AreaProfile

Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC

Metro Area Profile

624,181 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC metropolitan area.

73
Area Score
Top 23% of 99 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
OpportunityTop 32% of 99 published metros70
GrowthTop 33% of 99 published metros60
Housing affordabilityTop 24% of 99 published metros94
ClimateTop 47% of 99 published metros71
Physical resilienceTop 36% of 99 published metros66
AccessTop 34% of 99 published metros97
Economic stability87th of 99 published metros42
The quick read

Residential permitting has slowed: 3,681 units authorized over the past twelve months, 19% below the prior year.

A major airport is 6 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

Its Area Score of 73 places Augusta-Richmond County in the top 23% of published metro profiles.

At a glance

Population
624,181
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$69,344
Top 43% nationally
Density
179/sq mi
3480.7 sq mi of land
Median age
38.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC
Nearest major airport
AGS
6 mi · Augusta Rgnl At Bush Fld
Median home value
$226,100
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.2% is lower than 50% of the 99 measured US metros.

Employment grew 2.3% over the past year, to 269,977 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$1,537$69,344Top 43%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$582$36,794Top 43%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate14.9%Top 40%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute25.8 minTop 32%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher29.5%Top 35%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment269,977Bottom 19%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)4.0%Top 8%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)2.3%Top 1%June 2026
Labor force281,688Bottom 18%June 2026
Labor force participation60.8%Top 47%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$60,020Bottom 21%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$45,990Bottom 11%2025 OEWS
Metro employment231,930Bottom 17%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-0.1%Bottom 46%June 2026
Unemployment rate4.2%Top 50%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/064.83.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.2% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers8,710$26,620
Retail Salespersons6,930$29,350
Registered Nurses6,880$87,760
Cashiers6,040$28,310
General and Operations Managers4,230$102,360
Home Health and Personal Care Aides3,920$28,730

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.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,120 takes 19% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 3.3 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
19.4%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.3×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,120
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$226,100
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income3.26Top 48%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate68.0%Bottom 38%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±216271,673Top 10%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$17$1,120Top 29%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$2,868$226,100Top 44%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income19.4%Top 35%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate14.7%Top 30%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
60/ 100
Top 33% of 99 published city profiles
Permitting is decreasing, measured from 2024 to 2025.

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 grown 4% since 2020, reaching 636,760 in 2024.

Population is still rising, but more slowly than in the preceding year.

New construction is predominantly single-family: only 1% of permitted units are in buildings of five or more homes.

At 6.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
3,681
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
6.0
Top 32% nationally
Year over year
−19%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
1.2%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
20202021202220232024637k612k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 94°F and January a low of 40°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 44.8 inches.

30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station AUGUSTA DANIEL FLD AP, 3.2 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND5.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation44.8"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low40°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high94°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing35°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

66 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are hurricane, earthquake and ice storm.

Ice stormModerate
EarthquakeElevated
HurricaneElevated
LightningModerate
LandslideModerate

Low or minimal exposure: tornado, heat wave, inland flooding, strong wind, hail, wildfire, cold wave, winter weather, drought.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 6 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Augusta Rgnl At Bush FldAGS6 mi8,001 ft
Columbia MetroCAE60 mi8,601 ft
Donaldson FldGYH92 mi8,000 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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Area Score
73
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 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 browse every source.