Berea, South Carolina

Area Profile

16,862 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Berea, in Greenville County.

62out of 100
Area Score
Top 37% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 14 sources
OpportunityTop 22% of 4,199 cities measured71
Schools3,472nd of 4,162 cities measured23
GrowthTop 14% of 4,224 cities measured71
Housing affordability2,407th of 4,218 cities measured64
Climate2,196th of 4,225 cities measured70
Physical resilienceTop 44% of 4,226 cities measured64
AccessTop 31% of 4,226 cities measured97
Economic stability3,475th of 4,226 cities measured37
The quick read

Berea ranks in the top 22% of cities measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.5% and median household income of $49,829. The unemployment rate is published for Greenville County, SC, which contains Berea, rather than for Berea alone.

In the public schools here, 42% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 13.5 students for every teacher.

4,873 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 10% of the prior year — steady rather than turning. The permit count and 1 other measure here are published for Greenville County, SC, which contains Berea, rather than for Berea alone.

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

Population
16,862
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$49,829
Bottom 23% nationally
Density
2,190/sq mi
7.7 sq mi of land
Median age
36.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
South Carolina
Nearest major airport
GYH
10 mi · Donaldson Fld
Median home value
$204,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Greenville County, SC, which contains Berea, is 3.5%, lower than in 81% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Greenville County, SC, which contains Berea, grew 4.5% over the past year, to 294,430 employed residents.

Median household income of $49,829 is lower than in 77% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsGreenville County, SC’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$74,29853rd percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftGreenville County, SC’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$65,79036th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$4,5432024 ACS 5-Year$49,829Bottom 23%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$2,4602024 ACS 5-Year$25,163Bottom 21%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year22.3%Bottom 19%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.5 min2024 ACS 5-Year27.0 minBottom 49%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year21.3%Top 48%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±8%2024 ACS 5-Year72.4%34th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentGreenville County, SC’s figureJuly 2026294,430Top 26%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Greenville County, SC’s figureJuly 2026+7.3%Top 2%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Greenville County, SC’s figureJuly 2026+4.5%Top 1%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceGreenville County, SC’s figureJuly 2026305,09874th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year77.9%Bottom 49%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageGreenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$59,260Bottom 13%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageGreenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$46,580Bottom 12%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Greenville County, SC’s figureJuly 2026−0.7%Top 19%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateGreenville County, SC’s figureJuly 20263.5%Top 19%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year6.8%45th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202450k40k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $49,829 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

Largest occupations — Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers12,280$27,850
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand11,960$38,520
Retail Salespersons11,830$30,840
Cashiers10,250$29,080
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators9,860$40,840
Registered Nurses9,730$81,400

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.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Greenville County, SC, which contains this city.

42% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 41% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 13.5 students for every full-time teacher across 7 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
8
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
13.5
across 7 of them
Math proficiency
42.1%
Bottom 11% in South Carolina
Reading proficiency
40.6%
Bottom 8% in South Carolina
All 8 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Berea HighGreenville 011,25015.149%62%
Berea MiddleGreenville 0175713.322%27%
Lakeview MiddleGreenville 0172311.915%19%
Duncan Chapel ElementaryGreenville 0161915.555%46%
Monaview ElementaryGreenville 0159212.956%32%
Berea ElementaryGreenville 0148911.161%45%
Armstrong ElementaryGreenville 0143515.044%38%
Enoree Career CenterGreenville 010———

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 South Carolina’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 7% below the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 93.1, 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 Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area is up 56% over five years, and up 3.3% 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 $1,301 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.64% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,339, some 24% above the $1,076 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,339 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $53,600 a year, about 108% of the median household income here of $49,829.

The typical renter household here spends 34% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,076 a month.

A median home at $204,700 costs 3.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $64,862, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
93.1

Prices here run about 7% below the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC 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.

