West HattiesburgMS
A town in Mississippi, home to 6,715 people.
Is West Hattiesburg a good place to live?
West Hattiesburg grades low on several counts. Its weakest subject is incomes — the median household income is $39K, and 38% of residents live below the poverty line. Homes run about $214K for a typical one, 3.5 times the Hattiesburg metro’s $60K median household income. Schools are its strong suit: its public schools beat 78% of Mississippi towns on state tests and graduation. Put together, the subjects come to a C− overall, ranking 60th of 99 in Mississippi. Set against the rest, it does better than 16% of U.S. towns. Health is weaker too: residents are less healthy than 90% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Only 8 of Mississippi’s 186 towns score lower on history.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · health, CDC PLACES · National Register of Historic Places.
99% of working residents leave West Hattiesburg for work
Where West Hattiesburg’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
How West Hattiesburg grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Mississippi), ordered by how far West Hattiesburg is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to West Hattiesburg: who provides what
West Hattiesburg is unincorporated, so Lamar 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in West Hattiesburg.
West Hattiesburg is healthier than towns with similar incomes and sends most of its workers to Hattiesburg and beyond, but it has poverty well above the Mississippi rate.
For health, West Hattiesburg earns a D
Against the 2,203 U.S. towns with household incomes like West Hattiesburg’s, it is healthier than 53%, so that grade isn’t only a matter of income. Within Mississippi it is less healthy than 53% of the 101 graded towns: much of Mississippi scores lower on these measures.
Among adults in West Hattiesburg, 44% have obesity, where Mississippi’s towns sit at 42% and U.S. towns at 35%. West Hattiesburg: 30% of adults worry about having enough food. CDC measures, 31 in all: West Hattiesburg beats Mississippi on 3 and trails on 7. 37% of adults in West Hattiesburg get no exercise outside work; 42% sleep under 7 hours.
| West Hattiesburg | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 24% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 36% | 25% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 39% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 42% | 35% |
| What stands out | West Hattiesburg | MS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.1% | 7.6% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 26.5% | 29.9% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 16.5% | 11.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
A smaller share of working residents work locally in West Hattiesburg than in most of Mississippi or the rest of the country
West Hattiesburg has 373 jobs for its 2,013 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here fell from 495 in 2013 to 373.
For half of commuters, work is under 4 miles away. West Hattiesburg had 373 jobs in 2023, down 122 from 2013. Among residents locally, 39% live below the poverty line, against 21% in Mississippi’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. The top destinations are Hattiesburg (56%), Laurel (6%) and Columbia (2%).
| West Hattiesburg | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 39% | 21% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 0.8% | 20% | 8% |
| Median household income | $39,000 | $50,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
West Hattiesburg stands out in Mississippi and nationally: a larger share of its residents are under 18
38.5% of residents live below the poverty line, against 18.9% across Mississippi, which weighs on its D for jobs and income. Only 42.3% of households own their home, against 70% across Mississippi.
In West Hattiesburg, just over one in ten residents are 65 or older. Among 101 Mississippi towns, just 4 have a lower age of the median resident than West Hattiesburg. Here, 31% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree, against 25% in Mississippi as a whole.
| West Hattiesburg | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 34% | 24% | 22% |
| Median age | 28.8 years | 37 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 11% | 17% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 31% | 24% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
57% women, 43% men
About 75 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±6.1 points). Across Mississippi, 51.5% of residents are women. Among residents 55 to 64, 80% are men (MS 48%).
| West Hattiesburg | MS | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 21.6% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.2% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10.4% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.7% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.5% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.2% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 5.8% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.2% | 10.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 3.3% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 11.4% | 12.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 28.6% | 29.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.8% | 21.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.6% | 10.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.5% | 15.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14% | 9.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The climate in West Hattiesburg brings mild winters and hot summers
West Hattiesburg’s peak summer temperature comes in at 92°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Low risk in West Hattiesburg, with inland flooding at the top
FEMA puts 36% of West Hattiesburg’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 29% to hurricanes. Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 63% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
West Hattiesburg keeps 2.6% of its land conserved
The biggest park or preserve is Optimist Park, at 38 acres. 0.9 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. West Hattiesburg’s trail network density is 0.4 miles per square mile.
| West Hattiesburg | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.6% | 2.9% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Optimist Park | 0.6 mi | 38 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Hattiesburg Zoo and 5 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around West Hattiesburg. Close and well known come first.
5 mi MuseumAfrican American Military History Museum
30 mi MuseumLauren Rogers Museum of Art
14 mi MuseumMississippi Armed Forces Museum50K visitors a year23 mi Zoo & aquariumCollins Zoo
3 mi GardenAll-American Rose GardenPhoto credits
African American Military History Museum: Woodlot, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lauren Rogers Museum of Art: Michlaovic, Public domain · Mississippi Armed Forces Museum: Woodlot, CC BY-SA 3.0 · All-American Rose Garden: Dudemanfellabra, CC BY-SA 3.0
Everything we know about West Hattiesburg
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of West Hattiesburg
About 6 of every 100 West Hattiesburg residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Mississippi.
About West Hattiesburg
Census-designated place in Mississippi, United States
West Hattiesburg is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Lamar County, Mississippi, west of the city of Hattiesburg and east of the community of Oak Grove. It is part of the Hattiesburg metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, West Hattiesburg had a population of 6,006.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.5 sq mi
- Elevation
- 253 ft
- Area code
- 601
West Hattiesburg’s neighbors
One town shares a border with West Hattiesburg.
| Town | MS rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Hattiesburg | #60 | C− | C | — | A− | D |
| Hattiesburg | #68 | D | C+ | D | B+ | C− |
West Hattiesburg reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare West Hattiesburg with a neighbor →
Questions about West Hattiesburg
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is West Hattiesburg, MS a good place to live?
West Hattiesburg grades C− overall, better than 16% of U.S. towns and #60 of 99 in Mississippi. It grades D for health and A− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
Is West Hattiesburg, MS expensive?
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.