37303 — Athens, Tennessee

Area Profile

Income, jobs, climate, physical risk and development data for ZIP code 37303. Its median household income runs 15% above Athens as a whole, which is why this ZIP carries a profile of its own.

54out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 34% of 3,113 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 13 sources
Opportunity2,459th of 3,116 ZIP areas measured40
Schools2,499th of 3,047 ZIP areas measured25
GrowthTop 32% of 3,124 ZIP areas measured60
Housing affordabilityTop 8% of 3,112 ZIP areas measured83
ClimateTop 28% of 3,127 ZIP areas measured76
Physical resilience1,766th of 3,127 ZIP areas measured51
Access2,788th of 3,127 ZIP areas measured69
Economic stability2,620th of 3,127 ZIP areas measured31
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable ZIP areas measured: unemployment is 4.5% and the Opportunity signal places 37303 in the bottom 21%. The unemployment rate is published for Athens, TN, which contains 37303, rather than for 37303 alone.

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 68 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, up 58% on the prior year. The permit count and 1 other measure here are published for Athens, TN, which contains 37303, rather than for 37303 alone.

Housing is more affordable relative to local incomes than in most ZIP areas measured: rent takes 25% of renter income and the median home is 3.1 times what its owners earn.

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
25,688
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$62,078
Bottom 34% nationally
Density
172/sq mi
148.9 sq mi of land
Median age
42.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
City
Athens
Tennessee
Micro area
Nearest major airport
TYS
44 mi · Mc Ghee Tyson
Median home value
$232,100
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Athens, TN, which contains 37303, is 4.5% — higher than in all but 44% of the 3,127 measured US ZIP areas.

Employment across Athens, TN, which contains 37303, fell 1.0% over the past year, to 19,660 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsMcMinn County, TN’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$53,26616th percentileof 2,996filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftMcMinn County, TN’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$46,9455th percentileof 2,996filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$8,3442024 ACS 5-Year$62,078Bottom 34%of 31,0492024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$2,6592024 ACS 5-Year$33,280Bottom 38%of 32,8222024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year13.8%Bottom 34%of 32,8462024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year24.8 minTop 34%of 32,8872024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year21.7%Bottom 46%of 33,1932024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year83.7%79th percentileof 32,7982024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentAthens, TN’s figureJuly 202619,660Bottom 18%of 3,127July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Athens, TN’s figureJuly 2026−1.6%Bottom 31%of 3,127July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Athens, TN’s figureJuly 2026−1.0%Bottom 44%of 3,127July 2026
Labor forceAthens, TN’s figureJuly 202620,58018th percentileof 3,127July 2026
Labor force participation ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year69.5%Bottom 23%of 32,8832024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.2%2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 32,7982024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Athens, TN’s figureJuly 2026−0.4%Top 30%of 3,127July 2026
Unemployment rateAthens, TN’s figureJuly 20264.5%Bottom 44%of 3,127July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year5.1%25th percentileof 32,7982024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202462k49k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $62,078 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.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish labor-force data for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Athens, TN, the city containing this ZIP code.

28% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 36% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

Public schools
6
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
—
Math proficiency
28.3%
Bottom 16% in Tennessee
Reading proficiency
36.0%
Bottom 36% in Tennessee
All 6 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
McMinn High SchoolMcMinn County1,272—17%41%
Athens City PrimaryAthens657———
Athens City IntermediateAthens572———
Athens City Middle SchoolAthens519—47%39%
E K Baker ElementaryMcMinn County307—31%18%
Rogers Creek ElementaryMcMinn County277—42%27%

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

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Tennessee is up 58% over five years, and up 3.6% 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 $875 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.38% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $926, some 9% above the $849 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $926 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $37,000 a year, about 60% of the median household income here of $62,078.

The typical renter household here spends 25% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $849 a month.

