Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Wayne Township is a city of 150,959, and it grades C− overall, 542nd among Indiana's 585 graded towns. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 78% of U.S. towns. The trade-offs: residents are less healthy than 84% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and its schools rank behind 82% of the state's. Only 24 of Indiana’s 1,043 towns score lower on civic life. Its National Register listings include Allison Mansion and Old Pathology Building. 19% of residents live below the poverty line in Wayne Township, above both Indiana’s towns (10%) and U.S. towns (9.6%).
Where Wayne Township beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Indiana), ordered by how far Wayne Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 7,949 in 1890, 148,444 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 4 maps from 1953 on.
11 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Wayne Township. Close and well known come first.
Big draw5 mi Stadium & arenaLucas Oil Stadium
6 mi Stadium & arenaGainbridge Fieldhouse
6 mi LandmarkSoldiers' and Sailors' Monument
7 mi Stadium & arenaHinkle Fieldhouse
6 mi MuseumIndianapolis Museum of Art428K visitors a year
5 mi Zoo & aquariumIndianapolis ZooLucas Oil Stadium: Josh Hallett from Winter Haven, FL, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Gainbridge Fieldhouse: Durin at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument: alexeatswhales, CC BY 2.0 · Hinkle Fieldhouse: Peetlesnumber1, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Indianapolis Museum of Art: No machine-readable author provided. Cszmurlo assumed (based on copyright claims, CC BY 3.0 · Indianapolis Zoo: User:Durin-en, CC BY-SA 2.5
Who provides power, water and the rest in Wayne Township, 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 Wayne Township.
20 miles of trail in 38 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Ben Davis Park, at 82 acres.
| Wayne Township | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4% | 1.9% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Nina Mason Pulliam EcoLab | 3.3 mi | 72 |
| 2. Krannert Park | 0.7 mi | 22 |
| 3. Lions Club Park | 0.6 mi | 21 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the MSD Wayne Township school district. Three of its 54 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chapel Hill 7th & 8th Grade CenterLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 1,143 | D |
| Ben Davis High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 10–12 | Grades 10–12 | 3,315 | C |
| Arthur C Newby Elementary School 2Top results in townGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 223 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IN on state tests and graduation
25% of adults worry about having enough food in Wayne Township. Wayne Township beats the Indiana average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 18. 37% of adults feel lonely in Wayne Township.
| Wayne Township | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 14% | 14% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 32% | 33% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 36% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 8.3% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Wayne Township | IN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6% | 8.3% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 25.2% | 28.3% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 14.2% | 8.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Wayne Township has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 20° and about 26 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Wayne Township has about as many jobs (68,680) as working residents, but only 9,173 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Wayne Township for work: only 15% work in town. Wayne Township’s median household income is $57,000. The top destinations are Indianapolis (57%), Plainfield (7%) and Carmel (3%).
| Wayne Township | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $57,000 | $71,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 11% | 8% |
| Work from home | 8.1% | 7.8% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
People 65 and older are 12% of residents (17% statewide); children under 18 are 28% of residents (23% statewide). The median age in Wayne Township is 33.2 years. 20% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 30% across Indiana.
| Wayne Township | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 28% | 23% | 22% |
| Median age | 33.2 years | 39.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 12% | 18% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 20% | 22% | 29% |
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1 point). Across Indiana, 50.4% of residents are women. Median age: women 33.7, men 32.7.
| Wayne Township | IN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 15.1% | 12.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.3% | 10.9% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9% | 9.6% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.4% | 13.1% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.3% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.8% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.4% | 12.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.4% | 10.1% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4.3% | 6.7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 17.7% | 9.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 35.3% | 32.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.8% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.9% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 14.8% | 18.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 5.5% | 10.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 55% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 137 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Wayne Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
8 within 15 miles of the center of Wayne Township
About 7 of every 100 Wayne Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Indiana.
11 places in Wayne Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
Township in Indiana, United States
Wayne Township is one of nine townships in Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 136,828. The school district is Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Wayne Township.
Washington Township next door grades higher for schools (A to Wayne Township’s C−) and lower for cost of living (C+ to B+).
| Town | IN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Township | #542 | C− | B+ | — | C− | C− |
| Center Township | #551 | C− | B | — | C− | C− |
| Decatur Township | #565 | D | B− | — | C | C− |
| Pike Township | #390 | B− | B | — | C− | B |
| Indianapolis | — | — | C | D | — | — |
| Washington Township | #71 | A | C+ | — | A | B+ |
| Washington Township | #385 | B− | C | — | C− | A− |
| Plainfield | #207 | B+ | C+ | C+ | A | B+ |
Wayne Township, Center Township, Decatur Township, Pike Township, Washington Township and Washington Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Indianapolis isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Wayne Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Wayne Township grades C− overall, better than 21% of U.S. towns and #542 of 585 in Indiana. It grades C− for health and C− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a C−.
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 B+.
