Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Strong in places, weak in others. Its lowest grade is for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $400K, 5.8 years of the Murrells Inlet area’s $69K median household income. The town’s overall grade, C+, puts it better than 38% of U.S. towns. That places it 79th of 167 in South Carolina. Hazard risk is weaker too (D−): FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 97% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Health is its strong suit: CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 79% of the country. It is strong on incomes as well (B+) — the median household earns $77K. This South Carolina town has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Murrells Inlet Historic District and Parrish's Motor Court.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · FEMA National Risk Index · National Register of Historic Places.
Where Murrells Inlet beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| Widest gap | Murrells Inlet | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.1% | 17.4% |
Parrish's Motor Court7,547 counted in 2010 and 9,740 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Murrells Inlet is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 5,519 in 2000, 9,740 in 2020. The archive holds 22 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1943 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Murrells Inlet is unincorporated, so Georgetown 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 Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Murrells Inlet.
Murrells Inlet is a second-home town and has hotter summers than most of the country, though not than most of South Carolina; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of South Carolina (mostly hurricanes).
Murrells Inlet’s trail network density stands at 1.0 miles per square mile, against 0.3 in South Carolina’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. Across 3 parks and preserves: 7.1 miles of trail. The biggest park or preserve is Huntington Beach State Park, at 31 acres.
| Murrells Inlet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.2% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Huntington Beach State Park | — | 31 |
| 2. Wachesaw Park | — | 11 |
| 3. Morse Landing Park | 0.1 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of South Carolina towns, with expected losses of about $521 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
Households in Murrells Inlet have drawn federal disaster aid in 5 declared disasters, most recently in 2022. Expected losses in Murrells Inlet break down as 81% from hurricanes and 10% from inland flooding. 3 flood insurance claims have been paid here since 2015.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Murrells Inlet: just over one in ten adults report frequent mental distress. In Murrells Inlet, 16% of adults say their health is fair or poor, below both South Carolina’s towns (23%) and U.S. towns (19%). Also worth knowing: only 6 of the 169 South Carolina towns we compare have a lower share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Murrells Inlet.
| Murrells Inlet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 18% | 17% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 33% | 33% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 38% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 37% | 35% |
| What stands out | Murrells Inlet | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.1% | 17.4% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 4.3% | 8.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 13.8% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
79.9% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 52.1% across South Carolina.
A typical home in Murrells Inlet is worth about $400,000, up 0.7% in a year, 31% above the South Carolina typical home. Its median rent comes in at $1,751 a month. Among households here, 86% are owner-occupiers.
| Murrells Inlet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,751 a month | $1,058 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 86% | 65% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
July afternoons average 88.9°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 94% of South Carolina places with climate records; January nights average 36.7°.
Murrells Inlet’s January low stands at 37°F.
| Murrells Inlet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 37°F | 34°F | 22°F |
| July high | 89°F | 91°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Jobs based here grew from 2,425 in 2013 to 4,771.
Only 13% of working residents stay in Murrells Inlet for work; the rest commute out. For residents here, the share who live below the poverty line is 7.3%. Since 2013, Murrells Inlet has added 2,346 jobs, to 4,771 in 2023. The top destinations are Myrtle Beach (10%), Conway (6%) and Litchfield Beach (5%).
| Murrells Inlet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 7.3% | 17% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 15% | 8.6% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 13% | 6.1% | 8% |
| Median household income | $77,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Murrells Inlet. Close and well known come first.
4 mi MuseumBrookgreen Gardens
13 mi BeachGrand Strand
13 mi Theme parkFamily Kingdom Amusement Park
3 mi MuseumHuntington Beach State Park
19 mi MuseumUnited States Post Office
20 mi MuseumBurroughs SchoolBrookgreen Gardens: Hisland7, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Grand Strand: Phil Guest from Bournemouth, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0 · 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
None within 15 miles of Murrells Inlet; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Murrells Inlet residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
Census-designated place in South Carolina, United States
Murrells Inlet is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Georgetown County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 7,547 at the 2010 census. It is about 13 miles south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and 21 miles north of Georgetown, the county seat. The community was once primarily a fishing village. It has developed in modern times, along with the rest of the Grand Strand, as a tourist and retirement location. It is known for the Murrells Inlet Marshwalk, a 1⁄2-mile-long (0.8 km) boardwalk overlooking a salt marsh.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Murrells Inlet.
| Town | SC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murrells Inlet | #79 | C+ | C− | — | C+ | A− |
| Garden City | #105 | C | C+ | — | A− | C+ |
Murrells Inlet and Garden City report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Murrells Inlet with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Murrells Inlet grades C+ overall, better than 38% of U.S. towns and #79 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades A− for health and C+ for schools. Hazard risk 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 C−.
