Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 7,968, settled in 1898.
Etowah is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B− overall, 110th of 286 graded towns in North Carolina, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is health: residents are healthier than 69% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. It also does better than most on schools: its schools outperform 66% of the state's. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $417K for a typical one and 5.8 times the Asheville metro’s $72K median household income. 27% of residents are 65 or older in Etowah, where North Carolina’s towns sit at 18% and U.S. towns at 18%. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 85% of U.S. towns. Bryn Avon and Dillard B. and Georgia Sewell House is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Etowah beats most towns.
6,944 counted in 2010 and 7,642 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Etowah is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 2016 and 5 maps from 1935 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Etowah is unincorporated, so Henderson 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 Etowah.
Etowah is healthier than towns with similar incomes, has more than doubled its jobs in ten years and has milder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of North Carolina.
Jobs based here grew from 672 in 2013 to 1,442.
Most working residents leave Etowah for work: only 6% work in town. Since 2013, Etowah has added 770 jobs, to 1,442 in 2023. 6.5% of workers work from home in Etowah.
| Etowah | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 6.5% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Henderson County Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Etowah ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 302 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
4.8 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve.
| Etowah | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 5.8% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Etowah Park | 0.7 mi | 17 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
84% of Etowah households own their home. The typical Etowah home is worth about $417,000, down 0.8% in a year, 26% above the North Carolina typical home. Etowah’s median rent is $1,413 a month.
| Etowah | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 84% | 67% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,413 a month | $1,084 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 10,697 U.S. towns with household incomes like Etowah’s, it is healthier than 84%, so its B+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Etowah beats the North Carolina average on 14 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 6.
| Etowah | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 33% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 80% | 79% |
| What stands out | Etowah | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 7.5% | 12.2% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 5.2% | 8.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.4% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
People 65 and older are 27% of residents (17% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 16% of residents (23% statewide). The median age in Etowah is 45.5 years. 39% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across North Carolina.
| Etowah | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 45.5 years | 40.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 39% | 29% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 20% | 22% | 22% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.9 points. Across North Carolina, 51.1% of residents are women.
| Etowah | NC | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.4% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.4% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.9% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10% | 13.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.1% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.2% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 16% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 17.6% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.5% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.7% | 9.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24% | 24.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 20.7% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.6% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 22.2% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 16.9% | 13.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 70% of U.S. communities. Since 2009, 13 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Etowah.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 27.1°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 91% of North Carolina places with climate records; July afternoons average 83.5°.
Etowah has chilly winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. About 7 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Etowah | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 84°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 27°F | 31°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Etowah. Close and well known come first.
10 mi ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
Big draw37 mi MountainMount Mitchell
Big draw33 mi National ParkGreat Smoky Mountains National Park11.5M visitors a year
12 mi National forestPisgah National Forest33 mi Theme parkGhost Town in the Sky
30 mi LakeLake JocasseeBlue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Mount Mitchell: Unknown, Public domain · Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Scott Basford, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Pisgah National Forest: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Lake Jocassee: Clemson3564, Public domain
3 within 15 miles of the center of Etowah
About 7 of every 100 Etowah residents are enrolled in college, about the same as North Carolina.
Where Etowah’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Census-designated place in Henderson County, North Carolina, USA
Etowah is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Henderson County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, Etowah had a population of 7,642. It is part of the Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Etowah.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Etowah | #110 | B− | C+ | — | B+ | B+ |
| Mills River | #40 | B+ | C | — | B+ | A− |
| Horse Shoe | — | — | C− | — | B+ | A− |
Horse Shoe has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Etowah, Mills River and Horse Shoe report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Etowah with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Etowah grades B− overall, better than 46% of U.S. towns and #110 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades B+ for health and B+ for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
