Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 2,605 people, this town lies in Ohio.
A town with more to fix than most. Where it falls short is health: CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 91% of the country. At D overall, West Portsmouth is better than 14% of U.S. towns and ranks 937th of 987 in Ohio. It also trails on incomes (D) — the median household income is $42K, and 13% of residents live below the poverty line. Its strongest is hazard risk (A−). Homes run about $109K for a typical one, 2.1 times the Portsmouth area’s $51K median household income. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than just over four fifths of U.S. towns. Only 10 of the 411 Ohio towns we compare have a lower midpoint home value than West Portsmouth.
Figures: FEMA National Risk Index · health, CDC PLACES · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · Zillow, September 2026.
Where West Portsmouth beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| Widest gap | West Portsmouth | OH |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 27.9% | 15.3% |
Where West Portsmouth’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Ohio), ordered by how far West Portsmouth is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 3 maps from 1915 on.
Explore the history →West Portsmouth is unincorporated, so Scioto County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 West Portsmouth.
West Portsmouth is healthier than towns with similar incomes, has homes that are cheap against local pay and sends most of its workers to Portsmouth and beyond.
At 2.1 years of the Portsmouth area’s $51K median household income, the typical home (about $109K) costs less against local pay than in 92% of Ohio towns; that ratio is one input to that grade. The median property tax bill is $1,284, against $2,822 across Ohio, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical West Portsmouth home is worth about $109,000, up 2.5% in a year, 56% below the Ohio typical home. Its midpoint rent is $726 a month, where Ohio’s towns sit at $944 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month. For households locally, the share who live in a home they own is 73%.
| West Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $726 a month | $944 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
Against the 2,916 U.S. towns with household incomes like West Portsmouth’s, it is less healthy than 58%, so that grade isn’t only a matter of income.
In West Portsmouth, just over two in five adults have high blood pressure. West Portsmouth: 29% of adults have been diagnosed with depression, above both the Ohio town median (26%) and the median of U.S. towns (23%).
| West Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 38% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 18% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 26% | 23% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 28% | 25% |
| What stands out | West Portsmouth | OH |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 27.9% | 15.3% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.3% | 8% |
| More smokers | 19.6% | 15.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
West Portsmouth has 196 jobs for its 1,122 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Jobs based in West Portsmouth fell to 196 in 2023, 51 fewer than in 2013. Only 5% of working residents stay in West Portsmouth for work; the rest commute out. The top destinations are Portsmouth (29%), New Boston (5%) and Washington Township (4%). For half of commuters, work is under 9 miles away.
| West Portsmouth | Ohio towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $42,000 | $75,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9.1% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.5% | 6.9% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
West Portsmouth’s natural-hazard score from FEMA comes in at 22 of 100. Flood insurance has paid out on 5 claims here since 1979. Expected losses in West Portsmouth break down as 60% from inland flooding and 19% from heat waves. Federal aid has come to West Portsmouth households in 2 declared disasters; the latest was in 2004.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
West Portsmouth’s midsummer high stands at 87°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1 within 15 miles of the center of West Portsmouth
About 7 of every 100 West Portsmouth residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Ohio.
Census-designated place in Ohio, United States
West Portsmouth is a census-designated place (CDP) in Scioto County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,929 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
West Portsmouth grades D overall, better than 14% of U.S. towns and #937 of 987 in Ohio. It grades D for health and B− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.