Town · Orangeburg County, South Carolina

Santee, South Carolina

Santee is a town in Orangeburg County, South Carolina, part of the Orangeburg, SC metro area. It has 1,076 residents. Santee, South Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 5 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,940 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within South Carolina it ranks #243 of 268 cities and towns. It ranks best on drinking water violations (low), comfortable days (high) and pharmacies (high). It ranks worst on homicide rate (high), violent crime rate (high) and distance to an emergency room (high).

5Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,940 of 15,651 cities and towns
South Carolina: #243 of 268 in SC
Population: 1,076 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 455.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 4563790

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 71 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#15,610/15,637
Economy20#12,560/15,631
Housing30#10,551/14,977
Health5#14,860/15,609
Healthcare8#14,423/15,650
Environment53#7,303/15,453
Education18#12,763/15,649
Infrastructure11#13,912/15,650
Community28#11,340/15,651
Leisure & amenities19#12,628/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Drinking water violations · low0
86/100South Carolina 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOrangeburg County value
Comfortable days · high31.7%
85/100South Carolina 31.6%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationOrangeburg County value
Pharmacies · high2.3 /10k
84/100South Carolina 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsOrangeburg County value
Social associations · high13.0 /10k
82/100South Carolina 11.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOrangeburg County value
Unemployment rate · low2.2%
80/100South Carolina 4.5%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
New business applications · high16.7 /1k
76/100South Carolina 16.9 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauOrangeburg County value

Weaknesses

Homicide rate · high22.9 /100k
1/100South Carolina 8.4 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOrangeburg County value
Violent crime rate · high995 /100k
1/100South Carolina 388 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationOrangeburg County value
Distance to an emergency room · high31.3 mi
1/100South Carolina 7.5 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesOrangeburg County value
Traffic deaths · high51.6 /100k
1/100South Carolina 20.5 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataOrangeburg County value
Firearm deaths · high33.8 /100k
1/100South Carolina 18.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOrangeburg County value
Reading scores · low2.41
1/100South Carolina 2.93United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOrangeburg County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,000 (2015-2019) → 1,076 (2020-2024)
+7.6%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
52.5% (2015-2019) → 82.7% (2020-2024)
+30 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
15.4% (2015-2019) → 31.1% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$28,625 (2015-2019) → $46,667 (2020-2024)
+63%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Child poverty rateImproving
59.2% (2015-2019) → 47.0% (2020-2024)
−12 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
58.2% (2015-2019) → 49.6% (2020-2024)
−8.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%

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, Santee, South Carolina improved on 2 of 7 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 5 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.

Improved2

Broadband+30 points52.5% → 82.7%
Bachelor's++16 points15.4% → 31.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 7 measures

Change of every measure of Santee, South Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.1 min2015-2019	31.4 min2020-2024	+9.2 min	Within the margin of error	3%
Bachelor's degree or higher	15.4%2015-2019	31.1%2020-2024	+16 points	Improved	98%
Broadband subscriptions	52.5%2015-2019	82.7%2020-2024	+30 points	Improved	98%
Effective property tax rate	0.72%2015-2019	0.67%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	26%
High school diploma or higher	86.2%2015-2019	84.6%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	18%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4412015-2019	0.4802020-2024	+0.039	Within the margin of error	21%
Poverty rate	34.7%2015-2019	28.3%2020-2024	−6.4 points	Within the margin of error	85%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 10944 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 Santee, South Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Santee, 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.

No place that looked like Santee, South Carolina five years ago has more measures that improved than declined, with a higher standing among its peers today.

For comparison, Santee, South Carolina itself moved −6.2 points in standing on average over the same 6 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

1,076 residents (±308)

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: 80 and over men (−7.4 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

1,076 residents (±308)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

White18%†195
Black70%†749
Hispanic or Latino0.0%0

Education

707 residents (±178)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

No high school diploma15%†109
High school or GED31%†218
Some college14%

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

364 households (±90)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $25k29%†106
$25k–50k22%†80
$50k–75k18%†65
$75k–100k14%†52
$100k–150k5.5%†20
$150k–200k6.6%†24
$200k or more4.7%†17

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 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

364 households (±90)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Own65%237
Rent35%†127

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

115 households (±52)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $75028%†32
$750–1,00063%†72
$1,000–1,5009.6%†11

Home values

237 homes (±69)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $150k43%†102
$150k–250k29%†69
$250k–400k22%†

Age of homes

434 homes (±97)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

2010 or later18%†77
2000–200913%†56
1980–199955%†240

Size of homes

434 homes (±97)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Studio5.3%†23
1 bedroom9.4%†41
2 bedrooms21%†93

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

530 workers (±177)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Drive alone74%†390
Carpool12%†66
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home4.9%†26
Other9.1%†48

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

504 workers (±170)

Santee, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under 15 min39%†198
15–29 min21%†104
30–44 min21%†

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

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 Orangeburg, SC

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 Orangeburg County, the county holding most of Santee's residents.

Orangeburg County has 1,630 employer establishments, 196 for every 10,000 residents (0.79× the US rate of 248; 0.86× South Carolina's), with 25,672 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,311. The Census Bureau also counts 6,055 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,630; 6,055 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 196; US 248 · South Carolina 228
Paid employees: 25,672
Average annual pay: $42,311; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	142	17.1	0.93×About typical	2,740	$16,262	56
Ambulatory health care services	121	14.5	0.70×Fewer than typical	1,194	$52,817	286
Religious organizations	104	12.5	2.25×More than typical	429	$18,117	—
Gasoline stations	81	9.7	3.00×More than typical	681	$23,941	—
Limited-service restaurants	74	8.9	1.11×About typical	1,641	$14,697	29
Specialty trade contractors	68	8.2	0.53×Fewer than typical	618	$75,916	399
Truck transportation	65	7.8	1.54×More than typical	731	$61,988	365
Full-service restaurants	59	7.1	0.92×About typical	1,001	$18,555	20
General merchandise stores	48	5.8	3.26×More than typical	809	$21,648	34
Automotive repair and maintenance	38	4.6	0.91×About typical	174	$37,034	133
Traveler accommodation	38	4.6	2.53×More than typical	480	$20,608	10
Lessors of real estate	34	4.1	0.33×Fewer than typical	73	$80,781	376

Rank places for an industry Open Orangeburg County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 83,212 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 Santee, South 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

270.3FY2017
705.5FY2018

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 Santee, South Carolina, so they do not add up across cities.

Santee, South Carolina's figures are part of those of Orangeburg County, SC ($271K 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: Santee is mostly in Orangeburg County.

See federal money in Orangeburg 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.

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