Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Centralia earns a D−, 274th among Washington's 285 graded towns, mostly because of safety and incomes. Its crime rate is higher than 85% of U.S. towns, with 55 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. The median household income is $56K, and 20% of residents live below the poverty line. In its favor, it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 76% of U.S. towns. Only 33 of Washington’s 397 towns score lower on hazard risk. Centralia is home to Centralia College. Only 36 of Washington’s 397 towns score lower on health.
Where Centralia beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Joseph Borst House
Census counts: 2,026 in 1890, 18,183 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1857 and 3 maps from 1954 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far Centralia is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Centralia, 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 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Centralia.
Centralia is healthier than towns with similar incomes, has cooler summers than nearly all U.S. towns and fares better on crime within Washington than nationally.
698 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 48 properties have flooded more than once.
Centralia’s FEMA risk score is 96 of 100, above both Washington’s towns (69 of 100) and U.S. towns (44 of 100). Since 1986, 698 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Centralia.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Centralia School District. Two of its 9 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centralia Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 479 | – |
| Futurus High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 110 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
8.7 miles of trail in 10 parks and preserves. Centralia’s trail density is 1.1 miles per square mile, where Washington’s towns sit at 0.8 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Fort Borst Park, at 103 acres with 1.6 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Centralia | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.1 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.2% | 4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Seminary Hill Natural Area | 2.4 mi | 64 |
| 2. Fort Borst Park | 1.6 mi | 103 |
| 3. Armory Hills Open Space | — | 46 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 41.3 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 73% of Washington’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 735 to 521 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The property crime rate in Centralia is 24.2 per 1,000 residents. Centralia reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 85% report less. The violent crime rate in Centralia is 2.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Centralia | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 24.2 per 1,000 residents | 15 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The median property tax bill is $2,146, against $4,556 across Washington, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical Centralia home is worth about $387,000, about the same as a year ago, 34% below the Washington typical home. Centralia’s median rent is $1,084 a month.
| Centralia | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 60% | 71% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,084 a month | $1,740 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 7,793 U.S. towns with household incomes like Centralia’s, it is healthier than 57%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
Centralia beats the Washington average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 23. 67% of adults had a checkup this year in Centralia.
| Centralia | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 67% | 71% | 79% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 17% | 17% |
| What stands out | Centralia | WA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 14.2% | 9% |
| More adults with COPD | 7.7% | 5.1% |
| More smokers | 15% | 10.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
July afternoons average 78.2°, cooler than in 95% of U.S. towns; January nights average 34°.
Centralia has mild winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. About 4 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Centralia | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 78°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 34°F | 35°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Centralia has about as many jobs (7,432) as working residents, but only 1,350 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Centralia for work: only 16% work in town. Since 2013, Centralia has added 1,174 jobs, to 7,432 in 2023. 7.2% of Centralia workers work from home.
| Centralia | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $56,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 4.8% | 8% |
| Work from home | 7.2% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Centralia. Close and well known come first.
40 mi National ParkMount Rainier National Park1.6M visitors a year36 mi Zoo & aquariumNorthwest Trek Wildlife Parkin town GardenGeorge Washington Park
37 mi MuseumFort Steilacoom
19 mi AttractionGospodor Monument Park
4 mi MuseumBurlington Northern Railroad DepotMount Rainier National Park: Ricardo Martins from Gent, Belgium, CC BY 2.0 · Fort Steilacoom: Ben Cody, Public domain · Gospodor Monument Park: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Burlington Northern Railroad Depot: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain
1 within 15 miles of the center of Centralia
About 5 of every 100 Centralia residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Washington.
9 places in Centralia on the National Register of Historic Places.
16 notable people were born in Centralia.
City in Washington, United States
Centralia () is a city in Lewis County, Washington, United States. It is located along Interstate 5 near the midpoint between Seattle and Portland, Oregon. The city had a population of 18,183 at the 2020 census. Centralia is twinned with Chehalis, located to the south near the confluence of the Chehalis and Newaukum rivers.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Centralia.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Centralia | #274 | D− | C | C− | C− | C |
| Fords Prairie | — | — | C | — | C− | D |
| Chehalis | #264 | D | C− | D | C | B− |
Fords Prairie has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Fords Prairie reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Centralia with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Centralia grades D− overall, better than 3% of U.S. towns and #274 of 285 in Washington. It grades C for health, C− for safety and C− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 5.2 years of the area's median household income ($74,796 across the Centralia, WA area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
16 notable people were born here, including Merce Cunningham and Craig McCaw.
