Beaufort, South Carolina

Population

Growing. Up 15.0% since 2020.

15,775

people, the 33rd-largest of South Carolina's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among South Carolina's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

88.2%

of 9,972 jobs located in Beaufort are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 61% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$1,212

a month. South Carolina's median is $1,180.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $2,266 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Beaufort County.

• $1,235 Tract 102
• $3,501 Tract 101

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

The median rent sits inside what local wages can carry.

$984–$1,476

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,212 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

70% of the housing here was built before 2000.

• 1,782 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 52% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 70% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.4–1.6% to the 6,327 homes here.

25–100

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 33% more than South Carolina's.

$345,400

median home value in Beaufort.

• $345,400 Beaufort
• $259,000 South Carolina
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year