Valley FallsSC
Home to University of South Carolina-Upstate. Settled in 1858, this town now has 8,239 residents.
What should you know before moving to Valley Falls?
Valley Falls’s best grade is for schools: its schools rank ahead of 95% of South Carolina towns. Homes run about $257K for a typical one, 4 times the Spartanburg metro’s $64K median household income. Overall, that makes a B, better than 62% of U.S. towns. The ranking puts it 36th of 167 in South Carolina. The town is home to University of South Carolina-Upstate. Valley Falls’ median age is 27 years, below both South Carolina’s towns (38.9 years) and U.S. towns (40.5 years). Elsewhere it is close to typical: B− for health, C+ for incomes, B− for walkability and C+ for hazard risk.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES · FEMA National Risk Index.
What makes Valley Falls stand out
Where Valley Falls beats most towns.
Valley Falls has grown 27% from 2010 to 2020
6,299 counted in 2010 and 8,012 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Valley Falls grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Carolina), ordered by how far Valley Falls is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Valley Falls: who provides what
Valley Falls is unincorporated, so Spartanburg 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Valley Falls.
Valley Falls is shaped by its college students, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has a longer frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of South Carolina.
Low risk in Valley Falls, with inland flooding at the top
Valley Falls’ risk rating from FEMA comes in at 22 of 100. It has had one paid flood insurance claim since 2024. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 59% come from inland flooding and 9% from cold waves.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Valley Falls has mild winters and hot summers
The Spartanburg 3 Sse weather station, 8 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. July afternoons average 89.5°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 87% of South Carolina places with climate records; January nights average 31.3°.
The January low in Valley Falls is 31°F. Snowfall is close to zero.
| Valley Falls | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 31°F | 34°F | 22°F |
| July high | 90°F | 91°F | 85°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
With 1.4 jobs for every working resident, Valley Falls draws in 4,535 commuters
Jobs based here grew from 2,923 in 2013 to 4,632.
Most people who work leave Valley Falls to do it: just 3% work in town. Employers in Valley Falls added 1,709 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 4,632. The share of residents in Valley Falls who live below the poverty line: 22%. The top destinations are Spartanburg (16%), Greenville (6%) and Boiling Springs (4%).
| Valley Falls | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 22% | 17% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $56,000 | $57,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3% | 6.3% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Valley Falls ranks healthier than 53% of the country’s towns
Against the 7,628 U.S. towns with household incomes like Valley Falls’s, it is healthier than 84%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
38% of Valley Falls adults sleep under 7 hours. Against the South Carolina average, Valley Falls comes out ahead on 9 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 11. Two figures for adults here: 20% report frequent mental distress, 32% have high blood pressure.
| Valley Falls | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 33% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 17% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 40% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 15% | 12% |
| What stands out | Valley Falls | SC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.9% | 8.6% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 4.7% | 6.8% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 11.5% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Homes in Valley Falls sell for about $315K
51% of households are owner-occupiers in Valley Falls. A home in Valley Falls typically sold within 62 days of listing. For Valley Falls, the rent at the middle of the market is $1,021 a month.
| Valley Falls | South Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 51% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,021 a month | $1,062 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
0% of Valley Falls is conserved land
Just 0 of its 3,324 acres are conserved, so there is little public open land in Valley Falls itself; its outdoors grade is D.
Across 2 parks and preserves: 0.8 miles of trail. The density of trails for Valley Falls comes to 0.2 miles per square mile. Parks and preserves here: 2, covering 14 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Susan Jacobs Arboretum | 0.7 mi | 8 |
| 2. Rotary International Peace Park | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Peachoid and 17 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Valley Falls. Close and well known come first.
17 mi LandmarkPeachoid
26 mi Stadium & arenaBon Secours Wellness Arena
12 mi National BattlefieldCowpens National Battlefield175K visitors a year
34 mi State parkChimney Rock State Park
32 mi National Historic SiteCarl Sandburg Home National Historic Site95K visitors a year
38 mi Park & preserveDuPont State ForestPhoto credits
Peachoid: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Bon Secours Wellness Arena: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas, CC BY 2.0 · Cowpens National Battlefield: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Chimney Rock State Park: Jmturner, Public domain · Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site: Victoria Stauffenberg, Public domain · DuPont State Forest: Ccalvin, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Everything we know about Valley Falls
Colleges nearby
6 within 15 miles of the center of Valley Falls
College town 24 of every 100 Valley Falls residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across South Carolina.
24% of Valley Falls is in college
- Admission
- 67%
- Net price
- $13,557
- Graduate
- 43%
About Valley Falls
CDP in South Carolina, United States
Valley Falls is a census-designated place (CDP) in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 6,299 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 5.2 sq mi
- Elevation
- 810 ft
Valley Falls’s neighbors
3 towns share a border with Valley Falls.
| Town | SC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valley Falls | #36 | B | C+ | — | A+ | B− |
| Boiling Springs | #26 | B+ | C+ | — | A+ | B+ |
| Southern Shops | #111 | C− | B | — | A− | D− |
| Whitney | #92 | C | B | — | B | C− |
Valley Falls, Boiling Springs, Southern Shops and Whitney report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Valley Falls with a neighbor →
Questions about Valley Falls
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Valley Falls, SC a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. Valley Falls grades B overall, better than 62% of U.S. towns and #36 of 167 in South Carolina. It grades B− for health and A+ for schools.
Is Valley Falls, SC expensive?
The typical home is worth about $257,000, 16% below the South Carolina typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.