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Place dossier plate
SheetNC-MURFREESBORO-NC · Murfreesboro, NC 2,814 pop · income 11th pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Murfreesboro
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Murfreesboro on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Pembroke · lowest
22,940
Pembroke · lowest
22,940 median HH income
20.2% of the leader · rank #1
New Union · near
43,493
New Union · near
43,493 median HH income
38.3% of the leader · rank #2
Knox City · near
43,500
Knox City · near
43,500 median HH income
38.3% of the leader · rank #3
Murfreesboro · this city
43,504
Murfreesboro · this city
43,504 median HH income
38.3% of the leader · rank #4
Oneida · near
43,506
Oneida · near
43,506 median HH income
38.3% of the leader · rank #5
Covington · near
43,512
Covington · near
43,512 median HH income
38.3% of the leader · rank #6
St. Henry · highest
113,629
St. Henry · highest
113,629 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Murfreesboro on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 2,814.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Murfreesboro - the verdict
Murfreesboro ranks in the 11th percentile for household income and the 29th percentile for safety nationally, out of every US city with at least 1,000 residents. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
11th
percentile, household income
28th
percentile, home value
48th
percentile, median rent
29th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Murfreesboro, NC
North Carolina's Murfreesboro is a small town, with 2,814 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Households in Murfreesboro report a median income of $43,504 per year, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 31.9%. Murfreesboro's housing stock carries a median value of $153,100, and the median resident age is 31.6 years. Educational attainment runs 31.5% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 44.6% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Crime here tracks close to the national norm: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 2148.7 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, near the national average (agency reporting is voluntary, so this measures reporting activity, not a definitive danger score). The annual average temperature per NOAA climate normals runs 58.5°F with 49.6 inches of precipitation per year and 2.6 inches of snowfall.
Living costs in North Carolina run below the national norm: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts North Carolina at 94.3 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Below Average). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,161 per month. Monthly utility costs average around $215 across North Carolina, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 66.7 out of 100 (Moderate).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Murfreesboro's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from climate and hazard context to population change to housing and income to schools and households to comparison shortlist to work and mobility to reported crime; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Murfreesboro, city-specific coverage includes matched public-school count, annual population history, commute-mode shares, FBI reported-crime rates.
No matched row is reported here for local building permits, within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Climate and hazard context
What physical conditions frame life in Murfreesboro?
The two sources should not be blended into one comfort or safety score. Use the climate values for baseline conditions and the risk index as a prompt to inspect specific hazards, insurance, and local emergency guidance for a particular address.
NOAA normals put the annual mean temperature at 58.5°F, with 49.6 inches of precipitation and 2.6 inches of annual snowfall. FEMA's state-averaged National Risk Index score for North Carolina is 66.7 out of 100. Climate normals describe long-run weather; the FEMA score on PlainCities is a state average of county NRI inputs and combines hazards, exposure, vulnerability, and resilience.
Is Murfreesboro growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -362 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -13.9% change. No comparable local building-permit series is available here, so population change should not be read as a housing-supply measure. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
How far does income reach against housing in Murfreesboro?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.5 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 31.9%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Which cities make useful reference points for Murfreesboro?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Within North Carolina, the closest population matches are Pembroke (2,823 residents, $22,940 income); Mar-Mac (2,802 residents, $53,125 income); Carthage (2,840 residents, $62,177 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Poplarville, MS (2,814 residents); Licking, MO (2,816 residents); St. Henry, OH (2,812 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Schools and households
What does the education layer cover for Murfreesboro?
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
The NCES join finds 2 public schools within the city match. 31.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
Poverty estimate
31.9%
Bachelor's degree+
31.5%
Matched public schools
2
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
What does the journey to work look like in Murfreesboro?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 72.5%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Drive alone
72.5%
Work from home
1.5%
Public transit
3.9%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 938 workers age 16+.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Murfreesboro?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 2148.7 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, near the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 6% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
Total reported rate
2148.7
Violent rate
558.7
Property rate
1590.0
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
Low income · poverty 31.9% (Highest-decile poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
94.3 (US=100)
Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, North Carolina average
F
City profile score · Murfreesboro, NC
28/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Cost of living B-
94.3 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Bachelor's+ share C+
31.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Household income F
$43,504
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Violent crime F
559 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Poverty rate F
31.9%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Murfreesboro profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 67/100 (B-) · 94.3 index
Bachelor's+ share: 61/100 (C+) · 31.5%
Household income: 12/100 (F) · $43,504
Violent crime: 12/100 (F) · 559 /100k
Poverty rate: 0/100 (F) · 31.9%
Where Murfreesboro sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Murfreesboro's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Murfreesboro highlighted among 26 peers.Read the chart values
Murfreesboro, NC (this city): home $153,100, crime 2,149/100k
Poplarville, MS : home $164,500, crime 1,527/100k
Decherd, TN : home $118,600, crime 2,472/100k
Irvine, KY : home $123,400, crime 619/100k
Pembroke, NC : home $114,700, crime 8,851/100k
Jonesville, NC : home $117,500, crime 6,732/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Murfreesboro compare to other US cities?
Where Murfreesboro sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income11% higher than other cities
Home value28% pricier than other cities
Median rent48% pricier than other cities
Safety29% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at North Carolina, Murfreesboro ranks #82 of 195 North Carolina cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Murfreesboro against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to North Carolina only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
North Carolina-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Murfreesboro near the bottom of North Carolina's cities
Among the 746 North Carolina cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Murfreesboro ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Murfreesboro only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#539 of 700
23rd percentile in North Carolina
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 746
0th percentile in North Carolina
Median Home Value
#474 of 708
33rd percentile in North Carolina
Poverty Rate
#44 of 746
94th percentile in North Carolina
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#218 of 746
71st percentile in North Carolina
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within North Carolina only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
11th percentile nationally for median household income · 29th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Murfreesboro's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Murfreesboro's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Murfreesboro's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$153,100Among the most affordablemore affordable than 72% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Murfreesboro's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.5×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#9,039 of 15,516
More affordable than 42% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#7,285 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 3.5×, Murfreesboro sits in the moderate band:
national rank #9,039 of 15,516 and #7,285 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$43,504Murfreesboro, NC median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Murfreesboro, NC median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Murfreesboro, NC.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)31.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)31.9%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)44.6%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
2,814
Median Income
$43,504
Median Home Value
$153,100
Median Age
31.6
Poverty Rate
31.9%
Labor force participation
44.6%
Bachelor's Degree+
31.5%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
2148.7
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
558.7
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
1590.0
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Climate
Avg Temperature
58.5°F
Annual Precipitation
49.6"
Annual Snowfall
2.6"
Schools
Total Schools
2
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Murfreesboro's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
2,604 residents
2021
2,475 residents
2022
2,393 residents
2023
2,286 residents
2024
2,255 residents
2025
2,242 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
72.5%
Carpool
7.2%
Public Transit
3.9%
Walk
9.4%
Work from Home
1.5%
Other
5.5%
Based on 938 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
North Carolina statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $215
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across North Carolina at $215 (electricity about $115 , water and sewer about $45 ).
These are North Carolina statewide averages, not a meter reading for Murfreesboro. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
North Carolina's BEA cost-of-living index is 94.3 (Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Murfreesboro is $1,161/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to North Carolina statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 66.7 / 100 (Moderate).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a North Carolina statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Murfreesboro sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Murfreesboro compares to similar-size North Carolina cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES CCD, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.