Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 35/100
F
Median home value$277,600
Charlotte $356,400
Median rent$1,204/mo
Charlotte $1,473/mo
Cost-burdened households37%
Charlotte 29%
Gastonia
Gaston County82,884 residentsGaston County Schools
50
D+
Suburbgrade score
26th of 28 Charlotte suburbs. Strongest on cost of living, held back by housing & affordability.
50
Charlotte median 59
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Gastonia yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 50 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Gastonia is like to live in, by category
Bars show Gastonia against Charlotte. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 49/100
D+
Within-state proficiency38th pct
Charlotte median 63rd pct
Student–teacher ratio15.7
Charlotte median 16.4
Graduation rate85%
Charlotte median 87%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 72/100
B−
Housing cost index88
Charlotte 100
Eff. tax rate0.88%
Charlotte 0.65%
Local sales tax7.00%
Charlotte median 7.00%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 48/100
D+
Mean commute26.8 min
Charlotte 26.6 min
Under 30 minutes59%
Charlotte 60%
Transit stops / sq mi0.1
Charlotte median 0.0 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 56/100
C−
Restaurants & cafés21
Charlotte median 25 · within 2 miles
Groceries4
Charlotte median 4 · within 2 miles
Parks24
Charlotte median 26 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 43/100
D
Median household income$64,059
Charlotte $83,304
Unemployment5.7%
Charlotte 4.4%
Professional occupations36%
Charlotte 44%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Gastonia yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Gastonia on housing & affordability
Gastonia's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
Lake Norman of Iredell25 mi from GastoniaB+ 56 C− Tega Cay18 mi from GastoniaB− 70 B− Fort Mill22 mi from GastoniaB− 69 B− Huntersville21 mi from GastoniaC+ 64 C+ Cornelius23 mi from GastoniaC+ 62 C Lake Wylie12 mi from GastoniaC+ 62 C Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Gastonia
Is Gastonia, NC a good place to live?
Gastonia scores 50 out of 100, 26th of 28 Charlotte suburbs. It is strongest on cost of living and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Gastonia expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $277,600, 22% below the Charlotte median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.88%. $1,204/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Gastonia?
Schools grade D+. The districts serving Gastonia sit at the 38th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 85% graduation rate and a 15.7 student–teacher ratio. Gastonia is served by Gaston County Schools. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Gastonia?
The mean commute is 26.8 min, with 59% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 12% working from home. Transit density is 0.1 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Gastonia?
Within two miles there are 4 groceries, 21 restaurants and cafés and 24 parks, which grades C− on amenities.
Are the homes in Gastonia old or new?
The median home in Gastonia was built in 1978 — older than the Charlotte median of 1996. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 71% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.