Census-designated place · Beaufort County, South Carolina

Shell Point, South Carolina

Shell Point is a census-designated place in Beaufort County, South Carolina, part of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area. It has 1,439 residents. Shell Point, South Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 57 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,687 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within South Carolina it ranks #38 of 268 cities and towns. It ranks best on dentists (high), loneliness (low) and restaurants and bars (high). It ranks worst on natural hazard risk (high), drought exposure (high) and homicide rate (high).

57Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,687 of 15,651 cities and towns
South Carolina: #38 of 268 in SC
Population: 1,439 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 370.8 /mi²
FIPS code: 4565680

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 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.

Safety45#8,575/15,637
Economy66#5,334/15,631
Housing42#8,757/14,977
Health84#2,456/15,609
Healthcare55#7,088/15,650
Environment13#13,403/15,453
Education51#7,737/15,649
Infrastructure35#10,210/15,650
Community69#4,815/15,651
Leisure & amenities93#1,049/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Dentists · high127 /100k
98/100South Carolina 60 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBeaufort County value
Loneliness · low28.9%
97/100South Carolina 32.7%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Restaurants and bars · high15.6 /10k
96/100South Carolina 9.7 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBeaufort County value
Comfortable days · high35.4%
95/100South Carolina 31.6%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationBeaufort County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high8.7 /10k
93/100South Carolina 5.1 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBeaufort County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high2.1 /10k
93/100South Carolina 1.3 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBeaufort County value

Weaknesses

Natural hazard risk · high99.3
0/100South Carolina 51.22025Federal Emergency Management AgencyBeaufort County value
Drought exposure · high80%
11/100South Carolina 72%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAABeaufort County value
Homicide rate · high7.0 /100k
17/100South Carolina 8.4 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBeaufort County value
Broadband subscriptions · low83.6%
21/100South Carolina 88.8%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Mental health care shortage · high17.0
24/100South Carolina 15.5United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationBeaufort County value
Public transit commuters · low0.0%
27/100South Carolina 0.4%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,842 (2015-2019) → 1,439 (2020-2024)
−49%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateImproving
11.4% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
40.7% (2015-2019) → 29.5% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
15.6% (2015-2019) → 6.2% (2020-2024)
−9.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.7× (2015-2019) → 3.6× (2020-2024)
+32%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Rent as share of incomeImproving
28.6% (2015-2019) → 22.8% (2020-2024)
−5.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

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, Shell Point, South Carolina improved on 0 of 9 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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 9 measures

Change of every measure of Shell Point, South Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Bachelor's degree or higher	25.5%2015-2019	27.2%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Within the margin of error	40%
Broadband subscriptions	79.9%2015-2019	83.6%2020-2024	+3.7 points	Within the margin of error	24%
Effective property tax rate	0.73%2015-2019	0.70%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	21%
High school diploma or higher	96.7%2015-2019	97.9%2020-2024	+1.2 points	Within the margin of error	49%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	3.6×2020-2024	+0.9×	Within the margin of error	27%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3542015-2019	0.3022020-2024	−0.052	Within the margin of error	85%
Median household income	$64,9282015-2019	$81,6302020-2024	+26%	Within the margin of error	46%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	28.6%2015-2019	22.8%2020-2024	−5.8 points	Within the margin of error	85%

“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 Shell Point, South Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Shell Point, 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, Shell Point, South Carolina itself moved −0.5 points in standing on average over the same 8 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

1,439 residents (±452)

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: 10–19 women (−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 B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,439 residents (±452)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

White84%†1,211
Black9.4%†135
Hispanic or Latino4.2%†

Education

1,105 residents (±324)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

No high school diploma2.1%†23
High school or GED35%†387
Some college

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

737 households (±179)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $25k9.0%†66
$25k–50k8.0%†59
$50k–75k26%†192
$75k–100k27%†197
$100k–150k19%†142
$150k–200k5.8%†43
$200k or more5.2%†38

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−23.6 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

737 households (±179)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Own79%582
Rent21%†155

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

132 households (±80)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,00025%†33
$1,000–1,50033%†44

Home values

582 homes (±173)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under $150k30%†176
$150k–250k13%†76
$250k–400k45%†263

Age of homes

817 homes (±204)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

2010 or later22%†181
2000–20090.0%0
1980–199941%†334

Size of homes

817 homes (±204)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms23%†188

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

632 workers (±273)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Drive alone90%†567
Carpool0.0%0
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home10%†65
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Carpool (−16.7 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 B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

567 workers (±247)

Shell Point, South Carolina
South Carolina share

Under 15 min41%†232
15–29 min41%†235
30–44 min3.2%†

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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, 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 Beaufort County, the county holding most of Shell Point's residents.

Beaufort County has 6,087 employer establishments, 305 for every 10,000 residents (1.23× the US rate of 248; 1.34× South Carolina's), with 59,121 paid employees at an average annual pay of $46,945. The Census Bureau also counts 22,315 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 6,087; 22,315 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 305; US 248 · South Carolina 228
Paid employees: 59,121
Average annual pay: $46,945; US $68,342

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

Lessors of real estate	594	29.7	2.41×More than typical	1,881	$56,385	3,153
Restaurants and other eating places	498	24.9	1.36×More than typical	9,595	$26,848	132
Specialty trade contractors	495	24.8	1.60×More than typical	2,422	$58,214	1,789
Ambulatory health care services	472	23.6	1.13×About typical	3,813	$60,691	877
Real estate agents and brokers	360	18	3.70×More than typical	661	$71,679	1,101
Full-service restaurants	303	15.2	1.98×More than typical	6,657	$29,472	77
Services to buildings and dwellings	297	14.9	2.21×More than typical	2,179	$44,119	1,979
Construction of buildings	243	12.2	1.61×More than typical	1,592	$62,398	585
Legal services	167	8.4	1.56×More than typical	677	$82,145	230
Clothing and accessories stores	166	8.3	2.29×More than typical	1,507	$24,815	163
Landscaping services	149	7.5	2.13×More than typical	1,239	$45,734	493
Offices of physicians	149	7.5	1.15×About typical	949	$77,400	216

Rank places for an industry Open Beaufort County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 199,700 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 $129.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Shell Point, South Carolina: $90.19 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $129.8K; −35% vs FY2025
Per resident: $90.19; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 2.7%; 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

Department of the Navy$108.3K83%
Defense Logistics Agency$9,9407.7%
Department of the Army$8,0576.2%
Department of Defense Education Activity$2,6782.1%
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Acquisition and Property Management Division$7920.6%

Top recipients

WHITING-TURNER CONTRACTING COMPANY, THE$66.2K51%
CLARK NEXSEN/ MICHAEL BAKER JV$19.9K15%
SAUER CONSTRUCTION, LLC$13.6K10%
CARTRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC$9,9407.7%
DYNAMIC-HHS JV, LLC$8,0576.2%

Spending by fiscal year

6MFY2017
241.5KFY2018
297.9KFY2019
547.7KFY2020
181.5KFY2021
527KFY2022
2.7MFY2023
130.2K

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonresidential building construction · 2362$79.8K61%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$21.2K16%
Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment rental and leasing · 5324$8,9186.9%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$8,0576.2%
Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair and maintenance · 8113$4,0683.1%

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

Shell Point, South Carolina's figures are part of those of Beaufort County, SC ($380.9M 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: Shell Point is mostly in Beaufort County.

See federal money in Beaufort 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.

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

House

Nancy MaceR-SC-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 17.8%

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.

Beaufort County72100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC76

Other cities and towns in Beaufort 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
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/4565680

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends