Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Newberry gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $169K for a typical one, or 2.7 years of the Newberry area’s $62K median household income. It grades C− overall, ranked 126th of 167 in South Carolina. The low prices come with trade-offs. Its police reported 62 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 91% of U.S. towns, and the median household income is $51K, and 32% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, it has 17 miles of trail. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 92% of U.S. towns, with 26 places on the National Register. 32% of residents live below the poverty line in Newberry, where South Carolina’s towns sit at 17% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. Its National Register listings include Frederick Nance House and Newberry Historic District.
Where Newberry beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Its 26 National Register listings are more than in 94% of South Carolina towns with a listing.
Census counts: 509 in 1850, 10,691 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1852 and 2 maps from 1968 on.
Explore the history →Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Newberry is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Newberry, 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 Newberry.
Newberry has more trail for its size than nearly any town in South Carolina, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has homes that are cheap against local pay.
At 1.8 miles of trail per square mile, it ranks #3 of 80 South Carolina towns. Its A for the outdoors ranks #2 of 169 in South Carolina.
Newberry’s trail density is 1.8 miles per square mile. Lynch's Woods Park, at 234 acres with 14 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Newberry’s conserved land covers 6.8% of the town.
| Newberry | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.8 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.8% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lynch's Woods Park | 14 mi | 234 |
| 2. City Of Newberry Recreational Complex | 0.9 mi | 55 |
| 3. Greenway Park And Trail | 0.6 mi | 22 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Newberry 01 school district. Two of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Newberry High, with 837 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newberry MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 629 | D |
| Newberry HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 837 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SC on state tests and graduation
The violent crime rate in Newberry is 5.7 per 1,000 residents. Newberry reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 91% report less. The property crime rate in Newberry is 25.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Newberry | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.7 per 1,000 residents | 3.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 25.9 per 1,000 residents | 21.1 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 6,221 U.S. towns with household incomes like Newberry’s, it is less healthy than 65%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
Newberry beats the South Carolina average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 16. 27% of adults worry about having enough food in Newberry.
| Newberry | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 21% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 28% | 25% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 8.1% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 22% | 19% |
| What stands out | Newberry | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.3% | 8.6% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 13.5% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 2.7 years of the Newberry area’s $62K median household income, the typical home (about $169K) costs less against local pay than in 79% of South Carolina towns; that ratio is one input to its A− for cost of living. The typical value, about $169K, is 12% below its August 2022 peak.
50% of Newberry households own their home. The typical Newberry home is worth about $169,000, up 3.4% in a year, 45% below the South Carolina typical home.
| Newberry | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 50% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $831 a month | $1,062 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Newberry has mild winters and hot summers. July afternoons reach 92°, January nights drop to 33° and about 1 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Jobs based here fell from 6,973 in 2013 to 5,420.
About one in 5 of Newberry’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Newberry has lost 1,553 jobs, to 5,420 in 2023. The top destinations are Columbia (7%), Greenville (2%) and Prosperity (2%).
| Newberry | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 20% | 6.1% | 8% |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 52% of U.S. communities. Since 1982, 21 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Newberry.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Newberry
About 11 of every 100 Newberry residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
6.8% of the town is conserved land, across 13 parks and preserves.
26 places in Newberry on the National Register of Historic Places.
23 notable people were born in Newberry.
City in South Carolina, United States
Newberry is a city in Newberry County, South Carolina, United States, in the Piedmont 43 miles (69 kilometers) northwest of Columbia. The charter was adopted in 1894. As of the 2020 census, Newberry had a population of 10,691. It is the county seat of Newberry County; at one time it was called Newberry Courthouse. Newberry became a city in 1976, but did not report the change to the Census Bureau for more than twenty-five years. As a result, the city was listed as a town in the 2000 census. It is the home of Newberry College, a private liberal-arts college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Newberry.
Helena isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Newberry with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Newberry grades C− overall, better than 17% of U.S. towns and #126 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades C− for health, D for safety and B for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
Within South Carolina, it does better than 47% of towns.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
23 notable people were born here, including Tom Henderson and Henry McNeal Turner.
