Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of contrasts. The weak point is health: CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 90% of the country. Blountville’s overall grade, C, puts it better than 29% of U.S. towns. It ranks 89th of 175 in Tennessee. Walkability is weaker too. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than three quarters of U.S. towns. Cost of living is where it shines: a typical home costs about $313K, 5.4 years of the Kingsport metro’s $58K median household income. This Tennessee town has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Old Deery Inn and Blountville Historic District.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES · National Register of Historic Places.
Where Blountville beats most towns.
Old Deery Inn
Census counts: 2,959 in 2000, 3,120 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 2009 and 4 maps from 1935 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Blountville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Blountville is unincorporated, so Sullivan 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 Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Blountville.
Blountville draws workers from Kingsport and beyond, looks healthier within Tennessee than nationally and has milder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of Tennessee.
2,708 jobs are based in Blountville, 2.2 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 18.7 minutes, against 25.7 across Tennessee.
Blountville’s middle household income is $55,000. Most working residents leave Blountville for work: only 7% work in town. Since 2013, Blountville has lost 579 jobs, to 2,708 in 2023. Also worth knowing: the mean commuting time for Blountville comes to 19 minutes, against 25 minutes in Tennessee’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns.
| Blountville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 8.3% | 14% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $55,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.5% | 12% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Within Tennessee it is less healthy than 66% of the 176 graded towns: much of Tennessee scores lower on these measures.
Blountville: 77% of adults had a checkup this year, below both Tennessee’s towns (78%) and U.S. towns (79%). The share of adults in Blountville who have been diagnosed with depression: 31%.
| Blountville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 19% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 29% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 20% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 24% | 19% |
| What stands out | Blountville | TN |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 21.9% | 17.3% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.4% | 8.6% |
| More adults in fair or poor health | 26% | 22.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
January nights average 26.9°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 92% of Tennessee places with climate records; July afternoons average 86.3°.
Among 177 Tennessee towns, just 9 have a lower January low than Blountville. The peak summer temperature for Blountville comes to 86°F.
| Blountville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 86°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 27°F | 29°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
FEMA expects less storm and flood damage in Blountville than in three fifths of U.S. communities. 78% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by strong winds at 6%.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Among households in Blountville, 80% live in a home they own. Zillow values the typical Blountville home at about $313,000, up 1.3% in a year, 5% below the Tennessee typical home. Homes sold in Blountville spent a median 83 days on the market.
| Blountville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 80% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,192 a month | $944 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Blountville. Close and well known come first.
39 mi Ancient siteUnited States Penitentiary14 mi Park & preserveGray Fossil Site
14 mi National forestCherokee National Forest35 mi Theme parkLand of Oz
23 mi TheatreBarter Theatre
38 mi Ski areaSugar Mountain Resort26 runs · 1,171 ft verticalUnited States Penitentiary: Nyttend, Public domain · Cherokee National Forest: Ryan Rice at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Barter Theatre: RebelAt (talk) (Uploads), Public domain · Sugar Mountain Resort: Mark Clifton, CC BY-SA 2.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Blountville
About 3 of every 100 Blountville residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Tennessee.
Where Blountville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
CDP in Tennessee, United States
Blountville is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Sullivan County, Tennessee. The population was 3,074 at the 2010 census and 3,120 at the 2020 census. It is the only Tennessee county seat not to be an incorporated city or town. Blountville is part of the Kingsport–Bristol–Bristol metropolitan area, which is a component of the Johnson City-Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA Combined Statistical Area, commonly known as the "Tri-Cities" region.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Blountville.
| Town | TN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blountville | #89 | C | B+ | — | C+ | D |
| Bristol | #112 | C− | B− | C− | B+ | C− |
Blountville reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Blountville with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Blountville grades C overall, better than 29% of U.S. towns and #89 of 175 in Tennessee. It grades D for health and C+ for schools. Health 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 B+.
