Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,263.
Plainview’s best subject grade is an A+ for cost of living; its weakest is a D− for walkability. Plainview's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 90% of U.S. towns. Nicholas Gibbs House and Booker Farm is on the National Register of Historic Places. Plainview has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Plainview beats most towns.
Where Plainview’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Plainview is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,866 in 2000, 2,060 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2016 and 4 maps from 1935 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Plainview, and how to reach them.
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 Plainview.
The share of adults in Plainview who report frequent mental distress: 22%. In Plainview, 31% of adults have been diagnosed with depression, where Tennessee’s towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 23%.
| Plainview | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 19% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 29% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 20% | 17% |
| What stands out | Plainview | TN |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 20.1% | 14.6% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.4% | 8.6% |
| More smokers | 22.6% | 17.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
In Plainview, 1.1% of working residents work locally, against 12% in Tennessee’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. The town’s average commute is 33 minutes. The top destinations are Knoxville (34%), Maynardville (6%) and Oak Ridge (5%). The median commute is under 18 miles.
| Plainview | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.1% | 12% | 8% |
| Median household income | $64,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 14% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 28° and about 3 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Plainview's reported crime rate is well below Tennessee's. Its rate of reported violence is 0.9 per 1,000 residents. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. Violent crime is rare: 2 reported in 2024.
| Plainview | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 3.1 | 1.7 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 6.8 per 1,000 residents | 13.2 | 11.5 |
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
For Plainview, the typical rent is $869 a month. Typical home values rose 3.7% in the year to September 2026. Three quarters of households are owner-occupiers here.
| Plainview | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 75% | 66% | 73% |
| Median rent | $869 a month | $947 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
47% of Plainview’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by tornadoes at 13%. On expected storm and flood damage, Plainview sits below 55% of U.S. communities. Since 2020, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out here.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Plainview. Close and well known come first.
Big draw30 mi Theme parkDollywood3.1M visitors a year
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaNeyland Stadium
Big draw31 mi National ParkGreat Smoky Mountains National Park11.5M visitors a year
17 mi LookoutSunsphere
29 mi MuseumAlcatraz East
18 mi Stadium & arenaThompson-Boling Arena at Food City CenterDollywood: Brian Stansberry (photographer), CC BY 2.5 · Neyland Stadium: Neomrbungle, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Scott Basford, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sunsphere: Ɱ, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Alcatraz East: EricaLewHouse, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center: TN 66, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Plainview; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Plainview residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Tennessee.
City in Tennessee, United States
Plainview is a city in Union County, Tennessee, United States. As of the 2020 census, Plainview had a population of 2,060. It is included in the Knoxville, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area. Plainview is located in the southern part of the county, south of Maynardville, the county seat.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Plainview.
Plainview and Luttrell have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Plainview and Luttrell report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Plainview with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
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+.
