Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Canton earns a D, 77th of 99 graded towns in Mississippi, mostly because of health. On CDC health estimates it is near the bottom nationally. It also has a long history, with 11 places on the National Register. 33% of residents live below the poverty line in Canton, against 21% in Mississippi’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Canton High School and Mt. Zion Baptist Church. Canton's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 92% of U.S. towns.
Where Canton beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Madison County Jail
Sonny Landreth| Widest gap | Canton | MS |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 22.7% | 11.2% |
Census counts: 1,963 in 1870, 10,948 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 1908 and 2 maps from 1961 on.
10 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Mississippi), ordered by how far Canton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Canton. Close and well known come first.
6 mi ParkwayNatchez Trace Parkway8.0M visitors a year
21 mi Stadium & arenaMississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium
21 mi National MonumentMedgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument61K visitors a year
33 mi National Military ParkVicksburg National Military Park410K visitors a year20 mi MuseumMississippi Musicians Hall of Fame22 mi Zoo & aquariumJackson ZooNatchez Trace Parkway: Carol M. Highsmith (1946–), Public domain · Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium: Jfurr1981 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument: Jud McCranie, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vicksburg National Military Park: Eoghanacht at English Wikipedia, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Canton, 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 Canton.
Canton draws workers from Jackson and beyond and is mostly renters, but it has a long record of flood insurance claims.
35% of adults say their health is fair or poor in Canton. Among 101 Mississippi towns, just 9 have a higher share of adults who feel lonely than Canton. 18% of adults report frequent physical distress in Canton.
| Canton | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 27% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 16% | 12% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 45% | 36% | 25% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 51% | 45% | 35% |
| What stands out | Canton | MS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.6% | 7.6% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11.1% | 13.6% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 22.7% | 11.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Canton Public Schools. Two of its 10 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canton Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 411 | C− |
| Canton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 899 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MS on state tests and graduation
6,696 jobs are based in Canton, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
Most working residents leave Canton for work: only 19% work in town. Canton’s median household income is $38,000. Jobs based in Canton grew to 6,696 in 2023, 726 more than in 2013.
| Canton | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $38,000 | $50,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 20% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
| Canton | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 8.1% | 2.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Red Bud Park | — | 8 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Canton has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Canton is 92°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Only 36.1% of households own their home, against 70% across Mississippi.
Adults 18 to 34 are 30% of residents (22% statewide). 20% of Canton residents are under 18. 25% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 25% across Mississippi.
| Canton | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 20% | 24% | 22% |
| Median age | 35.2 years | 37 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 15% | 17% | 18% |
54% women, 46% men
About 86 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3.3 points). Across Mississippi, 51.5% of residents are women.
| Canton | MS | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.6% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 12.4% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 17.4% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.9% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 5.7% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 16.5% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10% | 10.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.4% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 24.3% | 12.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30% | 29.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 17.2% | 21.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 3% | 10.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 10.2% | 15.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.2% | 9.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The typical Canton home is worth about $222,000, up 1.1% in a year, 14% above the Mississippi typical home. Only 3 of the 99 Mississippi towns we compare have a lower share of households owning their home than Canton.
| Canton | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 36% | 62% | 73% |
| Median rent | $989 a month | $900 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
400 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 45 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 53% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 400 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Canton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Canton
About 5 of every 100 Canton residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Mississippi.
13,189 counted in 2010 and 10,948 in 2020; an estimated 10,873 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
10 places in Canton on the National Register of Historic Places.
26 notable people were born in Canton.
City in Mississippi, United States
Canton is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Mississippi, United States, and is situated in the northern part of the metropolitan area surrounding the state capital, Jackson. The population of Canton was 10,948 at the 2020 census, down from 13,189 in 2010. The city is adjacent to a large auto manufacturing facility owned by Nissan.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Canton.
| Town | MS rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canton | #77 | D | B | — | C | D− |
| Gluckstadt | #4 | A− | C− | — | A | A |
Canton and Gluckstadt report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Canton with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Canton grades D overall, better than 9% of U.S. towns and #77 of 99 in Mississippi. It grades D− for health and C for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 3.6 years of the area's median household income ($61,644 across the Jackson, MS 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.
26 notable people were born here, including Sonny Landreth and Quinndary Weatherspoon.
