Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Conway grades C overall, 107th of 167 graded towns in South Carolina, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Its schools outperform 77% of the state's and it is more walkable than 76% of U.S. towns. On the other side, FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Its National Register listings include Old Horry County Courthouse and Burroughs School. 25% of working residents work locally in Conway, where South Carolina’s towns sit at 6.1% and U.S. towns at 8%. Conway is home to Coastal Carolina University.
Where Conway beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Old Horry County Courthouse
Census counts: 476 in 1860, 24,849 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1903 and 2 maps from 1943 on.
22 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Conway is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Conway, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Conway.
Conway is shaped by its college students and draws workers from Carolina Forest and beyond, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of South Carolina (mostly hurricanes).
23,074 jobs are based in Conway, 2.2 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 14,467 in 2013 to 23,074.
About one in 4 of Conway’s working residents works in town. 21% of Conway residents live below the poverty line. Since 2013, Conway has added 8,607 jobs, to 23,074 in 2023.
| Conway | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 21% | 17% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 6.5% | 8.8% | 11% |
| Median household income | $57,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Horry 01 school district. Three of its 10 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Conway High, with 1,724 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whittemore Park MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,013 | C |
| Conway HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,724 | A |
| HCS Early College HighTop results in townGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 360 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SC on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 78% of South Carolina towns, with expected losses of about $735 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on. 307 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 65 properties have flooded more than once.
Since 1981, 307 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Conway.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
15 miles of trail in 9 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Conway Recreation Complex, at 37 acres.
| Conway | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.2% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Collins Park | 0.5 mi | 8 |
| 2. Riverwalk Park | 0.4 mi | 4 |
| 3. James P. Blanton Park | 0.4 mi | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The violent crime rate in Conway is 3.2 per 1,000 residents. Within South Carolina, it does better than 60% of towns. The property crime rate in Conway is 17.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Conway | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.2 per 1,000 residents | 4.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 17.2 per 1,000 residents | 21.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Conway has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Conway’s July high is 91°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 7,909 U.S. towns with household incomes like Conway’s, it is healthier than 62%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Conway beats the South Carolina average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 9. 22% of adults report frequent mental distress in Conway.
| Conway | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 18% | 17% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 21% | 14% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 33% | 33% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 37% | 35% |
| What stands out | Conway | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.1% | 8.6% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 25.3% | 28.5% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 11.9% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Conway home is worth about $288,000, about the same as a year ago, 5% below the South Carolina typical home.
| Conway | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $866 a month | $1,062 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 65% | 65% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Conway. Close and well known come first.
14 mi BeachGrand Strand
22 mi MuseumBrookgreen Gardens
14 mi Theme parkFamily Kingdom Amusement Park
22 mi MuseumHuntington Beach State Park
in town MuseumUnited States Post Office
in town MuseumBurroughs SchoolGrand Strand: Phil Guest from Bournemouth, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Brookgreen Gardens: Hisland7, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Family Kingdom Amusement Park: Fk714, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Huntington Beach State Park: Original uploader was Pendragon1998 at en.wikipedia, Public domain · United States Post Office: Pubdog, Public domain · Burroughs School: Pubdog, Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Conway
College town 23 of every 100 Conway residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
17,103 counted in 2010 and 24,849 in 2020; an estimated 30,627 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 22.2% since 2020, after 45.3% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
22 places in Conway on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in South Carolina, United States
Conway is a city in and the county seat of Horry County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 24,849 at the 2020 census, up from 17,103 in the 2010 census, making it the 18th-most populous city in the state. The city is part of the Myrtle Beach Metro Area. It is the home of Coastal Carolina University. Numerous buildings and structures located in Conway are on the National Register of Historic Places. Among these is the City Hall building, designed by Robert Mills, architect of the Washington Monument. Since the completion of the Main Street USA project in the 1980s, Conway's downtown has been revitalized with shops and bistros. Highlighting the renovation of the downtown area …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Conway.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its C; Red Hill (C+) is closest.
| Town | SC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conway | #107 | C | B− | C− | A− | C+ |
| Red Hill | #86 | C+ | B− | — | A− | C |
| Homewood | #48 | B | B+ | — | A− | C+ |
| Carolina Forest | #81 | C+ | C | — | A− | B+ |
Red Hill, Homewood and Carolina Forest report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Conway with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Conway grades C overall, better than 27% of U.S. towns and #107 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades C+ for health, C− for safety and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Within South Carolina, it does better than 60% of towns.
That is 4.3 years of the area's median household income ($66,880 across the Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC metro 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−.
