Town · Allendale County, South Carolina

Fairfax, South Carolina

Fairfax is a town in Allendale County, South Carolina. It has 1,935 residents. Fairfax, South Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 4 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,984 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within South Carolina it ranks #246 of 268 cities and towns. It ranks best on suicide rate (low), students per teacher (low) and home price to income ratio (low). It ranks worst on reading scores (low), violent crime rate (high) and arts, entertainment and recreation (low).

4Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,984 of 15,651 cities and towns
South Carolina: #246 of 268 in SC
Population: 1,935 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 584.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 4524370

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 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.

Safety0#15,564/15,637
Economy6#14,755/15,631
Housing92#1,270/14,977
Health11#13,852/15,609
Healthcare22#12,217/15,650
Environment30#10,782/15,453
Education11#13,908/15,649
Infrastructure1#15,477/15,650
Community7#14,507/15,651
Leisure & amenities3#15,126/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Fairfax, South Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Allendale 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

Suicide rate · low0.0 /100k
100/100South Carolina 16.3 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAllendale County value
Students per teacher · low9.3×
99/100South Carolina 13.8×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsAllendale County value
Home price to income ratio · low1.5×
98/100South Carolina 3.7×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Public libraries · high2.7 /10k
95/100South Carolina 0.4 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesAllendale County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,724 /100k
93/100South Carolina 2,612 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAllendale County value
Comfortable days · high32.7%
89/100South Carolina 31.6%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationAllendale County value

Weaknesses

Reading scores · low1.94
0/100South Carolina 2.93United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAllendale County value
Violent crime rate · high969 /100k
1/100South Carolina 388 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationCovers part of the area: some reporting agencies or member counties have no figureAllendale County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · low0.0 /10k
1/100South Carolina 5.1 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsAllendale County value
Primary care shortage · high21.0
1/100South Carolina 9.3United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationAllendale County value
Pharmacies · low0.0 /10k
1/100South Carolina 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsAllendale County value
Homicide rate · high18.1 /100k
2/100South Carolina 8.4 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataAllendale County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,175 (2015-2019) → 1,935 (2020-2024)
−11%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateImproving
38.9% (2015-2019) → 23.4% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
63.8% (2015-2019) → 75.6% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Unemployment rateImproving
13.4% (2015-2019) → 6.1% (2020-2024)
−7.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
40.3% (2015-2019) → 34.0% (2020-2024)
−6.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Average commute timeWorsening
32.0 min (2015-2019) → 41.2 min (2020-2024)
+29%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

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, Fairfax, South Carolina improved on 0 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 12 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Fairfax, South Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	32.0 min2015-2019	41.2 min2020-2024	+9.3 min	Within the margin of error	3%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.2%2015-2019	9.7%2020-2024	−3.5 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Broadband subscriptions	63.8%2015-2019	75.6%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Effective property tax rate	0.68%2015-2019	0.51%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	52%
High school diploma or higher	83.8%2015-2019	79.5%2020-2024	−4.2 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Home price to income ratio	1.7×2015-2019	1.5×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	85%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5172015-2019	0.4592020-2024	−0.058	Within the margin of error	87%
Median household income	$31,8382015-2019	$40,6492020-2024	+28%	Within the margin of error	50%
Poverty rate	23.8%2015-2019	26.8%2020-2024	+3 points	Within the margin of error	20%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	40.3%2015-2019	34.0%2020-2024	−6.3 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	15.2%2015-2019	19.0%2020-2024	+3.8 points	Within the margin of error	15%

“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 Fairfax, South Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Fairfax, South 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, Fairfax, South Carolina itself moved −0.2 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

1,935 residents (±344)

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

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 B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,935 residents (±344)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

White21%†408
Black76%1,471
Hispanic or Latino1.3%†25

Education

1,369 residents (±272)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

No high school diploma20%†280
High school or GED52%707
Some college13%†179

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

895 households (±180)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $25k35%†312
$25k–50k25%†226
$50k–75k26%†234
$75k–100k6.9%†62
$100k–150k4.4%†39
$150k–200k0.0%0
$200k or more2.5%†22

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $50k–75k (+17.1 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

895 households (±180)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Own51%455
Rent49%440

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

Table view

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

Rent paid

385 households (±123)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $75064%†245
$750–1,00024%†92
$1,000–1,50012%†

Home values

455 homes (±132)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $150k91%†413
$150k–250k1.1%†5
$250k–400k8.1%†

Age of homes

1,000 homes (±180)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

2010 or later2.6%†26
2000–20097.2%†72
1980–199939%†

Size of homes

1,000 homes (±180)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Studio0.8%†8
1 bedroom9.2%†92
2 bedrooms21%†205

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

812 workers (±218)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Drive alone84%683
Carpool10%†85
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home3.2%†26
Other2.2%†18

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 B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

786 workers (±213)

Fairfax, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under 15 min26%†204
15–29 min28%†220
30–44 min7.8%†61

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 Allendale County, the county holding most of Fairfax's residents.

Allendale County has 125 employer establishments, 165 for every 10,000 residents (0.66× the US rate of 248; 0.72× South Carolina's), with 1,480 paid employees at an average annual pay of $55,193. The Census Bureau also counts 564 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 125; 564 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 165; US 248 · South Carolina 228
Paid employees: 1,480
Average annual pay: $55,193; US $68,342

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

Gasoline stations	9	11.9	3.66×Too few to compare	35	$19,829	—
Restaurants and other eating places	9	11.9	0.65×Too few to compare	58	$12,897	4
Ambulatory health care services	6	7.9	0.38×Too few to compare	105	$41,352	39
General merchandise stores	5	6.6	3.73×Too few to compare	30	$20,300	—
Limited-service restaurants	5	6.6	0.82×Too few to compare	41	$13,439	—
Truck transportation	5	6.6	1.30×Too few to compare	29	$60,517	29
Banks and credit unions	4	5.3	1.63×Too few to compare	20	$49,050	—
Full-service restaurants	4	5.3	0.69×Too few to compare	17	$11,588	—
Building material and supplies dealers (hardware, home centers)	3	4	2.40×Too few to compare	8	$37,500	—
Child day care services	3	4	1.62×Too few to compare	21	$24,333	17
Individual and family services	3	4	1.41×Too few to compare	9	$33,556	4
Legal services	3	4	0.74×Too few to compare	22	$83,955	—

Rank places for an industry Open Allendale County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 7,588 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Allendale 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.

Fairfax, South Carolina is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

James E. ClyburnD-SC-6 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 1.3%

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.

Allendale County4100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Allendale 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/4524370