Town · Decatur County, Tennessee

Scotts Hill, Tennessee

Scotts Hill is a town in Decatur County, Tennessee. It has 1,083 residents. Scotts Hill, Tennessee has a quality-of-life score of 17 out of 100 (very low), ranking #12,968 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Tennessee it ranks #193 of 305 cities and towns. It ranks best on grocery stores (high), effective property tax rate (low) and math scores (high). It ranks worst on job growth (low), depression (high) and dental care shortage (high).

17Very low

Quality-of-life score: #12,968 of 15,651 cities and towns
Tennessee: #193 of 305 in TN
Population: 1,083 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 295.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 4766880

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 70 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.

Safety28#11,319/15,637
Economy13#13,636/15,631
Housing66#5,025/14,977
Health4#15,011/15,609
Healthcare12#13,808/15,650
Environment66#5,310/15,453
Education56#6,843/15,649
Infrastructure5#14,841/15,650
Community12#13,843/15,651
Leisure & amenities46#8,459/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Scotts Hill, Tennessee ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Decatur 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

Grocery stores · high3.4 /10k
96/100Tennessee 1.4 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsDecatur County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.45%
91/100Tennessee 0.52%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Math scores · high3.40
90/100Tennessee 2.99United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDecatur County value
Child care cost burden · low21.4%
90/100Tennessee 22.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDecatur County value
Reading scores · high3.32
90/100Tennessee 2.99United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDecatur County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,835 /100k
89/100Tennessee 2,914 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDecatur County value

Weaknesses

Job growth · low-5.9%
1/100Tennessee -0.2%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataDecatur County value
Depression · high32.0%
2/100Tennessee 29.0%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Dental care shortage · high19.0
3/100Tennessee 9.8United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationDecatur County value
Primary care physicians · low17 /100k
3/100Tennessee 69 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDecatur County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Tennessee 4.3 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyDecatur County value
Median household income · low$37,809
4/100Tennessee $72,007United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013

Trends

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

PopulationRising
951 (2015-2019) → 1,083 (2020-2024)
+14%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateWorsening
27.7% (2015-2019) → 68.0% (2020-2024)
+40 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateWorsening
22.1% (2015-2019) → 50.7% (2020-2024)
+29 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
37.1% (2015-2019) → 51.5% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
26.0% (2015-2019) → 35.5% (2020-2024)
+9.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
16.0% (2015-2019) → 6.6% (2020-2024)
−9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Scotts Hill, Tennessee improved on 1 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 10 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.

Improved1

Uninsured−9.4 points16.0% → 6.6%

Declined1

Poverty+29 points22.1% → 50.7%

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Scotts Hill, Tennessee between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.6 min2015-2019	31.1 min2020-2024	+5.5 min	Within the margin of error	8%
Bachelor's degree or higher	12.0%2015-2019	8.6%2020-2024	−3.4 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Broadband subscriptions	72.8%2015-2019	80.1%2020-2024	+7.3 points	Within the margin of error	45%
Effective property tax rate	0.52%2015-2019	0.45%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	28%
High school diploma or higher	77.3%2015-2019	85.7%2020-2024	+8.4 points	Within the margin of error	93%
Home price to income ratio	2.6×2015-2019	3.0×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	55%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4992015-2019	0.4622020-2024	−0.038	Within the margin of error	78%
Median household income	$37,6252015-2019	$37,8092020-2024	+0.5%	Within the margin of error	8%
Poverty rate	22.1%2015-2019	50.7%2020-2024	+29 points	Declined	0%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	26.0%2015-2019	35.5%2020-2024	+9.5 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	16.0%2015-2019	6.6%2020-2024	−9.4 points	Improved	96%

“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 Scotts Hill, Tennessee five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Scotts Hill, 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, Scotts Hill, Tennessee itself moved −9.1 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

1,083 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

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 30–39 men (+12.1 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 B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,083 residents (±344)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

White96%†1,036
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino2.9%†31
Asian0.0%0
American Indian and Alaska Native0.0%0
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races1.5%†16

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 B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

748 residents (±173)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

No high school diploma14%†107
High school or GED65%†489
Some college11%†79
Associate degree1.2%†9
Bachelor's degree4.5%†34
Graduate degree4.0%†30

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: High school or GED (+22.8 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 B15003View 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.

Income

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

Household income

448 households (±94)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $25k32%†144
$25k–50k41%†184
$50k–75k5.8%†26
$75k–100k8.7%†39
$100k–150k7.6%†34
$150k–200k4.7%†21
$200k or more0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $50k–75k (−9.9 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

448 households (±94)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Own60%270
Rent40%†178

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−16.5 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 B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

68 households (±32)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $75063%†43
$750–1,00021%†14
$1,000–1,50016%†11

Home values

270 homes (±73)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $150k61%†164
$150k–250k20%†55
$250k–400k9.3%†25

Age of homes

506 homes (±100)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

2010 or later2.4%†12
2000–20097.7%†39
1980–199950%†255

Size of homes

506 homes (±100)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Studio1.8%†9
1 bedroom2.4%†12
2 bedrooms27%†137

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

369 workers (±136)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Drive alone89%†327
Carpool5.4%†20
Public transit0.0%0
Walk3.5%†13
Bike0.0%0
Work from home2.4%†9
Other0.0%0

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

360 workers (±135)

Scotts Hill, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under 15 min17%†60
15–29 min48%†172
30–44 min17%†62

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 Decatur County, the county holding most of Scotts Hill's residents.

Decatur County has 228 employer establishments, 195 for every 10,000 residents (0.79× the US rate of 248; 0.93× Tennessee's), with 3,053 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,327. The Census Bureau also counts 870 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 228; 870 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 195; US 248 · Tennessee 210
Paid employees: 3,053
Average annual pay: $53,327; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	21	18	0.86×About typical	426	$68,643	16
Restaurants and other eating places	17	14.5	0.79×Fewer than typical	219	$18,466	9
Specialty trade contractors	12	10.3	0.66×Fewer than typical	40	$45,775	112
Gasoline stations	11	9.4	2.90×More than typical	150	$26,607	—
Construction of buildings	9	7.7	1.02×Too few to compare	69	$39,072	42
Religious organizations	9	7.7	1.39×Too few to compare	30	$22,700	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	9	7.7	1.14×Too few to compare	99	$37,960	61
Truck transportation	9	7.7	1.52×Too few to compare	39	$42,359	47
Full-service restaurants	8	6.8	0.89×Too few to compare	52	$26,173	6
Automotive repair and maintenance	7	6	1.19×Too few to compare	45	$47,556	12
Limited-service restaurants	7	6	0.75×Too few to compare	162	$15,710	3
Banks and credit unions	6	5.1	1.59×Too few to compare	104	$60,250	—

Rank places for an industry Open Decatur County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 11,685 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: Scotts Hill is mostly in Decatur County.

See federal money in Decatur 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.

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