County rankings, computed from the data
Each list is a question people ask, answered from the county database and recomputed daily. Every one opens on the map with the same filters set.
Where the lists stand today
Jefferson County, Arkansas has the lowest median home value of the 986 US counties with 50,000 or more people: $89K (Zillow ZHVI 2024). Carver County, Minnesota has the lowest violent crime rate of the 598 US counties with 100,000 or more people: 2.39 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (County Health Rankings 2024). DeKalb County, Georgia has the highest share of people working from home, 17.3%, of the 351 US counties with 25,000 or more people, 200+ Mbps average download speed and a median home under $350K (Census ACS 2022; Ookla Speedtest Intelligence; Zillow ZHVI 2024).
Those sentences are recomputed from the county rows each time this page is rebuilt, so a leader can change when a source is refreshed. A ranking is not a score: each list sorts on one measured figure, in the unit its source publishes, and the columns beside it are context rather than inputs. Where a list needs a second condition, such as a minimum download speed or a maximum home price, that condition is stated in the title and applied before the sort. Population comes from the Census 2023 estimates, home values from Zillow 2024, crime and health measures from County Health Rankings 2024, property tax from the Tax Foundation, and internet speed from Ookla; each ranking page lists its own sources under the table.
The 13 rankings
- The cheapest counties in America to buy a home (with at least 50,000 people)
The 25 US counties with the lowest median home value among counties of 50,000 or more people, with property tax, income and crime alongside. Zillow 2024 data.
- The safest large counties in America (100,000 people or more)
US counties of 100,000+ people with the lowest violent crime per 1,000 residents, with home prices and life expectancy. County Health Rankings 2024.
- The best counties for remote workers: fast internet, sane home prices
Counties where fixed broadband averages 200+ Mbps and the median home costs under $350K, ranked by share of workers already working from home. Ookla, Zillow, Census ACS.
- The counties with the lowest property taxes (50,000 people or more)
US counties of 50,000+ people with the lowest effective property-tax rates, with the annual bill on the median home. Tax Foundation county rates.
- Warm counties you can still afford: 65°F average and a median home under $350K
US counties averaging 65°F or warmer with a median home under $350,000, ranked by price, with hurricane and disaster risk shown. NOAA, Zillow, FEMA.
- The counties with the most doctors per person
Active physicians per 10,000 residents by county, 50,000+ people, with hospital ratings and life expectancy. HRSA Area Health Resources File 2023, CMS.
- The fastest-growing counties in America
US counties of 50,000+ people ranked by population growth 2022 to 2023, with net domestic migration, home prices and income. Census Population Estimates.
- The most conservative large counties in America (250,000 people or more)
US counties of 250,000+ people ranked by Republican margin in the 2024 presidential election, with home prices and income. OpenElections.
- The most liberal large counties in America (250,000 people or more)
US counties of 250,000+ people ranked by Democratic margin in the 2024 presidential election, with home prices and income. OpenElections.
- The large counties least likely to flood, burn or blow away
US counties of 100,000+ people with the lowest FEMA National Risk Index scores, with home prices and average temperature. FEMA NRI 2023.
- The counties where students test highest
US counties of 50,000+ people ranked by average math and reading grade-level scores from the Stanford Education Data Archive via County Health Rankings 2024, with home prices.
- The sunniest counties in America in January (50,000 people or more)
US counties of 50,000+ people ranked by January sunshine on the USDA Natural Amenities Scale, with average temperature, annual rainfall and home prices. USDA, NOAA, Zillow.
- The mildest-climate counties: 58 to 72°F average and the fewest severe storms
US counties of 50,000+ people averaging 58 to 72°F, ranked by the fewest NOAA severe storm events a year, with FEMA hazard risk and home prices alongside. NOAA, FEMA, Zillow.
How these lists are built
Every ranking is computed from the same county database that feeds the county map and each county page, and it is recomputed daily. Each list sets a population floor (25,000, 50,000, 100,000, 250,000 people, stated in its title) so a one-stoplight county cannot top a list nobody could move to, and it drops any county missing a figure the table shows. The first sentence on each page states the answer, the top 25 follow, and the sources and years sit under the table. Want a different cutoff? Open the list on the map and move the handles.