A median home at $232,100 costs 3.1 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $73,989, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Rent as a share of income
24.8%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.1×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$926
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$849
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$232,100
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against 37303’s median household income of $62,078, 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
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Tennessee’s figure2026 Q2+3.6%61st percentileof 3,0712026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Tennessee’s figure2026 Q2+58.3%93rd percentileof 3,0712026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Tennessee’s figure2026 Q2+130.8%95th percentileof 3,0712026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year3.1Bottom 36%of 29,2752024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year70.9%31st percentileof 32,7502024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4042024 ACS 5-Year11,61887th percentileof 33,4602024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$845Top 12%of 3,031FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,151Top 2%of 3,031FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$926Top 4%of 3,031FY2026
Median gross rent ±$602024 ACS 5-Year$849Top 30%of 26,3962024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$13,9442024 ACS 5-Year$232,10053rd percentileof 30,8122024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$582024 ACS 5-Year$87515th percentileof 28,9352024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$7,3932024 ACS 5-Year$73,989Bottom 37%of 29,8022024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.03%2024 ACS 5-Year0.38%5th percentileof 24,0992024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year24.8%Top 31%of 26,2472024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±2092024 ACS 5-Year29890th percentileof 33,7722024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year2.6%63rd percentileof 32,9612024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year9.4%64th percentileof 32,7882024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3342024 ACS 5-Year1,39093rd percentileof 33,7722024 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.

Development Momentum

60/ 100
Top 32% of 3,124 published ZIP 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 68 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes. The multifamily share is published for Athens, TN, which contains 37303, rather than for 37303 alone.

At 4.7 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US ZIP areas. The permit rate is published for Athens, TN, which contains 37303, rather than for 37303 alone.

Units permitted
68
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
4.7
Top 34% nationally
Year over year
+58%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

People moving in and out

Net migration
+2.4%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
40%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$53,266
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$46,945
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Monroe County, TN 517 people · 15% of arrivals
  2. Bradley County, TN 423 people · 12% of arrivals
  3. Meigs County, TN 213 people · 6.1% of arrivals
  4. Knox County, TN 181 people · 5.2% of arrivals
  5. Hamilton County, TN 145 people · 4.1% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Monroe County, TN 380 people · 15% of departures
  2. Bradley County, TN 375 people · 15% of departures
  3. Meigs County, TN 185 people · 7.5% of departures
  4. Hamilton County, TN 133 people · 5.4% of departures
  5. Loudon County, TN 92 people · 3.7% 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 McMinn County, TN. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

The Building Permits Survey is not published for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Athens, TN, the city containing this ZIP code.

Weather & climate

7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 88°F and January a low of 28°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 60.4 inches, including 3.6 inches of snow.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station ATHENS, 3.3 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND5.9"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year542024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals60.4"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals3.6"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals28°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals88°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals71991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year02024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year322024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals40°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
32
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
54
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

51 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, earthquake and tornado, with inland flooding alone responsible for 46% of it. Tornado is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

EarthquakeElevated
LightningModerate
Inland floodingModerate
Winter weatherModerate

Low or minimal exposure: landslide, strong wind, tornado, cold wave, drought, hurricane, wildfire, ice storm, hail, heat wave, avalanche, coastal flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. ZIP values are the land-area-weighted mean of the counties the ZIP Code Tabulation Area intersects. Expected annual loss is not allocated below county level. 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.

Homicide
5.2
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Firearm deaths, all intents
26.9
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
44.9
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
35.9
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 37303 (McMinn County) rather than 37303 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. A ZIP area is not a jurisdiction, so no department reports for one. Athens carries the figure where its department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
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. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. 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 Mc Ghee Tyson at 44 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year89.4%Top 50%of 32,6632024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle44 miBottom 17%of 3,127NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle1Bottom 1%of 3,127NASR current cycle
No internet access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year9.2%Bottom 43%of 32,6632024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Mc Ghee TysonTYS44 mi10,000 ft
SmyrnaMQY112 mi8,038 ft
Asheville RgnlAVL118 mi8,002 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
54
Your Score
—

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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
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
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.

37303 vs Athens

How this ZIP area compares with Athens as a whole. Both figures come from the same ACS release, so the comparison is like for like — a gap here is a real difference between the two places, not two surveys disagreeing.

37303
Athens
Median household income: 37303 is the more favorable of the two.
Median household income
$62,078
vs
$53,929
Per capita income: 37303 is the more favorable of the two.
Per capita income
$33,280
vs
$31,458
Population density
172/sq mi
vs
930/sq mi
Median home value
$232,100
vs
$225,000
Median gross rent: Athens is the more favorable of the two.
Median gross rent
$849
vs
$846
Homeownership rate
70.9%
vs
59.9%
Bachelor's degree or higher: Athens is the more favorable of the two.
Bachelor's degree or higher
21.7%
vs
23.2%
Poverty rate: 37303 is the more favorable of the two.
Poverty rate
13.8%
vs
17.1%
Median age
42.7
vs
39.0

Some demographic statistics use Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, which approximate but do not exactly match USPS ZIP delivery geography. See the methodology for how AreaProfile maps between them.