Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Pacolet gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $163K for a typical one, or 2.5 years of the Spartanburg metro’s $64K median household income. It grades B− overall, 61st of 167 graded towns in South Carolina. The low prices come with trade-offs. Residents are less healthy than 76% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On the plus side, its public schools beat 80% of South Carolina towns on state tests and graduation. Pacolet's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 98% of U.S. towns. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 86% of U.S. towns. On history, just 22 of South Carolina’s 263 towns do better.
Where Pacolet beats most towns.
Pacolet Mill Office| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Pacolet Elementary | PK–5 | 429 |
Where Pacolet’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Pacolet is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for cost of living (better than 96% of comparable towns) to D for walkability (better than 14%), so the B− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 365 in 1900, 2,274 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and a map from 1983 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Pacolet, 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 Pacolet.
Pacolet pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has homes that are cheap against local pay.
At 2.5 years of the Spartanburg metro’s $64K median household income, the typical home (about $163K) costs less against local pay than in 82% of South Carolina towns; that ratio is one input to its A+ for cost of living.
Pacolet’s median rent is $902 a month, below both the South Carolina town median ($1,062 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). The typical Pacolet home is worth about $163,000, up 0.8% in a year, 47% below the South Carolina typical home.
| Pacolet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $902 a month | $1,062 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 65% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A− for schools comes with an A+ for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $163K.
Its public schools are run by the Spartanburg 03 school district. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pacolet ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 429 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SC on state tests and graduation
Against the 3,146 U.S. towns with household incomes like Pacolet’s, it is healthier than 73%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
41% of adults have high blood pressure in Pacolet, against 40% in South Carolina’s towns and 35% across U.S. towns. 15% of adults have diabetes in Pacolet. Pacolet beats the South Carolina average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4.
| Pacolet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 40% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 15% | 12% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 23% | 23% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 28% | 25% |
| What stands out | Pacolet | SC |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 8.9% | 7.5% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4.4% | 3.9% |
| More adults with arthritis | 31.3% | 28.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Pacolet has 166 jobs for its 1,013 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Pacolet for work: only 1% work in town. Pacolet’s median household income is $42,000. The top destinations are Spartanburg (18%), Greenville (4%) and Southern Shops (3%).
| Pacolet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $42,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.4% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 15% | 17% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 74% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Pacolet since 2003.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Spartanburg 3 Sse weather station, 9 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 206 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 92% of South Carolina places with climate records. January nights average 30.9°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 95% of South Carolina places with climate records; July afternoons average 90.2°.
Pacolet has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Only 5 of the 169 South Carolina towns we compare have a lower January low than Pacolet. The July high in Pacolet is 90°F.
| Pacolet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 31°F | 34°F | 22°F |
| July high | 90°F | 91°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Reported crimes fell from 54 to 34 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Only 8 of the 90 South Carolina towns we compare have a lower violent crime rate than Pacolet. Within South Carolina, it does better than 74% of towns.
| Pacolet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.1 per 1,000 residents | 4.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 11.7 per 1,000 residents | 21.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
1.0 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Pacolet River Heritage Preserve, at 257 acres.
| Pacolet | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.5% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pacolet River Heritage Preserve | 0.8 mi | 257 |
| 2. Pacolet Park | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Pacolet. Close and well known come first.
14 mi LandmarkPeachoid
15 mi National BattlefieldCowpens National Battlefield175K visitors a year
36 mi Stadium & arenaBon Secours Wellness Arena
25 mi National Military ParkKings Mountain National Military Park176K visitors a year36 mi Zoo & aquariumGreenville Zoo
36 mi MuseumGreenville County Museum of ArtPeachoid: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Cowpens National Battlefield: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Bon Secours Wellness Arena: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas, CC BY 2.0 · Kings Mountain National Military Park: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Greenville County Museum of Art: Ser Amantio di Nicolao, CC BY-SA 3.0
7 within 15 miles of the center of Pacolet
About 2 of every 100 Pacolet residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
4 places in Pacolet on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Pacolet.
Town in South Carolina, United States
Pacolet (pronounced /ˈpækʔlɪt/, PACK-lit) is a town in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,274 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Pacolet.
| Town | SC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pacolet | #61 | B− | A+ | C+ | A− | C− |
| Central Pacolet | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Central Pacolet isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Pacolet with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Pacolet grades B− overall, better than 50% of U.S. towns and #61 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades C− for health, C+ for safety and A− for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Within South Carolina, it does better than 74% 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+.
3 notable people were born here, including Ernie White and C. Bruce Littlejohn.
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