The unfortunate fact of the matter is that some places in the Peach State have a larger percent of their population that never graduated from high school.
While the emphasis on going to college might be overblown, the fact is that not graduating from high school puts you at a significant disadvantage on average. Educational attainment might not be the best way to measure one person’s intelligence, but it does shine a light on the state.
We will use Saturday Night Science to determine what places in Georgia have the highest percentage of adults without a high school degree.
A recent study we published found that Georgia is the 40th smartest state in the United States, with an average IQ of 98.
But that doesn’t mean that a few cities in Georgia are a bit slower than others due to a lack of basic education.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Dumbest Places In Georgia
Don’t freak out.
Some places are just smarter than others, but that says nothing about the character of the people living there. It’s another data point a real estate agent would never tell you.
For this ranking, we only looked at cities with populations greater than 5,000, leaving us 128 cities in Georgia to rank. You can take a look at the data below.
For more Georgia reading, check out:
The 10 Dumbest Places In Georgia For 2025
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% Adult High School Dropout: 28.0%
% Highly Educated: 6.0%
More on Jonesboro: Data
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% Adult High School Dropout: 24.0%
% Highly Educated: 12.0%
More on Forest Park: Data
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% Adult High School Dropout: 20.0%
% Highly Educated: 12.0%
More on Cordele: Data
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% Adult High School Dropout: 19.0%
% Highly Educated: 13.0%
More on Swainsboro: Data
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Methodology: How we determined the dumbest cities in the Peach State
We realize that formal education is only part of it when it comes to being intelligent, but on the other hand, knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there is always going to make you look pretty stupid.
So, we used Saturday Night Science to narrow down our criteria to focus on a city’s educational opportunities and what percentage of the population takes advantage of those opportunities.
In short, we came up with these criteria to determine the dumbest cities in Georgia:
- % of the city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
- % of city’s population with a college degree (Age 25+)
We got the data from the U.S. Census 2019-2023 American Community Survey.
Then, our algorithm generates a rank for each place in these categories. After crunching all the numbers, a ranking of the cities in Georgia from dumbest to brightest.
For this ranking, we used every Georgia city with at least 5,000 residents. We updated this article for 2025, and it’s our tenth time ranking the dumbest cities in Georgia.
There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep
If you’re measuring the locations in Georgia where there are a high number of dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate ranking.
The dumbest cities in Georgia are Jonesboro, Forest Park, Camilla, Monroe, Blakely, Thomson, Cairo, Cordele, Swainsboro, and Jackson.
If you’re also curious enough, here are the smartest places in Georgia, according to science:
- Sandy Springs
- Decatur
- Alpharetta
For more Georgia reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Georgia
- Cheapest Places To Live In Georgia
