Sandy Springs, Georgia
Area Profile
107,087 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Sandy Springs, in Fulton County.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 16 sourcesSandy Springs ranks in the top 3% of cities measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 2.4% and median household income of $104,340.
In the public schools here, 48% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 13.2 students for every teacher.
Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 1,195 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, against 68 the year before.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 2.4%, lower than in 99% of the 4,226 measured US cities.
Employment grew 0.9% over the past year, to 63,533 employed residents.
69% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 96% of measured US cities.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsFulton County, GA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $86,055 | 69th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftFulton County, GA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $93,787 | 80th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$4,4212024 ACS 5-Year | $104,340 | Top 16%of 29,223 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$3,3102024 ACS 5-Year | $83,136 | Top 4%of 31,420 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 8.1% | Top 39%of 31,773 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±0.9 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 27.2 min | Bottom 47%of 31,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 69.2% | Top 4%of 31,919 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 58.7% | 11th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 63,533 | Top 49%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | −0.4% | Bottom 46%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | +0.9% | Top 20%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 65,091 | 50th percentileof 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 86.8% | Top 18%of 31,513 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Mean annual wageAtlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $71,900 | Top 38%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Median annual wageAtlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $51,170 | Bottom 49%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Public transit to work ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year | 2.9% | 92nd percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | −0.2% | Top 44%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 2.4% | Top 1%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 31.9% | 96th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
Median household income, successive ACS releases
Largest occupations — Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
| Occupation | People employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Retail Salespersons | 84,970 | $32,850 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 80,730 | $27,780 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 78,460 | $39,020 |
| General and Operations Managers | 69,320 | $111,410 |
| Customer Service Representatives | 59,990 | $42,710 |
| Registered Nurses | 56,460 | $100,490 |
Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.
Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
48% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 51% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 13.2 students for every full-time teacher across 11 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverwood International Charter School | Fulton County | 1,737 | 16.1 | 46% | 52% |
| North Springs High School | Fulton County | 1,195 | 13.4 | 49% | 51% |
| Ridgeview Charter School | Fulton County | 945 | 12.3 | 38% | 45% |
| Woodland Elementary School | Fulton County | 851 | 13.5 | 61% | 62% |
| Sara Rawson Smith Elementary School | Atlanta Public Schools | 851 | 14.4 | 66% | 61% |
| Sandy Springs Middle School | Fulton County | 763 | 12.3 | 40% | 48% |
| High Point Elementary School | Fulton County | 684 | 13.7 | 52% | 50% |
| Dunwoody Springs Elementary School | Fulton County | 548 | 12.5 | 43% | 47% |
| Lake Forest Elementary | Fulton County | 534 | 10.9 | 37% | 29% |
| Ison Springs Elementary School | Fulton County | 433 | 11.1 | 28% | 32% |
| Spalding Drive Elementary | Fulton County | 344 | 10.8 | 72% | 72% |
59.6% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Georgia’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →Prices for everything a household buys run at about the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 100.5, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Division is up 43% over five years, and up 1.0% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $5,553 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.90% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $2,230, some 19% above the $1,870 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $2,230 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $89,200 a year, about 85% of the median household income here of $104,340.
The typical renter household here spends 28% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,870 a month.
A median home at $619,800 costs 3.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $158,494, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.
Prices here run at about the national average. Where places do differ, housing drives most of it — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.
Published for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.
The figures above are measured against Sandy Springs’s median household income of $104,340, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of living indexthe Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metro Area’s figure2023 | 100.5 | Top 44%of 3,700 | 2023 |
| Home price change (1 year)the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2 | +1.0% | 20th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2 | +42.7% | 50th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2 | +109.2% | 74th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year | 3.9 | Bottom 19%of 26,815 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 50.2% | 9th percentileof 31,717 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±1,1782024 ACS 5-Year | 55,203 | 99th percentileof 32,177 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $2,032 | Bottom 18%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $2,674 | Bottom 30%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $2,230 | Bottom 23%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$382024 ACS 5-Year | $1,870 | Bottom 10%of 23,120 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$31,3592024 ACS 5-Year | $619,800 | 93rd percentileof 29,111 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$3332024 ACS 5-Year | $5,553 | 92nd percentileof 26,440 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$5,8932024 ACS 5-Year | $158,494 | Top 5%of 27,548 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.07%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.90% | 45th percentileof 20,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 28.0% | Top 48%of 22,950 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±1572024 ACS 5-Year | 330 | 96th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.6% | 58th percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 5.8% | 44th percentileof 31,769 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±5962024 ACS 5-Year | 3,556 | 99th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has fallen 3% since 2020, to 105,505 in 2024.
