Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Elkin grades D overall, 226th among North Carolina's 286 graded towns, mostly because of safety and incomes. It reports more crime per resident than 94% of U.S. towns, including 13 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. The median household income is $61K, and 22% of residents live below the poverty line. One bright spot: its public schools beat 77% of North Carolina towns on state tests and graduation. Elkin’s property crime rate is 34.5 per 1,000 residents, where North Carolina’s towns sit at 21.8 and U.S. towns at 9.9. Elkin has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Elkin Creek Mill and Downtown Elkin Historic District.
Where Elkin beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Elkin Elementary | PK–6 | 673 |
| Elkin Middle | 7–8 | 193 |
| Elkin High | 9–12 | 401 |
Where Elkin’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Elkin is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 137 in 1880, 4,122 in 2020. The archive holds 14 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1971 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Elkin, 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 Elkin.
Elkin draws workers from Jonesville and beyond, fares better on crime within North Carolina than nationally and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
8.2 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Elkin’s trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Elkin Municipal Park, 40 acres with 1.6 miles of trail.
| Elkin | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.2 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.9% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Elkin Municipal Park | 1.6 mi | 40 |
| 2. Chatham Park | 0.5 mi | 25 |
| 3. Crater Park | 0.2 mi | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elkin ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 673 | B+ |
| Elkin HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 401 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
At 60.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 78% of North Carolina’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 198 to 154 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Elkin reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 94% report less. The violent crime rate in Elkin is 3.2 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
4,616 jobs are based in Elkin, 3 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 4 of Elkin’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Elkin has added 409 jobs, to 4,616 in 2023. The top destinations are Winston-Salem (9%), Jonesville (4%) and Wilkesboro (4%).
| Elkin | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 25% | 6.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
61.1% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.9% across North Carolina.
The typical Elkin home is worth about $233,000, up 3.3% in a year, 30% below the North Carolina typical home. 61% of households own their home in Elkin.
| Elkin | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $807 a month | $1,086 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 61% | 67% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 9,125 U.S. towns with household incomes like Elkin’s, it is less healthy than 51%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
Elkin beats the North Carolina average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 11. 13% of Elkin adults binge drink.
| Elkin | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 38% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 34% | 36% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Elkin | NC |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.6% | 76.7% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 21.2% | 13.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
January nights average 27.3°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 91% of North Carolina places with climate records; July afternoons average 87.3°.
Elkin has chilly winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. About 3 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Elkin | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 27°F | 31°F | 22°F |
| July high | 87°F | 89°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 65% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Elkin since 1979.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
People 65 and older are 22% of residents (17% statewide). 30% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across North Carolina.
| Elkin | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 41.6 years | 40.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 30% | 29% | 29% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±5 points. Across North Carolina, 51.1% of residents are women.
| Elkin | NC | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.7% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.2% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.2% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.8% | 13.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.9% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.7% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.1% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 13.5% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.8% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 11.1% | 9.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24.7% | 24.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 24% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.4% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 21.4% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.4% | 13.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,100, single groups can be off by several points
1 within 15 miles of the center of Elkin
About 2 of every 100 Elkin residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across North Carolina.
4 places in Elkin on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Elkin.
Town in North Carolina, United States
Elkin is a town in Surry and Wilkes counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina, along the Yadkin River. Elkin shares its name with the surrounding township of Elkin Township. The population was 4,122 at the time of the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Elkin.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elkin | #226 | D | C+ | D | A− | C |
| Pleasant Hill | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jonesville | — | — | A− | D | B− | C |
Jonesville has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Pleasant Hill isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Elkin with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Elkin grades D overall, better than 12% of U.S. towns and #226 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades C for health, D for safety and A− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 4.2 years of the area's median household income ($55,656 across the Mount Airy, NC area).
9 notable people were born here, including Harold Hayes and Barney Hall.
