Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Commerce grades B+ overall, ranked 44th of 258 in Georgia, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Its public schools beat 87% of Georgia towns on state tests and graduation and natural-hazard risk is low. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $61K. Its lowest everyday mark is in health: CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 72% of the country. A typical home there costs about $330K, 3.7 years of the Jefferson area’s $90K median household income. Commerce has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them New Salem Covered Bridge and Governor L. G. Hardman House. Commerce’s midpoint age is 32.6 years, where Georgia’s towns sit at 36.6 years and U.S. towns at 40.5 years.
Where Commerce beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Commerce Primary | PK–2 | 456 |
| Commerce Elementary School | 3–4 | 308 |
| Commerce Middle School | 5–8 | 579 |
6,544 counted in 2010 and 7,387 in 2020; an estimated 9,303 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 25.1% since 2020, after 12.9% 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 Georgia), ordered by how far Commerce is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 611 in 1890, 7,387 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 1895 and 3 maps from 1891 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Commerce, 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 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Commerce.
Commerce draws workers from Athens and beyond and has a longer frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Georgia.
7,014 jobs are based in Commerce, 2 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 3,982 in 2013 to 7,014.
Just 13% of Commerce’s working residents have a job in town. The town had 7,014 jobs in 2023, up 3,032 from 2013. The share of residents in Commerce who live below the poverty line: 8.3%. For half of commuters, work is under 20 miles away.
| Commerce | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 8.3% | 15% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 13% | 9% | 8% |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $63,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The largest public high school is Commerce High School, with 557 students. Of its 4 schools, three are listed below, each with the reason. Its public schools are run by the Commerce City school district.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commerce Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 579 | A− |
| Commerce High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 557 | A− |
| Commerce Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades 3–4 | Grades 3–4 | 308 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within GA on state tests and graduation
Expected damage from storms and floods is lower here than in 92% of U.S. communities. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Commerce after 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2024. FEMA puts 38% of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 22% to tornadoes.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
17% of adults smoke cigarettes in Commerce. Commerce: 15% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance.
| Commerce | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 8.1% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 39% | 33% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Commerce | GA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 8.3% | 6.5% |
| More smokers | 17% | 13.6% |
| More adults with heart disease | 7.1% | 6.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Commerce 4 Nnw weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 222 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 77% of Georgia places with climate records. The Commerce 4 Nnw weather station records that about 45 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 81% of Georgia places with climate records.
July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 33° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
For Commerce, the trail network density is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Commerce | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 0.5% | 2.3% | 4.3% |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Typical home values rose 2% in the year to September 2026. A home in Commerce typically sold within 91 days of listing. Among households in the town, 64% are owner-occupiers.
| Commerce | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 64% | 58% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,183 a month | $1,152 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 Commerce. Close and well known come first.
Big draw27 mi LakeLake Lanier
19 mi Stadium & arenaSanford Stadium
23 mi MountainCurrahee Mountain
40 mi LakeLake Hartwell
39 mi Stadium & arenaGas South Arena36 mi WaterfallTallulah GorgeLake Lanier: http://www.terraprints.com, CC BY 2.5 · Sanford Stadium: The original uploader was Clio64 at French Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Currahee Mountain: Wikilackey (talk), Public domain · Lake Hartwell: blahedo, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Gas South Arena: fr:File:ArenaatGwinnettCenterSat.png : fr:User:Betp (26 janvier 2008 à 20:19), Public domain
None within 15 miles of Commerce; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Commerce residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Georgia.
Where Commerce’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
7 notable people were born in Commerce.
City in Georgia, United States
Commerce is a city in Jackson County, Georgia, 70 miles (110 km) northeast of Atlanta. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 7,387.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Commerce grades B+ overall, better than 65% of U.S. towns and #44 of 258 in Georgia. It grades C for health and A for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
7 notable people were born here, including Lamartine Griffin Hardman and Spud Chandler.