93% of the 1,195 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses.
Federal tax returns show Fulton County, which contains Sandy Springs, lost about 0.5% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $86,055, below the $93,787 of households that moved out.
At 11.2 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- DeKalb County, GA 12,335 people · 16% of arrivals
- Cobb County, GA 7,154 people · 9.2% of arrivals
- Clayton County, GA 6,099 people · 7.9% of arrivals
- Gwinnett County, GA 5,477 people · 7.1% of arrivals
- Forsyth County, GA 2,058 people · 2.7% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- DeKalb County, GA 11,968 people · 15% of departures
- Cobb County, GA 8,582 people · 11% of departures
- Clayton County, GA 6,286 people · 7.7% of departures
- Gwinnett County, GA 5,960 people · 7.3% of departures
- Forsyth County, GA 4,368 people · 5.4% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Fulton County, GA. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 89°F and January a low of 33°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 51.4 inches.
Air quality measures a median index of 50, in the Good band, and about 4 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| 90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year | 67 | 2024 calendar year |
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 51.4" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 33°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 89°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 7 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year | 4 | 2024 calendar year |
| Median air quality index2024 calendar year | 50 | 2024 calendar year |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 37°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Air quality
A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and earthquake, with inland flooding alone responsible for 70% of it. Inland flooding is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Overall hazard risk is lower than 85% of measured US cities.
Low or minimal exposure: lightning, inland flooding, hail, strong wind, heat wave, ice storm, cold wave, hurricane, winter weather, wildfire, drought, coastal flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity, avalanche.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.
Sandy Springs's police department reported 114 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, near the middle of places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 1,263.
Fulton County records 13.7 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, higher than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.
Firearm deaths of all intents run at 19.1 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.
Drug overdose deaths run at 18.0 per 100,000 residents in Fulton County.
Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.
Offenses are reported to the FBI by Sandy Springs’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Sandy Springs (Fulton County) rather than Sandy Springs itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
1 major airport lies within 100 miles, the nearest Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta Intl at 21 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year | 94.8% | Top 26%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 21 mi | Bottom 43%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 1 | Bottom 1%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 2.9% | Top 24%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta Intl | ATL | 21 mi | 12,390 ft |
| Donaldson Fld | GYH | 127 mi | 8,000 ft |
| Mc Ghee Tyson | TYS | 132 mi | 10,000 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Where Sandy Springs ranks
Top-ten placements in AreaProfile’s standing rankings- #2Strong Opportunity With Lower Physical Risk of 40
- #2Highest Area Scores of 50
- #4Strongest US Job Markets of 50
Every ranking is a standing calculation over all published profiles, not an editorial selection. Each one states its cohort, its inputs and what it excludes.
Other cities in Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
Same metropolitan area, measured the same way| City | County | Population | Area Score | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Fulton County | 505,268 | 70 | Atlanta vs Sandy Springs |
| South Fulton | Fulton County | 110,471 | 64 | South Fulton vs Sandy Springs |
| Roswell | Fulton County | 92,621 | 77 | Roswell vs Sandy Springs |
| Johns Creek | Fulton County | 81,988 | 72 | |
| Mableton | Cobb County | 77,678 | 64 | |
| Alpharetta | Fulton County | 66,855 | 82 | |
| Marietta | Cobb County | 62,263 | 73 | |
| Stonecrest | DeKalb County | 60,501 | 58 | |
| Brookhaven | DeKalb County | 57,855 | 74 | |
| Smyrna | Cobb County | 56,633 | 73 | |
| Dunwoody | DeKalb County | 51,758 | 72 | |
| Newnan | Coweta County | 44,235 | 72 |
Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.
Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyCompare
Put Sandy Springs side by side with a similar place.
Moving to Sandy Springs from somewhere else?
You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.
Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Safety | Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency | 2025 calendar year |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Housing | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics | 2025 OEWS |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Safety | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics Provisional county-level mortality by intent | March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Climate | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System Daily Air Quality Index by county | 2024 calendar year |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.
ZIP codes in Sandy Springs
3 ZIP areasEvery ZIP area in Sandy Springs with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Sandy Springs closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.