Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With 13,905 residents, it is a town in Georgia.
Some subjects shine; others lag. The weak point is cost of living — the typical home is worth about $405K, 5.2 years of the Savannah metro’s $77K median household income. Wilmington Island grades C+ overall, better than 38% of U.S. towns. It ranks 105th of 258 in Georgia. Schools are weaker too: its public schools trail 73% of Georgia towns on state tests and graduation. It lags on hazard risk as well — FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Its strongest subject is health: it is healthier than 93% of U.S. towns. Add incomes to its strengths: the median household earns $94K.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · schools, state test and graduation results · FEMA National Risk Index.
Where Wilmington Island beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Coastal flooding makes up 9% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Georgia), ordered by how far Wilmington Island is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 3,284 in 1970, 15,129 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1946 and a map from 1978 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Wilmington Island. Close and well known come first.
2 mi National MonumentFort Pulaski National Monument321K visitors a year
9 mi MuseumMercer House
6 mi State parkWormsloe Historic Site
9 mi MuseumSorrel–Weed House
9 mi MuseumCongregation Mickve Israel
9 mi Park & preserveForsyth ParkFort Pulaski National Monument: Edibobb, CC BY 3.0 · Mercer House: Kyle Kesselring from Canal Winchester, OH, CC BY 2.0 · Wormsloe Historic Site: Bubba73, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sorrel–Weed House: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Congregation Mickve Israel: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Forsyth Park: Unknown, CC BY-SA 2.5
Wilmington Island is unincorporated, so Chatham 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 Wilmington Island.
Wilmington Island has less food insecurity than most of Georgia and has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Georgia (mostly hurricanes).
14 miles of trail wind through 5 parks and preserves. The density of trails in Wilmington Island is 1.5 miles per square mile. The biggest park or preserve is Charles C. Brooks Sports Complex, at 23 acres.
| Wilmington Island | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.5 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 0.2% | 2.3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Charles C. Brooks Sports Complex | 0.1 mi | 23 |
| 2. Wilmington Island Community Park | — | 7 |
| 3. Abolt - O'Brien Soccer Field | — | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Savannah-Chatham County school district. Two of the 3 schools are below, and why each made the list. Enrollment at Wilmington Island’s public school: 539 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| May Howard Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 539 | A− |
| St. Andrew's School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 504 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within GA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Georgia is food insecurity: 7.2% of its 12,074 adults worry about having enough food, against 17.7% statewide.
Among adults 18 to 64 in Wilmington Island, 7.2% have no health insurance, against 14% in Georgia’s towns and 8.1% across U.S. towns. The share of adults in Wilmington Island who say their health is fair or poor: 13%. Against the Georgia average, Wilmington Island comes out ahead on 20 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 2.
| Wilmington Island | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 38% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 19% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 23% | 19% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 29% | 25% |
| What stands out | Wilmington Island | GA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.2% | 17.7% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.4% | 14.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.2% | 7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of Georgia towns, with expected losses of about $441 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
Wilmington Island has had 73 paid flood insurance claims since 1983. Expected losses in Wilmington Island break down as 69% from hurricanes and 9% from inland flooding. Federal aid has come to Wilmington Island households in 3 declared disasters; the latest was in 2024.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Wilmington Island has 1,688 jobs for its 6,535 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here fell from 2,226 in 2013 to 1,688.
Among residents in Wilmington Island, 4.2% live below the poverty line, below both the Georgia town median (15%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). For most workers, Wilmington Island is a place to come home to: only 7% work in town. Since 2013, Wilmington Island has lost 538 jobs, to 1,688 in 2023. The average trip to work for Wilmington Island comes to 28 minutes.
| Wilmington Island | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 4.2% | 15% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $94,000 | $63,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 9.1% | 9.2% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
January nights average 40.7°, milder than in 95% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 91°.
For Wilmington Island, the typical July afternoon high is 91°F. Snowfall is close to zero. Only 8 of the 264 Georgia towns we compare have a higher January low than Wilmington Island.
| Wilmington Island | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 41°F | 33°F | 22°F |
| July high | 91°F | 90°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
In Wilmington Island, 77% of households are owner-occupiers. For Wilmington Island, the median rent is $1,752 a month. On the market here: a median 49 days to sell.
| Wilmington Island | Georgia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,752 a month | $1,152 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 77% | 58% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
4 within 15 miles of the center of Wilmington Island
About 3 of every 100 Wilmington Island residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Georgia.
0.2% of the town is conserved land, across 5 parks and preserves.
Place in Georgia, United States
Wilmington Island is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Chatham County, Georgia. The population was 15,129 at the time of the 2020 U.S. census. It is part of the Savannah metropolitan area. The communities of Wilmington Island form a large and affluent suburb of Savannah, where most residents work. The island lies east of Savannah between the town of Thunderbolt and the beach city of Tybee Island.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Wilmington Island.
| Town | GA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wilmington Island | #105 | C+ | D | — | C | A |
| Talahi Island | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Whitemarsh Island | #96 | C+ | D | — | C | A |
Wilmington Island and Whitemarsh Island report no FBI crime data of their own. Talahi Island isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Wilmington Island with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Wilmington Island grades C+ overall, better than 38% of U.S. towns and #105 of 258 in Georgia. It grades A for health and C for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. The typical home is worth about $405,000, 23% 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.
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