston Highlands grades C+ overall, better than 39% of U.S. towns and #264 of 634 in Florida. It grades C for health and B for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Williston Highlands, FL expensive?
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $228,000, 39% below 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 A−.