Scores by category

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

Safety53#7,415/15,637
Economy44#8,725/15,631
Housing70#4,501/14,977
Health42#9,063/15,609
Healthcare29#11,080/15,650
Environment97#391/15,453
Education70#4,726/15,649
Infrastructure70#4,728/15,650
Community99#185/15,651
Leisure & amenities96#615/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Highlands, North Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Macon 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

Access to exercise opportunities · high100.0%
100/100North Carolina 78.0%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMacon County value
Hot days · low0 days
100/100North Carolina 32 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMacon County value
Social associations · high16.4 /10k
94/100North Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMacon County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.38%
94/100North Carolina 0.66%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Grocery stores · high2.8 /10k
93/100North Carolina 1.8 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMacon County value
Rent-burdened households · low28.2%
93/100North Carolina 48.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070

Weaknesses

Home price to income ratio · high9.8×
3/100North Carolina 4.0×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Primary care shortage · high19.0
3/100North Carolina 9.9United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationMacon County value
Injury deaths · high144 /100k
5/100North Carolina 97 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMacon County value
Suicide rate · high26.0 /100k
7/100North Carolina 14.7 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionMacon County value
Average weekly wage · low$928
8/100North Carolina $1,376United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMacon County value
Hospital quality rating · low2.0
9/100North Carolina 3.3United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMacon County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
1,164 (2015-2019) → 1,074 (2020-2024)
−7.7%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
44.6% (2015-2019) → 28.2% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Average commute timeWorsening
9.1 min (2015-2019) → 14.6 min (2020-2024)
+60%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
46.5% (2015-2019) → 57.8% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
27.6% (2015-2019) → 18.2% (2020-2024)
−9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
83.9% (2015-2019) → 91.8% (2020-2024)
+7.9 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, Highlands, North Carolina improved on 3 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 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.

Improved3

Bachelor's++11 points46.5% → 57.8%
Rent burden−16 points44.6% → 28.2%
Household income+32%$54,226 → $71,509

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Highlands, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Bachelor's degree or higher	46.5%2015-2019	57.8%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	92%
Broadband subscriptions	83.9%2015-2019	91.8%2020-2024	+7.9 points	Within the margin of error	49%
Effective property tax rate	0.49%2015-2019	0.38%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	36%
High school diploma or higher	94.0%2015-2019	96.9%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Home price to income ratio	9.9×2015-2019	9.8×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	84%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4872015-2019	0.4772020-2024	−0.010	Within the margin of error	59%
Median household income	$54,2262015-2019	$71,5092020-2024	+32%	Improved	59%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	27.6%2015-2019	18.2%2020-2024	−9.4 points	Within the margin of error	93%
Rent-burdened households	44.6%2015-2019	28.2%2020-2024	−16 points	Improved	91%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	24.3%2015-2019	23.0%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%

“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 Highlands, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Highlands, North Carolina 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, Highlands, North Carolina itself moved +10 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

1,074 residents (±236)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Under 10 men (−3.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,074 residents (±236)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

White87%932
Black5.2%†56
Hispanic or Latino5.9%†63

Education

932 residents (±190)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

No high school diploma3.1%†29
High school or GED9.3%†87
Some college23%†

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

643 households (±154)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k19%†122
$25k–50k13%†86
$50k–75k23%†146
$75k–100k9.8%†63
$100k–150k12%†80
$150k–200k8.6%†55
$200k or more14%†91

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−11.7 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

643 households (±154)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own67%432
Rent33%†211

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

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

174 households (±121)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $75050%†87
$750–1,00024%†42
$1,000–1,5002.3%†

Home values

432 homes (±94)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $150k2.5%†11
$150k–250k1.6%†7
$250k–400k13%†56

Age of homes

2,454 homes (±242)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

2010 or later2.6%†63
2000–20098.8%†215
1980–199941%1,013

Size of homes

2,454 homes (±242)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Studio4.0%†97
1 bedroom3.9%†96
2 bedrooms32%792

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

447 workers (±148)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone44%†195
Carpool7.2%†32
Public transit0.0%0
Walk26%†114
Bike0.0%0
Work from home24%†106
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (−27.3 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

341 workers (±140)

Highlands, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under 15 min74%†252
15–29 min13%†46
30–44 min10.0%†

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Macon County, the county holding most of Highlands's residents.

Macon County has 1,282 employer establishments, 334 for every 10,000 residents (1.34× the US rate of 248; 1.40× North Carolina's), with 10,736 paid employees at an average annual pay of $43,269. The Census Bureau also counts 3,799 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,282; 3,799 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 334; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 10,736
Average annual pay: $43,269; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	140	36.4	2.35×More than typical	648	$47,142	452
Restaurants and other eating places	99	25.8	1.40×More than typical	1,493	$27,561	20
Construction of buildings	80	20.8	2.75×More than typical	328	$48,875	306
Ambulatory health care services	79	20.6	0.99×About typical	714	$47,557	116
Lessors of real estate	76	19.8	1.61×More than typical	129	$45,318	483
Building equipment contractors	57	14.8	2.46×More than typical	297	$50,300	76
Full-service restaurants	57	14.8	1.93×More than typical	803	$32,420	10
Religious organizations	49	12.7	2.30×More than typical	272	$24,688	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	45	11.7	1.74×More than typical	232	$40,457	396
Real estate agents and brokers	44	11.4	2.35×More than typical	59	$67,983	154
Clothing and accessories stores	39	10.1	2.80×More than typical	145	$42,324	37
Offices of physicians	36	9.4	1.45×More than typical	409	$45,861	19

Rank places for an industry Open Macon County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 38,433 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Highlands, North Carolina: $0 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,995
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

2.9KFY2017
0FY2018
1.1KFY2021

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 Highlands, North Carolina, so they do not add up across cities.

Highlands, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Macon County, NC and Jackson County, NC ($4M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Macon 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.

Highlands, North Carolina is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Chuck EdwardsR-NC-11 · 100% of residentsWith party 96%Missed 1.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

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

Other cities and towns in Macon County

Largest first.

Franklin574,268

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
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/3731360