Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 18,014, settled in 1799. Public schools that outperform most of Ohio.
Because it does well by almost any measure. Aurora earns an A+, 49th of 987 graded towns in Ohio. Its public schools beat 96% of Ohio towns on state tests and graduation, it is healthier than 92% of U.S. towns, and the median household earns $128K. The exception is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $442K, 6.1 years of the Akron metro’s $72K median household income. 61% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Aurora, above both Ohio’s towns (24%) and U.S. towns (29%). Only 168 of Ohio’s 1,718 towns score higher on hazard risk. Aurora has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Aurora Center Historic District and C. R. Howard House.
Where Aurora beats most towns.
Census counts: 222 in 1880, 17,239 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1872 and 6 maps from 1906 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Ohio), ordered by how far Aurora is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for schools (better than 96% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 9%), so the A+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Aurora. Close and well known come first.
Big draw24 mi MuseumRock and Roll Hall of Fame580K visitors a year
Big draw33 mi MuseumPro Football Hall of Fame192K visitors a year
10 mi National ParkCuyahoga Valley National Park3.0M visitors a year
Big draw23 mi Stadium & arenaProgressive Field
24 mi Stadium & arenaHuntington Bank Field
4 mi Theme parkSeaWorld OhioRock and Roll Hall of Fame: MusikAnimal, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pro Football Hall of Fame: Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0 · Cuyahoga Valley National Park: Unknown, Public domain · Progressive Field: Jsawczuk, Public domain · Huntington Bank Field: Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0 · SeaWorld Ohio: Jeremy Thompson from Los Angeles, California, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Aurora, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Aurora.
Aurora has schools in the top 5% of Ohio and has less food insecurity than most of Ohio, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Ohio.
At 6.1 years of the Akron metro’s $72K median household income, the typical home (about $442K) costs more against local pay than in 94% of Ohio towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living. Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Reminderville is next at $354K.
Aurora’s median rent is $1,799 a month. The typical Aurora home is worth about $442,000, up 2.9% in a year, 80% above the Ohio typical home. 83% of Aurora households own their home.
| Aurora | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,799 a month | $943 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 83% | 77% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A+ ranks #27 of the 993 Ohio towns we grade for schools. Its A+ is the best School Grade on its borders; Bainbridge Township (A) is next.
Its public schools are run by the Aurora City school district. Three of its 6 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Aurora High School, with 984 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harmon Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 689 | A |
| Aurora High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 984 | A |
| Leighton Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 657 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OH on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Ohio is food insecurity: 6% of its 13,507 adults worry about having enough food, against 14.1% statewide.
13% of adults report frequent mental distress in Aurora. Aurora beats the Ohio average on 22 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 11% of adults report frequent physical distress in Aurora.
| Aurora | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 18% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.2% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 28% | 25% |
| What stands out | Aurora | OH |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6% | 14.1% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 4% | 8.3% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.3% | 8.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
12 miles of trail in 15 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Tinkers Creek State Park, at 361 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sunny Lake Park | 2.8 mi | 173 |
| 2. Trail's End Park | 2.2 mi | 213 |
| 3. Tinkers Creek Nature Preserve | 1.2 mi | 283 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Reported crimes fell from 128 to 75 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 9 reported in 2025, 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
The property crime rate in Aurora is 3.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Aurora | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.6 per 1,000 residents | 9.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.5 per 1,000 residents | 1.2 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 91% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Aurora.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Aurora has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 19° and about 45 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Aurora has about as many jobs (7,942) as working residents, but only 928 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Aurora for work: only 14% work in town. Since 2013, Aurora has added 1,216 jobs, to 7,942 in 2023. The top destinations are Solon (8%), Cleveland (6%) and Twinsburg (4%).
| Aurora | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $128,000 | $75,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 21% | 9.7% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 3.4% | 9.1% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
4 within 15 miles of the center of Aurora
About 3 of every 100 Aurora residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Ohio.
15,548 counted in 2010 and 17,239 in 2020; an estimated 18,014 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
4 places in Aurora on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Aurora.
City in Ohio, United States
Aurora is a city in northwestern Portage County, Ohio, United States. A suburb in between Akron and Cleveland, the population was 17,239 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Akron metropolitan area. Some say Aurora was the name of the daughter of Major Amos Spafford, while others believe the village was named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn. The city is co-extensive with, and formed from, the former township of Aurora, which was formed from the Connecticut Western Reserve. Aurora was designated a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Aurora.
Mantua Township next door grades lower for schools (B to Aurora’s A+) and higher for cost of living (C+ to D).
| Town | OH rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora | #49 | A+ | D | A | A+ | A |
| Streetsboro | #693 | C+ | C | B− | B− | B |
| Bainbridge Township | #153 | A | D | B+ | A | A |
| Twinsburg Township | #46 | A+ | B− | — | A | A− |
| Mantua Township | #606 | B− | C+ | — | B | B− |
| Reminderville | #301 | B+ | C− | — | A | A |
| Bainbridge | #187 | A− | D | — | A | A |
Twinsburg Township, Mantua Township, Reminderville and Bainbridge report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Aurora with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Aurora grades A+ overall, better than 96% of U.S. towns and #49 of 987 in Ohio. It grades A for health, A for safety and A+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
4 notable people were born here, including Anne Heche and Jeff Burr.
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