Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Union grades D− overall, 151st among South Carolina's 167 graded towns, mostly because of safety and health. Its police reported 93 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 99% of U.S. towns. Residents are less healthy than 98% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. What it does well: a typical home costs about $139K, 2.2 years of the Spartanburg metro’s $64K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 97% of U.S. towns, with 20 places on the National Register. Union’s violent crime rate is 11.7 per 1,000 residents, where South Carolina’s towns sit at 3.9 and U.S. towns at 1.6. Only 19 of South Carolina’s 263 towns score higher on hazard risk. Its National Register listings include Union County Jail and Meng House.
Where Union beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Herndon Terrace
Census counts: 554 in 1850, 8,174 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1894 and 2 maps from 1971 on.
20 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Union is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Union, 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 Union.
Union trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it reports violent crime at 3 times the South Carolina rate.
Violent crime runs at 11.7 per 1,000 residents, 3 times the South Carolina rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D−. At 111.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 83% of South Carolina’s graded towns.
The property crime rate in Union is 60.4 per 1,000 residents. Union reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 99% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Union 01 school district. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Union County High, with 1,024 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foster Park ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 430 | C− |
| Union County HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,024 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SC on state tests and graduation
Against the 777 U.S. towns with household incomes like Union’s, it is less healthy than 76%, so its D− isn’t only a matter of income.
48% of Union adults have obesity. Only 6 of the 169 South Carolina towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Union. 22% of Union adults have diabetes.
| Union | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 22% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 15% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 51% | 40% | 35% |
| What stands out | Union | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 12.2% | 15.7% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 82.8% | 80.2% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 18% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Homes are within reach (about $139K for the typical one, A− for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 26 miles. At 2.2 years of the Spartanburg metro’s $64K median household income, the typical home (about $139K) costs less against local pay than in 89% of South Carolina towns; that ratio is one input to its A− for cost of living.
50% of households own their home in Union. Typical home values rose 5.7% in the year to September 2026. Union’s median rent is $832 a month.
| Union | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 50% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $832 a month | $1,062 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 79% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 31.2°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 90% of South Carolina places with climate records; July afternoons average 90.9°.
Union has mild winters and warm summers. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Union | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 91°F | 91°F | 85°F |
| January low | 31°F | 34°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Union has about as many jobs (3,150) as working residents, but only 547 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Union for work: only 16% work in town. Among 168 South Carolina towns, just 7 have a lower median household income than Union. Since 2013, Union has lost 175 jobs, to 3,150 in 2023.
| Union | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 29% | 17% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $32,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 6.1% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
0.6 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Foster Park, at 32 acres.
| Union | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1% | 1.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Foster Park | 0.5 mi | 32 |
| 2. City Park | — | 7 |
| 3. Patron's Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Union
About 3 of every 100 Union residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
20 places in Union on the National Register of Historic Places.
26 notable people were born in Union.
City in South Carolina, United States
The city of Union is the county seat of Union County, South Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, Union had a population of 8,174. It is the principal city of the Union Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Union County and which is further included in the greater Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, South Carolina Combined Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Union.
| Town | SC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union | #151 | D− | A− | D− | C− | D− |
| Monarch Mill | — | — | A+ | — | C− | D |
Monarch Mill has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Monarch Mill reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Union with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Union grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns and #151 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades D− for health, D− for safety and C− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
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−.
26 notable people were born here, including Clifford Ray and Mona Lisa.
