Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Strong in places, weak in others. Its strongest is walkability — it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 94% of U.S. towns. Add schools to its strengths: its public schools beat 85% of South Carolina towns on state tests and graduation. The trade-off is safety: its police reported 23 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 77% of U.S. towns. A typical home there costs about $357K, 5 years of the Greenville metro’s $71K median household income. Incomes are weaker too — the median household income is $55K, and 22% of residents live below the poverty line. All told, that adds up to a B+ overall, better than two thirds of U.S. towns. In the ranking it comes 30th of 167 in South Carolina.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · FBI crime data, 2025 · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow.
Where Travelers Rest beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Gateway Elementary | PK–5 | 659 |
| Furman University Child Development Center | PK–K | 26 |
| Travelers Rest High | 9–12 | 1,277 |
4,576 counted in 2010 and 7,788 in 2020; an estimated 9,135 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 17.4% since 2020, after 70.2% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Travelers Rest is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,973 in 1960, 7,788 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 3 maps from 1938 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Travelers Rest. Close and well known come first.
33 mi ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
30 mi Stadium & arenaMemorial Stadium, Clemson
34 mi National forestPisgah National Forest
8 mi Stadium & arenaBon Secours Wellness Arena
27 mi LakeLake Jocassee
27 mi LakeLake KeoweeBlue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Memorial Stadium, Clemson: Caseyh at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Pisgah National Forest: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Bon Secours Wellness Arena: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas, CC BY 2.0 · Lake Jocassee: Clemson3564, Public domain · Lake Keowee: Inundated_38Oc1.jpg: Matthew T. Bradley from Berkshire County, Mass., USA deriva, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Travelers Rest, 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 Travelers Rest.
Travelers Rest is shaped by its college students, draws workers from Greenville and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
The concentration of trails in Travelers Rest is 1.4 miles per square mile. In 4 parks and preserves, walkers have 8.9 miles of trail. Trailblazer Park, at 38 acres with 1.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Travelers Rest | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1.2% | 1.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Trailblazer Park | 1.8 mi | 38 |
| 2. Gateway Park | — | 16 |
| 3. Pointsett Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Two of the 3 schools are below, and why each made the list. The largest public high school is Travelers Rest High, with 1,277 students. The public schools here belong to the Greenville 01 school district.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gateway ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 659 | A− |
| Travelers Rest HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,277 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SC on state tests and graduation
5,637 jobs are based in Travelers Rest, 2.1 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
Jobs based in Travelers Rest grew to 5,637 in 2023, 1,271 more than in 2013. The top destinations are Greenville (24%), Wade Hampton (3%) and Greer (2%). For half of commuters, work is under 11 miles away.
| Travelers Rest | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 22% | 17% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $55,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 13% | 8.6% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 10% | 6.1% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 7,292 U.S. towns with household incomes like Travelers Rest’s, it is healthier than 99%, so its A− isn’t only a matter of income. Its widest gap with South Carolina is diabetes: 8.6% of its 6,427 adults have diabetes, against 13.9% statewide.
Among adults in Travelers Rest, 9% smoke cigarettes, below both the South Carolina town median (15%) and the median of U.S. towns (14%). In Travelers Rest, 27% of adults have obesity, and on top of that only 4 of the 169 South Carolina towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have diabetes than Travelers Rest. CDC measures, 32 in all: Travelers Rest beats South Carolina on 20 and trails on 3.
| Travelers Rest | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 40% | 35% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 37% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 15% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 38% | 36% |
| What stands out | Travelers Rest | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 8.6% | 13.9% |
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 2.6% | 3.9% |
| Fewer adults treating high blood pressure | 75.4% | 80.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Reported crimes fell from 300 to 154 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
In Travelers Rest, the rate of thefts and burglaries is 14.1 per 1,000 residents. Within South Carolina, it does better than 62% of towns.
| Travelers Rest | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.5 per 1,000 residents | 4.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 14.1 per 1,000 residents | 21.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 69% of U.S. communities. FEMA puts 60% of Travelers Rest’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 12% to tornadoes. One flood insurance claim has been paid locally since 2024.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
July afternoons average 87.9°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 99% of South Carolina places with climate records; January nights average 32.1°.
About 2 inches of snow falls in a winter. No town among the 169 in South Carolina we compare has a lower typical July afternoon high than Travelers Rest. For Travelers Rest, the January low is 32°F.
| Travelers Rest | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 32°F | 34°F | 22°F |
| July high | 88°F | 91°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
69.7% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 52.1% across South Carolina.
A typical home in Travelers Rest is worth about $357,000, up 1.5% in a year, 17% above the South Carolina typical home. Among households here, 60% own their home. Homes in Travelers Rest sold for 97.8% of their list price on average.
| Travelers Rest | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 60% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,033 a month | $1,062 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
5 within 15 miles of the center of Travelers Rest
College town 31 of every 100 Travelers Rest residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
City in South Carolina, United States
Travelers Rest is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. Its population was 7,788 at the 2020 census. The city is located 10 miles (16 km) north of Greenville and around 20 miles (32 km) south of the North Carolina border, and is part of Upstate South Carolina. Travelers Rest was founded by J.W. Donaldson, founder of a bloodstock cattle empire. Initially built as a reprieve for his oxen and coach herd, the family eventually did yoke and axle repair for settlers headed out on the Oregon Trail. Later, the Dry Goods Warehouse became the start to the Swamp Rabbit Trail. The campus of Furman University, a private liberal arts university, was annexed into the city limits of T…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Travelers Rest grades B+ overall, better than 67% of U.S. towns and #30 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades A− for health, C− for safety and A for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a C−.
Within South Carolina, it does better than 62% of towns.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
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