Population
192 residents
Census ACS 2023 - South Carolina
City profile · South Carolina · Census ACS 2023
Waterloo, SC
Population, income, housing, safety, climate and schools for Waterloo - drawn straight from Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA, NCES, HUD and FEMA, refreshed on the 2024–2025 release cycle.
- 192
- Residents
- $41,250
- Median income
- $1,133
- Median rent (state)
Waterloo - the verdict
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Waterloo lands in the 9th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.
- 9th
- percentile, household income
- 31st
- percentile, median rent
📝 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: Waterloo, SC
192 people live in Waterloo, South Carolina - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Waterloo households earn a median of $41,250 annually, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 21.2%. The median resident age is 49.4 years. 31.4% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 35.2% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The city is served by 1 public schools according to NCES Common Core of Data.
Living costs in South Carolina run below the national norm: the state registers 93.7 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Below Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,133 per month. Monthly utility costs average around $224 across South Carolina, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. Commute times here average 40.4 minutes, with 100.0% driving alone and 0.0% working from home, per Census ACS commuting data. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 76.2 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (High).
Median Household Income
$41,250 /yr
Poverty 21.2%
Cost of Living Index (state)
93.7 (US=100)
Below Average - BEA RPP 2024, South Carolina average
How does Waterloo compare to other US cities?
Where Waterloo sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income 9% higher than other cities
Median rent 31% pricier than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Waterloo against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to South Carolina only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
South Carolina-relative analysis
Bachelor's Degree or Higher places Waterloo toward the top of South Carolina's cities
Among the 441 South Carolina cities PlainCities tracks with reported bachelor's degree or higher data, Waterloo ranks #93 - the 79th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Waterloo only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#284 of 403
30th percentile in South Carolina
Median Gross Rent
#250 of 441
41st percentile in South Carolina
Poverty Rate
#122 of 439
72nd percentile in South Carolina
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#93 of 441
79th percentile in South Carolina
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 South Carolina only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
9th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Income distribution context
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 31.4%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL) 21.2%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+) 35.2%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
192
Median Income
$41,250
Median Home Value
N/A
Median Age
49.4
Poverty Rate
21.2%
Labor force participation
35.2%
Bachelor's Degree+
31.4%
Schools
Total Schools
1
Public schools in this city
Population Change
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Commute Patterns
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
40.4 minutes
Drive Alone
100.0%
Carpool
0.0%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
0.0%
Based on 51 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
State-average estimates for South Carolina - EIA 2023 residential energy data
Electricity
$130
avg/month
Natural Gas
$52
avg/month
Water & Sewer
$42
avg/month
Total Utilities
$224
estimated/month
Estimates reflect South Carolina state averages. Actual costs vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Cost of living is a South Carolina state average from BEA; rent and hazard risk are county-level figures from HUD and FEMA for the county Waterloo sits in
Cost of Living Index
93.7
Below Average
US average = 100 · BEA RPP 2024
Typical 2-BR Rent
$1,133/mo
HUD Fair Market Rent
County-level FMR estimate
Natural Hazard Risk
76.2 / 100
High
FEMA NRI composite score (county)
Similar Cities in South Carolina
Cities of a Similar Size Nationwide
Population-matched peers from other states, closest to Waterloo's 192 residents (Census ACS 5-Year 2023).
Cities with a Similar Household Income Nationwide
Median-household-income-matched peers from other states, closest to Waterloo's $41,250 (Census ACS 5-Year 2023, table B19013).
Race & Ethnicity Composition
City-level race and ethnicity, Census ACS 5-year 2023 (tables B02001, B03001), OMB Directive 15 categories.
How Waterloo compares to nearby South Carolina cities
Population + median household income, sourced from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 (population) and B19013 (median household income).
Census ACS 5-year FIPS SC NCES CCD OMB Bulletin 23-01
What do people ask about Waterloo, SC?
What is the population of Waterloo, SC? +
The population of Waterloo, SC stands at 192 according to U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.
What is the median household income in Waterloo, SC? +
Median annual household income in Waterloo runs $41,250, based on Census ACS 2023 data.
What is the cost of living in Waterloo? +
BEA does not publish a city-level cost-of-living figure for Waterloo; the closest available measure is the South Carolina state average, a cost of living index of 93.7 (U.S. average = 100), rated "Below Average" based on BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 data. Costs within South Carolina vary by metro area.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, 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.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES.
Citation & verification links
Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCitiesEvery figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.