Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 8,857, settled in 1817.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Sunbury grades A overall, ranked 120th of 987 in Ohio. The median household earns $109K. Residents are healthier than 91% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and crime is low: it reports less per resident than 82% of U.S. towns. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $491K for a typical one and 6 times the Columbus metro’s $82K median household income. 48% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Sunbury, against 24% in Ohio’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns. Sunbury Town Hall is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Sunbury beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Big Walnut Intermediate School | 4–5 | 663 |
| Prairie Run Elementary School | K–4 | 352 |
| General Rosecrans Elementary | K–3 | 296 |
4,389 counted in 2010 and 6,614 in 2020; an estimated 8,857 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 33.6% since 2020, after 50.7% 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 Ohio), ordered by how far Sunbury is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 337 in 1850, 6,614 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1910 and 3 maps from 1955 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Sunbury. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaOhio Stadium
17 mi Stadium & arenaHistoric Crew Stadium
20 mi Stadium & arenaScottsMiracle-Gro Field
14 mi Zoo & aquariumColumbus Zoo and Aquarium
18 mi Stadium & arenaValue City Arena
27 mi LandmarkHarding TombOhio Stadium: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Historic Crew Stadium: Rick Dikeman, CC BY-SA 3.0 · ScottsMiracle-Gro Field: Nova Crystallis, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Columbus Zoo and Aquarium: Adolphus79 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Value City Arena: Nick81aku at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Harding Tomb: User:Postdlf, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Sunbury, 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 Sunbury.
Sunbury has less food insecurity than most of Ohio and pairs an A− for schools with high home prices, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Ohio.
At 6 years of the Columbus metro’s $82K median household income, the typical home (about $491K) costs more against local pay than in 94% of Ohio towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $4,289, against $2,822 across Ohio, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The median rent in Sunbury is $1,649 a month. The typical Sunbury home is worth about $491,000, up 1.7% in a year, 100% above the Ohio typical home.
| Sunbury | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,649 a month | $943 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 77% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A− for schools comes with a C− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $491K.
Its public schools are run by the Big Walnut Local school district. Three of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Big Walnut High School, with 1,299 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Big Walnut Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 973 | A− |
| Big Walnut High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,299 | A− |
| Big Walnut Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades K–3 | Grades K–3 | 295 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OH on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Ohio is food insecurity: 7.9% of its 4,625 adults worry about having enough food, against 14.1% statewide.
9% of Sunbury adults have diabetes. Sunbury beats the Ohio average on 21 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 33% of Sunbury adults have obesity.
| Sunbury | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 16% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 28% | 25% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 20% | 19% |
| What stands out | Sunbury | OH |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.9% | 14.1% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 9.3% | 15.3% |
| More binge drinkers | 20.4% | 16.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Violent crime is rare: 9 reported in 2025, 0.8 per 1,000 residents.
Sunbury’s property crime rate is 2.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Sunbury | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.9 per 1,000 residents | 9.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.8 per 1,000 residents | 1.2 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Sunbury has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 20° and about 19 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
22.7% of workers work from home, against 13% across Ohio.
Most working residents leave Sunbury for work: only 5% work in town. Jobs based in Sunbury grew to 2,747 in 2023, 568 more than in 2013. 5.2% of residents live below the poverty line in Sunbury.
| Sunbury | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $109,000 | $75,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 5.2% | 9.1% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.9% | 6.9% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 64% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Sunbury.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Freedom Park | — | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
8 within 15 miles of the center of Sunbury
About 7 of every 100 Sunbury residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Ohio.
City in Ohio, United States
Sunbury is a city in Delaware County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,614 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Columbus, Ohio metropolitan area. Sunbury went from being a village to a city on October 22, 2021.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Sunbury.
| Town | OH rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunbury | #120 | A | C− | A− | A− | A |
| Berkshire Township | #258 | A− | D | — | A− | A |
| Trenton Township | #269 | A− | C | — | A− | A |
| Galena | — | — | C− | — | A− | A |
Galena has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Berkshire Township, Trenton Township and Galena report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Sunbury with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Sunbury grades A overall, better than 89% of U.S. towns and #120 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 C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
