Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Thomson grades D overall, 190th of 258 graded towns in Georgia, mostly because of health and schools. Residents are less healthy than 92% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Its public schools trail 78% of Georgia towns on state tests and graduation. What it does well: natural-hazard risk is low. 29% of residents live below the poverty line in Thomson, against 15% in Georgia’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Thomson has 7 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Thomas E. Watson House and Hickory Hill. Thomson's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 90% of U.S. towns.
Where Thomson beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Thomas E. Watson House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 700 in 1880, 6,814 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1933 and 3 maps from 1953 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Georgia), ordered by how far Thomson is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Thomson, 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 Thomson.
Thomson trades lower home prices for longer drives to work, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and trades workers with Augusta and other neighbors.
Against the 3,097 U.S. towns with household incomes like Thomson’s, it is less healthy than 64%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
19% of adults have diabetes in Thomson. Thomson beats the Georgia average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 18. 47% of adults have high blood pressure in Thomson.
| Thomson | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 14% | 12% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 47% | 38% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 14% | 16% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 38% | 33% |
| What stands out | Thomson | GA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11.3% | 14.5% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81.1% | 77.4% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 15.8% | 9.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the McDuffie County school district. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Thomson High School, with 962 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomson-McDuffie Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 667 | C− |
| Thomson High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 962 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within GA on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 85% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Homes are within reach (about $196K for the typical one, B for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 23 miles. At 2.8 years of the Augusta metro’s $69K median household income, the typical home (about $196K) costs less against local pay than in 78% of Georgia towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living.
The typical Thomson home is worth about $196,000, up 3.2% in a year, 41% below the Georgia typical home. 49% of Thomson households own their home.
| Thomson | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 58% | 73% |
| Median rent | $848 a month | $1,160 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Thomson has mild winters and warm summers. Thomson’s July high is 91°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Thomson has about as many jobs (3,085) as working residents, but only 430 people both live and work here. The average commute takes 16.8 minutes, against 28.3 across Georgia.
Most working residents leave Thomson for work: only 16% work in town. The average trip to work in Thomson is 17 minutes. Since 2013, Thomson has added 219 jobs, to 3,085 in 2023.
| Thomson | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $42,000 | $63,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 9% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
0.0 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pitts Street Park | — | 9 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Thomson; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Thomson residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Georgia.
7 places in Thomson on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Thomson.
City in Georgia, United States
Thomson (originally called Slashes) is a city in and the county seat of McDuffie County, Georgia, United States. The population was 6,814 at the 2020 census. Thomson's nickname is "The Camellia City of the South", in honor of the thousands of camellia plants throughout the city. Thomson was founded in 1837 as a depot on the Georgia Railroad. It was renamed in 1853 for railroad official John Edgar Thomson and incorporated February 15, 1854 as a town and in 1870 as a city. It is part of the Augusta – Richmond County Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Thomson grades D overall, better than 12% of U.S. towns and #190 of 258 in Georgia. It grades D for health and C− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 2.8 years of the area's median household income ($69,344 across the Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
9 notable people were born here, including Millie Jackson and Wendell Logan.
