Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Portsmouth grades D− overall, 985th among Ohio's 987 graded towns, mostly because of health and safety. On CDC health estimates it is near the bottom nationally. Its crime rate is higher than 95% of U.S. towns, with 112 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. What it does well: it is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 97% of U.S. towns, with 35 places on the National Register. 35% of residents live below the poverty line in Portsmouth, where Ohio’s towns sit at 9.1% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. On incomes, just 58 of Ohio’s 1,707 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include First Presbyterian Church and Boneyfiddle Commercial Disrict.
Where Portsmouth beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Aaron Kinney House| Widest gap | Portsmouth | OH |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 28.8% | 15.3% |
Its 35 National Register listings are more than in 97% of Ohio towns with a listing.
Census counts: 527 in 1820, a peak of 42,560 in 1930, 18,252 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1833 and 2 maps from 1957 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Ohio), ordered by how far Portsmouth is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Portsmouth, 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 Portsmouth.
Portsmouth draws workers from Wheelersburg and beyond, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Ohio (mostly inland flooding) and reports violent crime at about twice the Ohio rate.
24% of Portsmouth adults smoke cigarettes. Only 4 of the 993 Ohio towns we compare have a higher share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Portsmouth. 45% of Portsmouth adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 18% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 28% | 25% |
| What stands out | Portsmouth | OH |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 12.9% | 16.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 28.8% | 15.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Each of its 5 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its C, Porter Township highest at A−.
Its public schools are run by the Portsmouth City school district. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Portsmouth Junior High School/Portsmouth High School, with 636 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portsmouth ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 791 | C− |
| Portsmouth Junior High School/Portsmouth High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 636 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OH on state tests and graduation
At 1.8 years of the Portsmouth area’s $51K median household income, the typical home (about $94K) costs less against local pay than in 97% of Ohio towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living. 59.5% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 45.9% across Ohio.
The typical Portsmouth home is worth about $94,000, up 1.7% in a year, 62% below the Ohio typical home. 48% of households own their home in Portsmouth.
| Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 48% | 77% | 73% |
| Median rent | $747 a month | $944 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Violent crime runs at 6.5 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Ohio rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D. Property crime runs at 30.9 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Ohio rate, most of it theft.
Portsmouth’s violent crime rate is 6.5 per 1,000 residents. Portsmouth reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 95% report less. Portsmouth’s property crime rate is 30.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.5 per 1,000 residents | 1.2 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 30.9 per 1,000 residents | 9.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
11,919 jobs are based in Portsmouth, 1.9 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
The median household income in Portsmouth is $35,000. About one in 3 of Portsmouth’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Portsmouth is 21 minutes.
| Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $35,000 | $75,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 4.8% | 9.7% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
4.0 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves.
| Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.6% | 3.7% | 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. Mound Park | 0.1 mi | 10 |
| 2. Millbrook Park | 0.1 mi | 4 |
| 3. York Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 95% of Ohio towns, with expected losses of about $394 per resident a year; that rating is what its C for hazard risk is built on.
Since 1978, 29 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Portsmouth.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Portsmouth has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 23° and about 7 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1 within 15 miles of the center of Portsmouth
About 8 of every 100 Portsmouth residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Ohio.
35 places in Portsmouth on the National Register of Historic Places.
30 notable people were born in Portsmouth.
City in Ohio, United States
Portsmouth is a city in Scioto County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Located in southern Ohio 41 miles (66 km) south of Chillicothe, it lies on the north bank of the Ohio River, across from Kentucky and just east of the mouth of the Scioto River. The population was 18,252 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Portsmouth micropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Portsmouth.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D−; Clay Township (D) is closest. Porter Township next door grades higher for schools (A− to Portsmouth’s C) and lower for cost of living (C to B).
| Town | OH rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portsmouth | #985 | D− | B | D | C | D− |
| Clay Township | #984 | D | B− | — | B− | D− |
| New Boston | — | — | A− | — | C+ | D− |
| Rosemount | — | — | C+ | — | B− | D |
| Porter Township | #890 | C− | C | — | A− | D |
| Sciotodale | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Harrison Township | #940 | D | A− | — | B− | D− |
New Boston and Rosemount have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Clay Township, New Boston, Rosemount, Porter Township and Harrison Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Sciotodale isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Portsmouth with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Portsmouth grades D− overall, better than 3% of U.S. towns and #985 of 987 in Ohio. It grades D− for health, D for safety and C for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 1.8 years of the area's median household income ($50,609 across the Portsmouth, OH area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
30 notable people were born here, including Kathleen Battle and Stuff Smith.
