Town · Hickman County, Tennessee

Centerville, Tennessee

Centerville is a town in Hickman County, Tennessee, part of the Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN metro area. It has 3,535 residents. Centerville, Tennessee has a quality-of-life score of 15 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,234 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Tennessee it ranks #208 of 305 cities and towns. It ranks best on child care cost burden (low), property crime rate (low) and income inequality (Gini index) (low). It ranks worst on arts, entertainment and recreation (low), injury deaths (high) and depression (high).

15Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,234 of 15,651 cities and towns
Tennessee: #208 of 305 in TN
Population: 3,535 (2020-2024)
Land area: 11 mi²
Density: 328.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 4712420

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.

Safety35#10,188/15,637
Economy44#8,715/15,631
Housing79#3,121/14,977
Health7#14,554/15,609
Healthcare7#14,601/15,650
Environment75#3,935/15,453
Education28#11,249/15,649
Infrastructure3#15,172/15,650
Community2#15,280/15,651
Leisure & amenities4#14,991/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Centerville, Tennessee ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Hickman 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 · low21.0%
92/100Tennessee 22.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHickman County value
Property crime rate · low456 /100k
91/100Tennessee 1,637 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationHickman County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.356
89/100Tennessee 0.476United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Unemployment rate · low1.5%
88/100Tennessee 3.5%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Effective property tax rate · low0.51%
86/100Tennessee 0.52%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Tennessee 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHickman County value

Weaknesses

Arts, entertainment and recreation · low0.4 /10k
1/100Tennessee 5.5 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsHickman County value
Injury deaths · high171 /100k
2/100Tennessee 122 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHickman County value
Depression · high31.7%
2/100Tennessee 29.0%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Access to exercise opportunities · low30.6%
2/100Tennessee 67.9%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHickman County value
Social associations · low3.9 /10k
3/100Tennessee 11.0 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHickman County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Tennessee 4.3 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyHickman County value

Trends

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

Rent-burdened householdsImproving
51.1% (2015-2019) → 27.6% (2020-2024)
−23 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
60.2% (2015-2019) → 82.9% (2020-2024)
+23 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$36,378 (2015-2019) → $59,167 (2020-2024)
+63%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherImproving
78.0% (2015-2019) → 86.9% (2020-2024)
+8.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Poverty rateImproving
15.8% (2015-2019) → 9.6% (2020-2024)
−6.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Unemployment rateImproving
6.7% (2015-2019) → 1.5% (2020-2024)
−5.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

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, Centerville, Tennessee improved on 4 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 6 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

Inequality−0.1000.456 → 0.356
Broadband+23 points60.2% → 82.9%
Household income+63%$36,378 → $59,167
Rent / income−5 points30.3% → 25.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Centerville, Tennessee between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	28.7 min2015-2019	33.6 min2020-2024	+5.0 min	Within the margin of error	10%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.5%2015-2019	9.5%2020-2024	−4 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Broadband subscriptions	60.2%2015-2019	82.9%2020-2024	+23 points	Improved	93%
Effective property tax rate	0.65%2015-2019	0.51%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	44%
High school diploma or higher	78.0%2015-2019	86.9%2020-2024	+8.9 points	Within the margin of error	94%
Home price to income ratio	3.9×2015-2019	3.6×2020-2024	−0.2×	Within the margin of error	88%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4562015-2019	0.3562020-2024	−0.100	Improved	96%
Median household income	$36,3782015-2019	$59,1672020-2024	+63%	Improved	92%
Rent as share of income	30.3%2015-2019	25.3%2020-2024	−5 points	Improved	83%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.7%2015-2019	11.1%2020-2024	+3.4 points	Within the margin of error	17%

“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 Centerville, Tennessee five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Centerville, Tennessee 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, Centerville, Tennessee itself moved +14.6 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

3,535 residents (±24)

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

1,410 households (±147)

Centerville, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $25k14%†199
$25k–50k29%†404
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,410 households (±147)

Centerville, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Own68%965
Rent32%†445

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

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

1,503 workers (±232)

Centerville, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Drive alone78%1,168
Carpool12%†178
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 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN

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 Hickman County, the county holding most of Centerville's residents.

Hickman County has 316 employer establishments, 123 for every 10,000 residents (0.49× the US rate of 248; 0.58× Tennessee's), with 3,025 paid employees at an average annual pay of $45,926. The Census Bureau also counts 2,001 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 316; 2,001 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 123; US 248 · Tennessee 210
Paid employees: 3,025
Average annual pay: $45,926; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	31	12	0.78×Fewer than typical	217	$58,138	284
Restaurants and other eating places	19	7.4	0.40×Fewer than typical	243	$14,934	7
Ambulatory health care services	18	7	0.33×Fewer than typical	131	$49,794	52
Services to buildings and dwellings	18	7	1.04×About typical	70	$26,543	232
Construction of buildings	17	6.6	0.87×About typical	34	$38,706	128
Automotive repair and maintenance	12	4.7	0.92×About typical	56	$49,607	46
Full-service restaurants	12	4.7	0.61×Fewer than typical	100	$17,290	—
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	10	3.9	1.23×About typical	40	$43,575	57
Religious organizations	10	3.9	0.70×Fewer than typical	151	$33,166	—
Building equipment contractors	9	3.5	0.58×Too few to compare	97	$69,454	50
Banks and credit unions	8	3.1	0.96×Too few to compare	36	$40,833	—
Building finishing contractors	8	3.1	0.82×Too few to compare	52	$48,923	91

Rank places for an industry Open Hickman County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 25,794 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 -$2,892 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Centerville, Tennessee: -$0.82 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$2,892; −248% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$0.82; US $1,994
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

TOWER MRL, LLC-$2,8920.0%

Spending by fiscal year

600.9FY2017
4.3KFY2018
-12.7FY2021
35.6KFY2024
2KFY2025
-2.9KFY2026

What was bought

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 Centerville, Tennessee, so they do not add up across cities.

Centerville, Tennessee's figures are part of those of Hickman County, TN ($27.4M 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: Centerville is mostly in Hickman County.

See federal money in Hickman 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.

Centerville, Tennessee is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Matt Van EppsR-TN-7 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 0.0%

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.

Hickman County19100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN57

Other cities and towns in Hickman 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/4712420

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends