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Towns / Georgia

Wilmington Island, Georgia

Wilmington Island is an unincorporated community of about 13,900 people in Chatham County, Georgia, in the Savannah area. It has no city government of its own: local services come from the county, or in some states from the town or township. A typical home costs about 4.3 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Jacksonville, is about 122 miles away as the crow flies.

Suburb of Savannah

Population
13,905
Census survey, 2020-24
Typical home, 2020-24
$404,900
Chatham County prices up 24% since 2022
Household income
$93,924
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Savannah area
95.2
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
7 miles
Savannah, GA
To Jacksonville
122 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 4.8% below the U.S. average in the Savannah metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 4.3 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI doesn't publish crime figures for unincorporated communities. Call the county sheriff's office (or the town or township police, where there is one) and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Islands High School, about 3 miles away.
  • A hospital close bySavannah Health Services LLC Dba Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah, about 7 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityJacksonville is about 122 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 Wilmington Island 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

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Wilmington Island runs into the built-up area around Savannah (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

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 home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$404,900U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 24%Chatham County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,752 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$93,924U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
77%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,103 a yearGeorgia: $2,341
Homes built before 1940
3%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
5%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
3%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
95.2U.S. average = 100 (the Savannah metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 24% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Savannah metro area, not Wilmington Island 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, 2020-2024 Census survey
13,905The Census Bureau makes yearly estimates only for incorporated towns
Median age
45.2 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
23%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
53%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 (22%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (12%); professional and business services (10%)
Unemployment rate
4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
28 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
9%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
4%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Savannah Health Services LLC Dba Memorial Health University Medical Center, Savannah, GA, about 7 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 1 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

1 public school in Wilmington Island, run by Savannah-Chatham County. The nearest public high school is Islands High School, about 3 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 cable, fiber or DSL internet
84%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
96%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
40°F
July average high
92°F
Days 90°F or hotter
80 a year
Nights at or below freezing
21 a year
Rain and melted snow
48.1 inches a year
Snow
0 inches a year
Elevation
11 feet

Weather station: Savannah Intl Ap (16 miles away). 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: Savannah Health Services LLC Dba Memorial Health University Medical Center, Savannah, Jacksonville.

Chatham County is in a metro area of 250,000 to 1 million people (USDA rural-urban code 2, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Fort Pulaski National Monument2 miles
  • Reconstruction Era National Historical Park35 miles
  • Fort Frederica National Monument58 miles

Read about Wilmington Island's history on Wikipedia.

Know Wilmington Island?

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

  • Talahi Island, GA (unincorporated)961 people, 2 miles
  • Dutch Island, GA (unincorporated)1,225 people, 3 miles
  • Isle of Hope, GA (unincorporated)2,053 people, 5 miles
  • Vernonburg, GA141 people, 9 miles
  • Daufuskie Island, SC (unincorporated)619 people, 10 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.