Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Saluda’s median age is 65.4 years, above both North Carolina’s towns (40.1 years) and U.S. towns (40.5 years). Its National Register listings include Church of the Transfiguration and Saluda Main Street Historic District. Saluda has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Where Saluda beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 211 in 1900, 631 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1914 and 2 maps from 1959 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Saluda, 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 Saluda.
Its public schools are run by the Polk County Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saluda Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 142 | A |
NCES · EDFacts
Saluda has mild winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Saluda’s July high is 83°F, against 89°F in North Carolina’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave Saluda for work: only 6% work in town. The average trip to work in Saluda is 29 minutes. The top destinations are Hendersonville (13%), Asheville (8%) and Charlotte (8%).
| Saluda | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $52,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.7% | 6.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
11 crimes were reported in Saluda in 2024: 9 property and 2 violent. In a town this small, a few incidents move the numbers a lot, so rates aren't shown.
Saluda is small, so we show counts rather than rates.
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
Saluda beats the North Carolina average on 17 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 26% of adults feel lonely in Saluda.
| Saluda | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 33% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 17% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 34% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 84% | 80% | 79% |
| What stands out | Saluda | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.7% | 15.2% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 5.4% | 12.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 13.8% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Saluda home is worth about $357,000, down 1.5% in a year, 7% above the North Carolina typical home. 84% of Saluda households own their home.
| Saluda | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 84% | 67% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,263 a month | $1,085 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Saluda | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.9% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. McCreery Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Saluda. Close and well known come first.
Big draw37 mi MountainMount Mitchell
22 mi ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
27 mi National forestPisgah National Forest
38 mi LakeLake Jocassee
6 mi National Historic SiteCarl Sandburg Home National Historic Site95K visitors a year
15 mi State parkChimney Rock State ParkMount Mitchell: Unknown, Public domain · Blue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Pisgah National Forest: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Lake Jocassee: Clemson3564, Public domain · Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site: Victoria Stauffenberg, Public domain · Chimney Rock State Park: Jmturner, Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Saluda
About 2 of every 100 Saluda residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across North Carolina.
5 places in Saluda on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in North Carolina, United States
Saluda is a city in Polk and Henderson counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 631 at the 2020 census. Saluda is famous for sitting at the top of the Norfolk Southern Railway's Saluda Grade, which was the steepest main line standard-gauge railway line in the United States until Norfolk Southern ceased operations on the line in 2001. Saluda is close to the South Carolina state line, between Asheville, North Carolina, and Spartanburg, South Carolina.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Saluda has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
.jpg){kind=link}
