Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
LaFayette gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $224K for a typical one, or 3.1 years of the Chattanooga metro’s $72K median household income. It grades B− overall, ranked 86th of 258 in Georgia. The low prices come with trade-offs. Residents are less healthy than 88% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. 28% of working residents work locally in LaFayette, where Georgia’s towns sit at 9% and U.S. towns at 8%. LaFayette's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 89% of U.S. towns. LaFayette has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Chattooga Academy and Walker County Courthouse.
Where LaFayette beats most towns.
Chattooga AcademyWhere LaFayette’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Georgia), ordered by how far LaFayette is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 251 in 1870, 6,888 in 2020. The archive holds 16 old photos and papers going back to 1836 and 4 maps from 1936 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in LaFayette, 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 LaFayette.
LaFayette draws workers from Summerville and beyond, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has more 90° days than most of the country, though not than most of Georgia.
6,611 jobs are based in LaFayette, 2.4 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. 20% of working residents cross a state line to work, Chattanooga among the top destinations.
About one in 4 of LaFayette’s working residents works in town. LaFayette’s median household income is $46,000. Jobs based in LaFayette grew to 6,611 in 2023, 2,250 more than in 2013.
| LaFayette | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $46,000 | $63,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 15% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Walker County school district. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is LaFayette High School, with 1,157 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| LaFayette Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 499 | C+ |
| LaFayette High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,157 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within GA on state tests and graduation
Against the 4,356 U.S. towns with household incomes like LaFayette’s, it is less healthy than 62%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
17% of LaFayette adults report frequent physical distress. LaFayette beats the Georgia average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 14. 19% of LaFayette adults smoke cigarettes.
| LaFayette | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 29% | 25% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 19% | 17% |
| What stands out | LaFayette | GA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 9.7% | 6.5% |
| More smokers | 18.8% | 13.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.4% | 14.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The median rent in LaFayette is $840 a month. The typical LaFayette home is worth about $225,000, up 1.8% in a year, 32% below the Georgia typical home.
| LaFayette | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $840 a month | $1,160 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 60% | 58% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
| LaFayette | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.8% | 2.3% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lowell Green Recreation Area | — | 10 |
| 2. Joe Stock Memorial Park | 0.2 mi | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Chickamauga 2 Sw weather station, 10 miles away, records that about 37 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 87% of Georgia places with climate records. July afternoons average 88.9°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 85% of Georgia places with climate records; January nights average 30.9°.
LaFayette has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Only 10 of the 264 Georgia towns we compare have a lower January low than LaFayette. About 2 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| LaFayette | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 31°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 54% of U.S. communities. Since 1989, 6 flood insurance claims have been paid out in LaFayette.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around LaFayette. Close and well known come first.
12 mi MountainLookout Mountain6 mi CaveEllison's Cave
22 mi WaterfallRuby Falls
24 mi State parkNew Echota19 mi Theme parkLake Winnepesaukah
13 mi National Military ParkChickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park972K visitors a yearLookout Mountain: Teke, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ruby Falls: Oydman (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · New Echota: Cculber007 at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park: Lhughesw5, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of LaFayette; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 LaFayette residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Georgia.
3 places in LaFayette on the National Register of Historic Places.
6 notable people were born in LaFayette.
City in Georgia, United States
LaFayette ( luh-FET) is a city in, and the county seat of, Walker County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2025 census, the city population was 7,157. It was founded as Chattooga. LaFayette is part of the Chattanooga, TN-GA Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
LaFayette grades B− overall, better than 45% of U.S. towns and #86 of 258 in Georgia. It grades D for health and B− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A.
6 notable people were born here, including Ed Dodd and Ronald H. Griffith.
