Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 8,169.
Druid Hills's standout: it is among the healthiest towns in the country on CDC estimates. Overall it grades B−, 75th among Georgia's 258 graded towns. The median household earns $130K and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 96% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is cost of living: homes are expensive, about $793K for a typical one and 8.8 times the Atlanta metro’s $90K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 92% of U.S. towns, with 8 places on the National Register. 84% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Druid Hills, against 25% in Georgia’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns. Only 6 of Georgia’s 374 towns score higher on the outdoors. The biggest park or preserve is Fernbank Forest and Recreational Center, at 70 acres.
Where Druid Hills beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Druid Hills | GA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 4.7% | 14.5% |
14,568 counted in 2010 and 9,429 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Georgia), ordered by how far Druid Hills is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 12,700 in 1980, 9,429 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2000 and 5 maps from 1954 on.
8 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Druid Hills. Close and well known come first.
Big draw5 mi Stadium & arenaMercedes-Benz Stadium
Big draw11 mi MountainStone Mountain
Big draw4 mi Stadium & arenaState Farm Arena
4 mi Zoo & aquariumGeorgia Aquarium
Big draw13 mi Theme parkSix Flags Over Georgia
11 mi Stadium & arenaTruist ParkMercedes-Benz Stadium: Atlanta Falcons, CC BY 3.0 · Stone Mountain: KyleAndMelissa22, Public domain · State Farm Arena: Hermann Luyken, CC0 · Georgia Aquarium: Diliff, CC BY 2.5 · Six Flags Over Georgia: hagerman, CC BY 2.0 · Truist Park: Thechased at English Wikipedia, CC BY 4.0
Druid Hills is unincorporated, so DeKalb 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 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Druid Hills.
Druid Hills is the healthiest town in Georgia and is one of Georgia’s best towns for the outdoors, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Georgia.
Its A for the outdoors ranks #4 of 264 in Georgia.
4.1 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The trail density in Druid Hills is 1.4 miles per square mile.
| Druid Hills | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 8.3% | 2.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Deepdene Park | 1.4 mi | 22 |
| 2. Fernbank Forest and Recreational Center | 0.6 mi | 70 |
| 3. Dellwood Park | 0.2 mi | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the DeKalb County school district. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Druid Hills High School, with 1,468 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fernbank Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 895 | A |
| Druid Hills High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,468 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within GA on state tests and graduation
It is the healthiest of the 261 Georgia towns we grade on the CDC estimates behind the Health Grade. Its widest gap with Georgia is tooth loss: 4.7% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.5% statewide.
6.4% of Druid Hills adults smoke cigarettes. Of the 261 Georgia towns we compare, none has a lower share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Druid Hills. 28% of Druid Hills adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Druid Hills | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 6.4% | 15% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 38% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 8.7% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 29% | 25% |
| What stands out | Druid Hills | GA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 4.7% | 14.5% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.3% | 17.7% |
| More binge drinkers | 18.3% | 14.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here grew from 1,541 in 2013 to 2,184. 25.2% of workers work from home, against 15.9% across Georgia.
Most working residents leave Druid Hills for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Druid Hills grew to 2,184 in 2023, 643 more than in 2013. Among 263 Georgia towns, just 8 have a higher median household income than Druid Hills.
| Druid Hills | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $130,000 | $63,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.4% | 9.2% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 9.3% | 15% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
July afternoons average 89°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 82% of Georgia places with climate records; January nights average 33.3°.
Druid Hills has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Druid Hills’ January low is 33°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Druid Hills | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 33°F | 33°F | 22°F |
| July high | 89°F | 90°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 64% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 35 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Druid Hills.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 8.8 years of the Atlanta metro’s $90K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 99% of Georgia towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $6,706, against $2,341 across Georgia, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Among 259 Georgia towns, just 9 have a higher median rent than Druid Hills. 58% of households own their home in Druid Hills.
| Druid Hills | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,022 a month | $1,152 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 58% | 58% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
27 within 15 miles of the center of Druid Hills
About 13 of every 100 Druid Hills residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Georgia.
8.3% of the town is conserved land, across 8 parks and preserves.
8 places in Druid Hills on the National Register of Historic Places.
Neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Druid Hills is a community which includes both a census-designated place (CDP) in unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States, as well as a neighborhood of the city of Atlanta. As of the 2020 census, Druid Hills had a population of 9,429. The CDP formerly contained the main campus of Emory University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); however, they were annexed by Atlanta in 2018. The Atlanta-city section of Druid Hills is one of Atlanta's most affluent neighborhoods with a mean household income in excess of $238,500 (making it the ninth most affluent, per that metric).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Druid Hills.
| Town | GA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Druid Hills | #75 | B− | D− | — | C− | A+ |
| Atlanta | #151 | C− | D | D | C+ | A− |
| Decatur | #17 | A− | D− | C | A+ | A+ |
| North Druid Hills | #65 | B− | D− | — | C− | A+ |
| North Decatur | #88 | C+ | D | — | C− | A+ |
Druid Hills, North Druid Hills and North Decatur report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Druid Hills with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Druid Hills grades B− overall, better than 49% of U.S. towns and #75 of 258 in Georgia. It grades A+ for health and C− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. The typical home is worth about $793,000, 141% above the Georgia 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 D−.
