City · Newton County, Georgia

Covington, Georgia

Covington is a city in Newton County, Georgia, part of the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA metro area. It has 14,584 residents. Covington, Georgia has a quality-of-life score of 4 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,027 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Georgia it ranks #309 of 386 cities and towns. It ranks best on child care cost burden (low), new business applications (high) and mental health care shortage (low). It ranks worst on public libraries (low), restaurants and bars (low) and loneliness (high).

4Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,027 of 15,651 cities and towns
Georgia: #309 of 386 in GA
Population: 14,584 (2020-2024)
Land area: 16 mi²
Density: 924.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 1320064

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety21#12,283/15,637
Economy25#11,781/15,631
Housing19#12,175/14,977
Health23#12,008/15,609
Healthcare15#13,324/15,650
Environment48#8,106/15,453
Education16#13,068/15,649
Infrastructure7#14,587/15,650
Community3#15,129/15,651
Leisure & amenities4#15,048/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Covington, Georgia ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Newton County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Child care cost burden · low19.5%
96/100Georgia 23.0%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNewton County value
New business applications · high23.8 /1k
95/100Georgia 22.5 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauNewton County value
Mental health care shortage · low0.0
91/100Georgia 9.6United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationNewton County value
Primary care shortage · low0.0
90/100Georgia 8.2United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationNewton County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Georgia 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNewton County value
Depression · low20.0%
83/100Georgia 19.3%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Weaknesses

Public libraries · low0.2 /10k
3/100Georgia 0.4 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesNewton County value
Restaurants and bars · low3.5 /10k
3/100Georgia 8.5 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsNewton County value
Loneliness · high40.3%
4/100Georgia 37.9%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Dentists · low21 /100k
5/100Georgia 54 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNewton County value
Math scores · low2.55
6/100Georgia 2.92United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNewton County value
Firearm deaths · high24.1 /100k
7/100Georgia 16.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataNewton County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Child poverty rateImproving
49.7% (2015-2019) → 28.6% (2020-2024)
−21 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
31.7% (2015-2019) → 41.9% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$39,845 (2015-2019) → $58,810 (2020-2024)
+48%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
18.3% (2015-2019) → 27.2% (2020-2024)
+8.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Poverty rateImproving
29.0% (2015-2019) → 20.4% (2020-2024)
−8.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
79.9% (2015-2019) → 88.4% (2020-2024)
+8.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Covington, Georgia improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 8 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved4

Child poverty−21 points49.7% → 28.6%
Bachelor's++8.9 points18.3% → 27.2%
Household income+48%$39,845 → $58,810
Broadband+8.5 points79.9% → 88.4%

Declined1

Rent / income+10 points31.7% → 41.9%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Covington, Georgia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	28.2 min2015-2019	36.5 min2020-2024	+8.3 min	Within the margin of error	4%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.3%2015-2019	27.2%2020-2024	+8.9 points	Improved	87%
Broadband subscriptions	79.9%2015-2019	88.4%2020-2024	+8.5 points	Improved	52%
Child poverty rate	49.7%2015-2019	28.6%2020-2024	−21 points	Improved	94%
Effective property tax rate	0.91%2015-2019	0.91%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	16%
High school diploma or higher	85.3%2015-2019	89.0%2020-2024	+3.7 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Home price to income ratio	4.3×2015-2019	5.1×2020-2024	+0.8×	Within the margin of error	30%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4942015-2019	0.4742020-2024	−0.020	Within the margin of error	68%
Median household income	$39,8452015-2019	$58,8102020-2024	+48%	Improved	82%
Poverty rate	29.0%2015-2019	20.4%2020-2024	−8.6 points	Within the margin of error	90%
Rent as share of income	31.7%2015-2019	41.9%2020-2024	+10 points	Declined	9%
Rent-burdened households	54.0%2015-2019	61.4%2020-2024	+7.4 points	Within the margin of error	30%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	17.0%2015-2019	13.5%2020-2024	−3.5 points	Within the margin of error	79%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Covington, Georgia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Covington, Georgia in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Covington, Georgia itself moved −3.6 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

14,584 residents (±30)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

5,662 households (±450)

Covington, Georgia
Georgia share

Under $25k19%1,079
$25k–50k27%1,549
$50k–75k10%†578

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

5,662 households (±450)

Covington, Georgia
Georgia share

Own49%2,749
Rent51%2,913

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

6,499 workers (±519)

Covington, Georgia
Georgia share

Drive alone72%4,660
Carpool6.6%†431
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Newton County, the county holding most of Covington's residents.

Newton County has 1,639 employer establishments, 136 for every 10,000 residents (0.55× the US rate of 248; 0.58× Georgia's), with 23,931 paid employees at an average annual pay of $50,033. The Census Bureau also counts 14,720 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,639; 14,720 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 136; US 248 · Georgia 236
Paid employees: 23,931
Average annual pay: $50,033; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Newton County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	161	13.4	0.86×About typical	1,293	$60,762	1,147
Ambulatory health care services	135	11.2	0.54×Fewer than typical	1,043	$68,225	711
Restaurants and other eating places	129	10.7	0.58×Fewer than typical	2,934	$18,142	65
Building equipment contractors	97	8.1	1.34×More than typical	902	$60,921	320
Truck transportation	83	6.9	1.36×More than typical	215	$47,488	655
Limited-service restaurants	80	6.7	0.83×About typical	1,829	$16,553	23
Religious organizations	62	5.2	0.93×About typical	338	$19,757	—
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	59	4.9	1.49×More than typical	409	$66,452	170
Lessors of real estate	57	4.7	0.38×Fewer than typical	114	$46,456	718
Construction of buildings	48	4	0.53×Fewer than typical	207	$70,686	430
Gasoline stations	48	4	1.23×About typical	195	$31,026	6
Offices of physicians	45	3.7	0.58×Fewer than typical	480	$82,135	46

Rank places for an industry Open Newton County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 120,268 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $28.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Covington, Georgia: $1.98 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $28.8K; −72% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1.98; US $1,994
Sole-source: 49%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Defense Logistics Agency$14.5K50%
National Aeronautics and Space Administration$14.1K49%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$2120.7%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

191.9KFY2017
302KFY2018
267.5KFY2019
237.6KFY2020
180.5KFY2021
96.9KFY2022
753.1KFY2023
55.5K

Top industries (NAICS)

Paint, coating, and adhesive manufacturing · 3255$14.5K50%
Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair and maintenance · 8113$14.1K49%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$2120.7%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Covington, Georgia, so they do not add up across cities.

Covington, Georgia's figures are part of those of Newton County, GA ($5.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.5% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Covington is mostly in Newton County.

See federal money in Newton County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Covington, Georgia is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Newton County26100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA57

Other cities and towns in Newton County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/1320064

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends