CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

33.48° N · 84.37° W · GEOID 1341347

Irondale

Clayton County, Georgia · part of the Atlanta, GA metro

GeorgiaIrondale, GAIrondaleIrondale

The short answer

Irondale is home to 9,185 people. Median household income is $55,030 a year and median rent is $1,741 a month, 38.0% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). That is above the usual 30% line for cost burden. The median home is valued at $204,500, about 3.7x annual median household income.

What sets Irondale apart is how tight household budgets are. Money left after rent is $34,900, against $63,400 in its closest peers. Also notable: Housing became less affordable between 2019 and 2024: rent went from 24.3% to 38% of income.

0OF 100

CTXCitytistics Index

Weak

Irondale scores better than 0% of the 6,612 places we rate, and ranks 163rd of 165 in Georgia.

How the CTX is built

Category ratings · 0 to 100, typical place 50

Affordability 20%26
Economy 20%22
Safety 20%n/a
Amenities 15%0
Education 10%32
Commute 10%2
Growth 5%n/a

Not rated: safety, growth, for want of data (the city police department does not report a full year to the FBI). The other weights are spread over the categories rated.

Median gross rent
$1,741
28% above the median place
Median household income
$55,030
31% below the median place
Median home value
$204,500
36% below the median place
Unemployment
6.2%
27% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Irondale

  • HousingOwning with a mortgage costs about $335 a month less than the median rent, a rarer pattern than in 98% of the 2,469 places under 10,000 people we track.
  • AffordabilityThe median rent takes 38% of the median household's income, a bigger share than in 99% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-highest of 166 Georgia places we track.
01

Moving to Irondale

Clayton County loses about 11.0 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in23,558
Moved out25,931
Net−2,373

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Fulton County, GA6,2866,099+187
Henry County, GA2,9634,616−1,653
DeKalb County, GA3,0852,655+430
Fayette County, GA626935−309
Douglas County, GA343444−101

Within Georgia, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within GeorgiaOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$35K
Leavers$36K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Clayton County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
4.2% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 2.3% from another state.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Clayton County report $34,800 a year in income on average; those leaving, $35,900.
Income you would need
$69,600 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,741 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,406 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $204,500.
Getting to work
40 minutes each way on average; 13.6% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Commerce, GA matches it on character for less of your income. Compare the two
Moved here in the past year1
4.2%
27% below the median place
Income of households moving in7
$34,766
51% below the median place
Income of households moving out7
$35,882
49% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureIrondaleAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year14.2%27% below
Moved from another state1County figure2.3%17% above
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure-11.0below (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$34,76651% below
Income of households moving out7County figure$35,88249% below
02

What it costs to live here

Rent is about 33% higher than we would expect for a place with these incomes, education levels, housing age and household types in the same metro area. The premium usually reflects location, amenities or schools that these figures do not capture.

Irondale38.0%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$69,640
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
38.0%
86% above the median place
Home price to income
3.7x
2% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
38%
over the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$34,900
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Irondale, $1,741 a month, and local prices for everything else (97.8 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Irondale, but easier on the budget

Places that match Irondale on character (size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, remote work and climate) but where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income. Cost was left out of the match on purpose.

PlaceMatchRent to incomeMore left a year
Commerce, GA9523.3% vs 38.0%n/aCompare
Spotsylvania Courthouse, VA9517.6% vs 38.0%$43,500Compare
Whitehouse, TX9417.6% vs 38.0%$51,700Compare
Willard, MO9414.0% vs 38.0%$43,100Compare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Irondale.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Irondale? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Renters paying 30%+1
78.6%
55% above the median place
Median year built1
1996
1% above the median place
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$1,406
25% below the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureIrondaleAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,74128% above
Rent to income138.0%86% above
Property tax rate10.9%2% above
Home price to income13.7x2% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure100.11% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,7629% above
HUD area median income4County figure$117,80010% above
Property tax paid (median)1$1,89942% below
Median home value1$204,50036% below
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure-2.3%below (median 3.2%)
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure67.9%32% above
Homeownership168.5%3% above
Renters paying 30%+178.6%55% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,40625% below
Vacant homes110.2%44% above
Median year built119961% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Mean commute1
40 min
60% above the median place
Income per person1
$23,306
42% below the median place

More on work and pay, against the typical place

Poverty rate19.2% +78%
Median household income$55,030 −31%
Unemployment6.2% +27%
Works from home13.6% +9%
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureIrondaleAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$55,03031% below
Income per person1$23,30642% below
Unemployment16.2%27% above
Average annual pay6County figure$80,23422% above
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure4.2%14% above
Jobs6County figure129,64914% below
Poverty rate119.2%78% above
Mean commute140 min60% above
Works from home113.6%9% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

No health insurance is 22.0%, 244% above the median place.

No health insurance1
22.0%
244% above the median place
Household size1
3.0
21% above the median place
Median age1
33.4
14% below the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

High school or higher88.5% −4%
Bachelor's or higher24.4% −24%
Homes with broadband90.6% −2%
Born abroad8.3% −6%
All 8 people measures
MeasureIrondaleAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population19,1854413th largest
Median age133.414% below
Bachelor's or higher124.4%24% below
High school or higher188.5%4% below
Household size13.021% above
Born abroad18.3%6% below
No health insurance122.0%244% above
Homes with broadband190.6%2% below
05

Life in Irondale

The nearest National Park Service site is Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, about 19 miles away.

5 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places. Its history on Wikipedia

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents0.0 −100%
Playgrounds per 10k0.0 −100%
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k0.0 −100%
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails0 km −100%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

National Park Service sites nearby

  • Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area 19 miles
  • Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park 19 miles
  • Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area 35 miles

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars13.8 −34%
Shops23.8 −21%
Arts, recreation and fitness1.2 −71%
Doctors' offices and clinics10.9 −46%
Child care centers2.8 +22%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Nearest National Park Service site10
19.1
38% below the median place
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
1.2
71% below the median place
Restaurants and bars per 10k8
13.8
34% below the median place
All 18 schools and local life measures
MeasureIrondaleAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools12County figure71above (median 9)
Public school students12County figure62,513above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher12County figure15.72% above
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure13.834% below
Shops per 10k8County figure23.821% below
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure1.271% below
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure10.946% below
Child care centers per 10k8County figure2.822% above
Parks per 10k90.0below (median 10.2)
Playgrounds per 10k90.0below (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k90.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k90.0below (median 11.2)
Libraries per 10k90.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails90.0below (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi90.0below (median 0.2)
Nearest National Park Service site1019.138% below
National Park Service sites within 60 miles104100% above
National Register listings11County figure562% below
06

Safety, weather and risk

Good air days is 41.1%, 40% below the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Irondale. Larger places are fetched first.

Good air days15
41.1%
40% below the median place
Median air quality index15
53
23% above the median place
Annual precipitation13
51.7 in
18% above the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureIrondaleAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high13County figure90°F3% above
January average low13County figure34°F33% above
Average temperature13County figure62°F13% above
Annual precipitation13County figure51.7 in18% above
Natural hazard risk14County figure86.76% below
Hurricane risk14County figure64.19% below
Tornado risk14County figure95.818% above
Wildfire risk14County figure34.444% below
Heat wave risk14County figure83.87% below
Median air quality index15Metro figure5323% above
Good air days15Metro figure41.1%40% below
08

Irondale in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 40% of the median income in 2030, up from 38% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases. On projected 2030 affordability, Irondale does better than 21% of places. Its projected home value growth beats 99%.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,741/mo (2024)$2,290/mo$1,880 to $2,790/mo+4.7%
Median household income$55,030 (2024)$68,500$58,000 to $81,000+3.7%
Median home value$204,500 (2024)$320,000$233,000 to $441,000+7.8%

The median home would be worth 4.7 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.7 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Irondale

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
East Lake-Orient Park, FL$1,555$56,573Compare
Mission Bend, TX$1,747$67,282Compare
Stone Mountain, GA$1,540$46,973Compare
Bacliff, TX$1,498$51,458Compare
Bacliff, TXStone Mountain, GAMission Bend, TXEast Lake-Orient Park, FLIrondale, GAIrondaleEast Lake-Orient ParkMission BendStone MountainBacliffIrondaleEast Lake-Orient ParkMission BendStone MountainBacliff

Places built like Irondale

Its statistical peers: the closest matches on size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, origin and remote work, in the same part of the country. Cost and outcomes are left out of the match, so the table shows how Irondale performs against places like it.

PlaceRent to incomeIncome growthPop. change
Irondale, GA38.0%1.3%/yrn/a
Spotsylvania Courthouse, VA17.6%5.8%/yrn/aCompare
Bremen, GA12.2%10.4%/yr7.5%Compare
Austell, GA24.6%6.4%/yr6.3%Compare
Commerce, GA23.3%5.3%/yr25.1%Compare
Lake Alfred, FL24.1%5.4%/yr54.9%Compare
Villa Rica, GA21.1%6.8%/yr23.3%Compare

Common questions

Is Irondale a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Its Citytistics Index is 0 out of 100, better than 0% of the places we rate and 163rd of 165 in Georgia. Owning with a mortgage costs about $335 a month less than the median rent, a rarer pattern than in 98% of the 2,469 places under 10,000 people we track. The median rent takes 38% of the median household's income, a bigger share than in 99% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-highest of 166 Georgia places we track. On cost, space and class size it scores 35 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Irondale expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 38.0% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $204,500.

What salary do you need to live in Irondale?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $69,640 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Irondale?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are East Lake-Orient Park, FL, Mission Bend, TX, Stone Mountain, GA and Bacliff, TX.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Park Service sites · Wikidata (CC0), units operated by the National Park Service · Retrieved 2026-11
  11. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  12. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  13. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  14. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  15. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Irondale with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Irondale itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/irondale-georgia

Citytistics. “Irondale, Georgia.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/irondale-georgia/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.