Rent as a share of income
33.9%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.2×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,339
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,076
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$204,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Berea’s median household income of $49,829, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area’s figure202393.1Top 19%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+3.3%52nd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+55.9%90th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+120.6%88th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year3.2Bottom 31%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year63.9%26th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4382024 ACS 5-Year6,85291st percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,221Top 38%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,612Top 23%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,339Top 31%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$702024 ACS 5-Year$1,076Bottom 41%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$9,2402024 ACS 5-Year$204,70054th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$802024 ACS 5-Year$1,30135th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$8,3922024 ACS 5-Year$64,862Bottom 30%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.05%2024 ACS 5-Year0.64%23rd percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year33.9%Bottom 23%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±402024 ACS 5-Year3076th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.4%56th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year6.8%49th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1852024 ACS 5-Year49790th percentileof 32,3302024 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.

Development Momentum

71/ 100
Top 14% of 4,224 published city profiles

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.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 4,873 units permitted over the past twelve months, only 18% are in buildings of five or more homes. The multifamily share is published for Greenville County, SC, which contains Berea, rather than for Berea alone.

Federal tax returns show Greenville County, which contains Berea, gained about 1.2% 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 $74,298, above the $65,790 of households that moved out.

At 8.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities. The permit rate is published for Greenville County, SC, which contains Berea, rather than for Berea alone.

Units permitted
4,873
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
8.9
Top 14% nationally
Year over year
−10%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
17.6%
units in 5+ unit buildings

People moving in and out

Net migration
+1.2%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
61%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$74,298
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$65,790
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Spartanburg County, SC 3,406 people · 11% of arrivals
  2. Anderson County, SC 2,010 people · 6.5% of arrivals
  3. Pickens County, SC 1,555 people · 5.0% of arrivals
  4. Laurens County, SC 948 people · 3.1% of arrivals
  5. Charleston County, SC 498 people · 1.6% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Spartanburg County, SC 5,295 people · 21% of departures
  2. Anderson County, SC 2,654 people · 10% of departures
  3. Pickens County, SC 1,994 people · 7.8% of departures
  4. Laurens County, SC 1,423 people · 5.6% of departures
  5. Mecklenburg County, NC 447 people · 1.7% 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 Greenville County, SC. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

The Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey lists only jurisdictions that issue their own permits, and Berea, SC is not one. This is the figure for Greenville County, SC, which contains this city.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 91°F and January a low of 35°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 47.0 inches.

Air quality measures a median index of 48, in the Good band, and no day in the year passed 100.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station GREENVILLE DWTN AP, 7.2 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND5.2"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year642024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals47.0"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals35°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals91°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year02024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year482024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals37°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
48
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
64
90th percentile index
Days above 100
0
unhealthy for sensitive groups

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

64 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and cold wave, with inland flooding alone responsible for 61% of it. Tornado is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

Ice stormElevated
LightningModerate
Cold waveModerate
Inland floodingModerate
EarthquakeElevated
HurricaneModerate
LandslideModerate
DroughtModerate

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

These are deaths, not offenses — they say nothing about burglary, theft or assault.

Greenville County records 4.7 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 13.8 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 18.8 per 100,000 residents in Greenville County.

Homicide
4.7
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
13.8
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
18.8
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
15.2
per 100,000 residents

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.

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 Berea (Greenville County) rather than Berea itself. They are shown and not scored. How to read 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.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. Either no municipal department reports for this place — many smaller communities are policed by the county — or its department did not report every month of the year. Either way there is no figure to show. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
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

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Donaldson Fld at 10 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year87.3%Bottom 39%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle10 miTop 26%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle3Bottom 20%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year10.3%Bottom 37%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Donaldson FldGYH10 mi8,000 ft
Asheville RgnlAVL39 mi8,002 ft
Charlotte/Douglas IntlCLT89 mi10,000 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
62
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Other cities in Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
GreenvilleGreenville County72,93571Greenville vs Berea
GreerGreenville County41,53675Greer vs Berea
AndersonAnderson County30,05168Anderson vs Berea
MauldinGreenville County27,05574
SimpsonvilleGreenville County26,14474
EasleyPickens County24,84165
TaylorsGreenville County24,50575
Wade HamptonGreenville County20,89875
Five ForksGreenville County18,65672
ClemsonPickens County18,07266
GanttGreenville County15,40165
ParkerGreenville County12,89863

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.

Compare

Put Berea side by side with a similar place.

Berea vs GanttBerea vs San Marcos

Moving to Berea from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
SafetyU.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
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA 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 Berea

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Berea with census figures of its own, largest first.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
2961726,582$55,403$234,50064