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South Charleston, Ohio

South Charleston is a small town of about 1,700 people in Clark County, Ohio. Its population has held about steady since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.8 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, Columbus, is about 37 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
1,698
down 0.5% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$141,300
Clark County prices up 24% since 2022
Household income
$49,896
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Springfield area
90.5
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
11 miles
Springfield, OH
To Columbus
37 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 9.5% below the U.S. average in the Springfield metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for South Charleston 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 town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close bySpringfield Regional Medical Center in Springfield, about 11 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityColumbus is about 37 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 South Charleston 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.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$141,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 24%Clark County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$704 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$49,896U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
54%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$1,290 a yearOhio: $2,822
Homes built before 1940
31%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
0%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
90.5U.S. average = 100 (the Springfield 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 Springfield metro area, not South Charleston 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
1,6982020: 1,707
Median age
43.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
19%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
24%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
17%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
7%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
Manufacturing (21%); schools, health care and social services (19%); retail (19%)
Unemployment rate
2%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
23 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
3%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
16%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Springfield Regional Medical Center, Springfield, OH, about 11 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 4 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

3 public schools in South Charleston, run by Southeastern Local.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Ohio'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
69%U.S.: 76%

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
19°F
July average high
82°F
Days 90°F or hotter
13 a year
Nights at or below freezing
132 a year
Rain and melted snow
42.3 inches a year
Snow
20 inches a year
Elevation
1,110 feet

Weather stations: London Fish Hatchery (9 miles away) and Sedalia (11 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: Springfield Regional Medical Center, Springfield, Columbus.

Clark County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the South Charleston Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument15 miles
  • Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park22 miles
  • Hopewell Culture National Historical Park43 miles

Read about South Charleston's history on Wikipedia.

Know South Charleston?

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

  • South Solon, OH327 people, 6 miles
  • South Vienna, OH405 people, 7 miles
  • Clifton, OH137 people, 10 miles
  • Midway, OH270 people, 11 miles
  • Catawba, OH244 people, 12 miles
  • Choctaw Lake, OH (unincorporated)1,985 people, 12 miles
  • Wilberforce, OH (unincorporated)1,951 people, 15 miles
  • Lafayette, OH (unincorporated)164 people, 15 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.