Small Town Guide
Menu

Towns / Georgia

Arlington, Georgia

Arlington is a small town of about 1,100 people in Calhoun County, Georgia. It has lost about 7% of its people since 2020. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Atlanta, is about 162 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
1,126
down 6.6% since 2020
Household income
$48,125
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Georgia
87
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
14 miles
Blakely, GA
To Atlanta
162 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 13% below the U.S. average in the parts of Georgia outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Arlington to say.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Arlington itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in townNo public schools inside the town. The nearest high school is Calhoun County High School, about 9 miles away.
  • A hospital close byLifebrite Community Hospital of Early in Blakely, about 14 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityAtlanta is about 162 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Arlington meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

Worth a closer look

Arlington has lost about 7% of its people since 2020, and about 1 in 5 homes stands empty (not counting vacation homes or homes for sale or rent). A shrinking town can mean bargains, but visit Main Street on a weekday and ask what's closed lately.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical rent, with utilities
$742 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$48,125U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
54%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$914 a yearGeorgia: $2,341
Homes built before 1940
9%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
3%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
87U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Georgia outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Georgia outside metro areas, not Arlington alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
1,1262020: 1,205
Median age
42.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
15%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
22%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
18%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
6%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (26%); manufacturing (21%); government (13%)
Work from home
10%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
23%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Lifebrite Community Hospital of Early, Blakely, GA, about 14 miles away. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

Nearest general hospital: Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, Albany, GA, about 35 miles away. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

There are no public schools inside Arlington itself. The nearest public high school is Calhoun County High School, about 9 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Georgia's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with any internet subscription
85%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
38°F
July average high
92°F
Days 90°F or hotter
78 a year
Nights at or below freezing
38 a year
Rain and melted snow
51.6 inches a year
Snow
0 inches a year
Elevation
272 feet

Weather stations: Newton 8 W (18 miles away) and Morgan 5 NW (13 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Lifebrite Community Hospital of Early, Albany, Atlanta.

Calhoun County is outside any metro area, with fewer than 5,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 8, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Jimmy Carter National Historical Park44 miles

Read about Arlington's history on Wikipedia.

Know Arlington?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Damascus, GA200 people, 10 miles
  • Bluffton, GA118 people, 10 miles
  • Leary, GA498 people, 13 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.