Is St. James a good place to live?
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Overall it grades B−, 94th among North Carolina's 286 graded towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 79% of the country. 68% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in St. James, above both the North Carolina town median (29%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%). No town among the 290 in North Carolina we compare has a higher average trip to work than St. James. St. James is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 74% of U.S. towns.
What makes St. James stand out
Where St. James beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| Widest gap | St. James | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 3.3% | 12.2% |
St. James has grown 131% since 2010
3,165 counted in 2010 and 6,529 in 2020; an estimated 7,318 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 12% since 2020, after 106.3% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How St. James grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far St. James is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to St. James: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in St. James, 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in St. James.
St. James owes part of its health edge to its incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of North Carolina (mostly hurricanes) and has homes that cost more against local pay than most of North Carolina.
11.4% of St. James is conserved land
11 miles of trail in 0 parks and preserves. The trail density in St. James is 1.2 miles per square mile.
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Very high risk in St. James, with hurricanes at the top
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of North Carolina towns, with expected losses of about $1,805 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
St. Since 1999, 90 flood insurance claims have been paid out in St. James.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
St. James stands out in North Carolina and nationally, with fewer of its adults who report frequent mental distress
Against the 6,248 U.S. towns with household incomes like St. James’s, it is healthier than 57%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
9.1% of St. James adults report frequent mental distress. Of the 289 North Carolina towns we compare, none has a lower share of adults who feel lonely than St. James. 16% of St. James adults say their health is fair or poor.
| St. James | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 9.1% | 17% | 17% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 8.3% | 15% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 34% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 50% | 38% | 35% |
| What stands out | St. James | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 3.3% | 12.2% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 2.3% | 8.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 18.7% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of St. James’ workers commute out
The average commute for its 1,476 working residents takes 50.3 minutes, against 25.1 across North Carolina. Jobs based here grew from 484 in 2013 to 741.
Most working residents leave St. 4.3% of residents live below the poverty line in St. James. Since 2013, St. James has added 257 jobs, to 741 in 2023.
| St. James | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $116,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 4.3% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.3% | 6.8% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
St. James has four seasons and hot summers
James has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 89° and January nights drop to 37°.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median home in St. James sells for about $632K
At 8.3 years of the Wilmington metro’s $76K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 97% of North Carolina towns; that ratio is one input to its C for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $2,873, against $1,896 across North Carolina, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Fort Fisher and 10 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around St. James. Close and well known come first.
11 mi LandmarkFort Fisher
12 mi GardenOrton Plantation
11 mi MuseumBrunswick Town
35 mi National BattlefieldMoores Creek National Battlefield56K visitors a year24 mi GardenAirlie Gardens
22 mi TheatreThalian HallPhoto credits
Fort Fisher: Eric T. Gunther, CC BY 3.0 · Orton Plantation: AgnosticPreachersKid., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Brunswick Town: Brunswick1726, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Moores Creek National Battlefield: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Thalian Hall: Sanfranman59, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Everything we know about St. James
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of St. James
About 0 of every 100 St. James residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across North Carolina.
96% of working residents leave St. James for work
Where St. James’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About St. James
Town in North Carolina, United States
St. James or Saint James is a town in Brunswick County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, St. James had a population of 6,529. It is part of the Wilmington, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 8.5 sq mi
- Elevation
- 30 ft
- Area code
- 910
St. James’s neighbors
One town shares a border with St. James.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. James | #94 | B− | C | — | B− | A− |
| Oak Island | #145 | C | C− | — | B− | A− |
St. James and Oak Island report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare St. James with a neighbor →
Questions about St. James
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is St. James, NC a good place to live?
St. James grades B− overall, better than 51% of U.S. towns and #94 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades A− for health and B− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is St. James, NC expensive?
The typical home is worth about $637,000, 92% above the North Carolina typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.