Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 41,562, settled in 1885.
Garner grades B− overall, 103rd of 286 graded towns in North Carolina, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 80% of the country and its public schools beat 75% of North Carolina towns on state tests and graduation. On the other side, its crime rate is higher than 93% of U.S. towns, with 173 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Only 37 of North Carolina’s 451 towns score higher on hazard risk. Garner’s property crime rate is 31 per 1,000 residents, above both the North Carolina town median (21.8) and the median of U.S. towns (9.9). Only 43 of North Carolina’s 451 towns score higher on the outdoors.
Where Garner beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
25,745 counted in 2010 and 31,159 in 2020; an estimated 41,562 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 32.1% since 2020, after 21% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Garner is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 284 in 1910, 31,159 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 5 maps from 1964 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Garner. Close and well known come first.
10 mi Stadium & arenaLenovo Center
10 mi Stadium & arenaCarter–Finley Stadium
10 mi Stadium & arenaWakeMed Soccer Park
29 mi Stadium & arenaKenan Memorial Stadium
7 mi MuseumNorth Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
10 mi MuseumNorth Carolina Museum of ArtLenovo Center: Edward T. Funkhouser, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Carter–Finley Stadium: SMaloney, CC BY 3.0 · WakeMed Soccer Park: Hameltion, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Kenan Memorial Stadium: Yeungb, CC BY 3.0 · North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences: Jmturner, Public domain · North Carolina Museum of Art: Justin Doub, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Garner, 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 Garner.
Garner draws workers from Raleigh and beyond and has seen reported crime fall by a third or more.
25,026 jobs are based in Garner, 1.5 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 14,735 in 2013 to 25,026.
Most working residents leave Garner for work: only 8% work in town. 24% of Garner workers work from home. Jobs based in Garner grew to 25,026 in 2023, 10,291 more than in 2013.
| Garner | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 24% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 8.4% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Wake County Schools. Two of its 13 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Garner MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,109 | C− |
| South Garner HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,835 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 1,786 to 1,463 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The violent crime rate in Garner is 4.2 per 1,000 residents. Garner reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 93% report less. Within North Carolina, it does better than 27% of towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
12 miles of trail in 15 parks and preserves. White Deer Park, at 138 acres with 2 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Garner’s trail density is 0.6 miles per square mile.
| Garner | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.5% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. White Deer Park | 2 mi | 138 |
| 2. Lake Benson Park | 0.9 mi | 65 |
| 3. South Garner Park | 0.8 mi | 33 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
11% of adults report frequent physical distress in Garner. Garner beats the North Carolina average on 9 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 21% of adults get no exercise outside work in Garner.
| Garner | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 24% | 25% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 16% |
| What stands out | Garner | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with COPD | 5.6% | 7.1% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 5.3% | 6.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 72% of U.S. communities. Since 1989, 27 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Garner.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Garner has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 90°, January nights drop to 31° and about 5 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Garner home is worth about $378,000, down 1.8% in a year, 14% above the North Carolina typical home.
| Garner | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,549 a month | $1,084 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 63% | 67% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
8 within 15 miles of the center of Garner
About 6 of every 100 Garner residents are enrolled in college, about the same as North Carolina.
Where Garner’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
5 notable people were born in Garner.
Town in North Carolina, United States
Garner is a town in Wake County, North Carolina, United States. The population is 31,159 as of the 2020 census. A suburb of Raleigh, the city limits are entirely within Wake County, though portions of unincorporated Wake County, as well as the Cleveland community in northern Johnston County, have Garner mailing addresses. It is part of the Research Triangle region of North Carolina and serves as a bedroom community for the region.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Garner.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garner | #103 | B− | C+ | D | A− | A− |
| Raleigh | #80 | B− | C | D | A− | A |
| Fuquay-Varina | #6 | A | C | A− | A− | A |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Garner grades B− overall, better than 47% of U.S. towns and #103 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades A− for health, D for safety and A− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
Within North Carolina, it does better than 27% of towns.
That is 3.8 years of the area's median household income ($100,103 across the Raleigh-Cary, NC 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 C+.
5 notable people were born here, including Scotty McCreery and Nyheim Hines.