- Most Dangerous Places In Georgia
- Richest Cities In Georgia
- Safest Places In Georgia
- Worst Places To Live In Georgia
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Georgia
Dumbest Cities In Georgia For 2025
| Rank | City | Population | % Adult High School Dropout | % Highly Educated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jonesboro, GA | 6,137 | 28.0% | 6.0% |
| 2 | Forest Park, GA | 19,619 | 24.0% | 12.0% |
| 3 | Camilla, GA | 5,158 | 20.0% | 8.0% |
| 4 | Monroe, GA | 15,336 | 27.0% | 16.0% |
| 5 | Blakely, GA | 5,276 | 22.0% | 13.0% |
| 6 | Thomson, GA | 6,824 | 20.0% | 11.0% |
| 7 | Cairo, GA | 10,067 | 22.0% | 13.0% |
| 8 | Cordele, GA | 10,107 | 20.0% | 12.0% |
| 9 | Swainsboro, GA | 7,561 | 19.0% | 13.0% |
| 10 | Jackson, GA | 5,648 | 17.0% | 11.0% |
| 11 | Glennville, GA | 5,199 | 18.0% | 12.0% |
| 12 | Cedartown, GA | 10,211 | 23.0% | 17.0% |
| 13 | Waycross, GA | 13,813 | 19.0% | 16.0% |
| 14 | Oakwood, GA | 5,499 | 24.0% | 20.0% |
| 15 | Calhoun, GA | 17,611 | 22.0% | 18.0% |
| 16 | Fort Valley, GA | 8,808 | 24.0% | 20.0% |
| 17 | Morrow, GA | 6,519 | 21.0% | 18.0% |
| 18 | Auburn, GA | 8,222 | 18.0% | 16.0% |
| 19 | Bainbridge, GA | 14,353 | 19.0% | 17.0% |
| 20 | Thomaston, GA | 9,798 | 17.0% | 16.0% |
| 21 | Jesup, GA | 9,863 | 17.0% | 16.0% |
| 22 | Adel, GA | 5,619 | 20.0% | 19.0% |
| 23 | Dalton, GA | 34,402 | 30.0% | 24.0% |
| 24 | Lafayette, GA | 6,944 | 14.0% | 9.0% |
| 25 | Douglas, GA | 11,720 | 16.0% | 16.0% |
| 26 | Lilburn, GA | 14,939 | 24.0% | 25.0% |
| 27 | Commerce, GA | 7,684 | 16.0% | 18.0% |
| 28 | Griffin, GA | 23,650 | 16.0% | 17.0% |
| 29 | Moultrie, GA | 14,545 | 19.0% | 21.0% |
| 30 | Sylvester, GA | 5,557 | 15.0% | 16.0% |
| 31 | Fitzgerald, GA | 8,962 | 14.0% | 14.0% |
| 32 | Toccoa, GA | 9,173 | 16.0% | 18.0% |
| 33 | Brunswick, GA | 15,248 | 16.0% | 19.0% |
| 34 | Gainesville, GA | 44,051 | 23.0% | 26.0% |
| 35 | Sandersville, GA | 5,673 | 17.0% | 22.0% |
| 36 | Dublin, GA | 16,023 | 17.0% | 22.0% |
| 37 | Waynesboro, GA | 5,700 | 11.0% | 14.0% |
| 38 | Barnesville, GA | 6,070 | 13.0% | 17.0% |
| 39 | Rockmart, GA | 5,142 | 14.0% | 19.0% |
| 40 | Milledgeville, GA | 16,873 | 17.0% | 24.0% |
| 41 | Americus, GA | 15,910 | 15.0% | 21.0% |
| 42 | Clarkston, GA | 14,560 | 17.0% | 24.0% |
| 43 | Temple, GA | 5,655 | 11.0% | 16.0% |
| 44 | Doraville, GA | 10,738 | 26.0% | 31.0% |
| 45 | Eatonton, GA | 6,430 | 13.0% | 20.0% |
| 46 | Albany, GA | 67,939 | 15.0% | 22.0% |
| 47 | Stone Mountain, GA | 6,639 | 13.0% | 21.0% |
| 48 | Covington, GA | 14,334 | 15.0% | 24.0% |
| 49 | Winder, GA | 18,847 | 13.0% | 21.0% |
| 50 | Riverdale, GA | 14,866 | 12.0% | 20.0% |
| 51 | Austell, GA | 8,351 | 14.0% | 23.0% |
| 52 | Rome, GA | 37,754 | 18.0% | 29.0% |
| 53 | Buford, GA | 17,611 | 19.0% | 30.0% |
| 54 | Tifton, GA | 17,140 | 13.0% | 22.0% |
| 55 | Lawrenceville, GA | 30,626 | 16.0% | 27.0% |
| 56 | Lagrange, GA | 31,479 | 13.0% | 26.0% |
| 57 | Vidalia, GA | 10,762 | 12.0% | 25.0% |
| 58 | Chamblee, GA | 30,369 | 22.0% | 47.0% |
| 59 | Thomasville, GA | 18,720 | 12.0% | 26.0% |
| 60 | Eastman, GA | 5,624 | 12.0% | 27.0% |
| 61 | Canton, GA | 34,587 | 15.0% | 32.0% |
| 62 | Fort Oglethorpe, GA | 10,332 | 8.0% | 22.0% |
| 63 | Valdosta, GA | 55,222 | 12.0% | 28.0% |
| 64 | Port Wentworth, GA | 11,997 | 14.0% | 30.0% |
| 65 | Grovetown, GA | 16,516 | 10.0% | 26.0% |
| 66 | Cumming, GA | 7,869 | 16.0% | 37.0% |
| 67 | Dallas, GA | 14,440 | 8.0% | 23.0% |
| 68 | Cartersville, GA | 23,617 | 11.0% | 28.0% |
| 69 | Dacula, GA | 7,135 | 9.0% | 25.0% |
| 70 | Loganville, GA | 14,878 | 11.0% | 29.0% |
| 71 | Hapeville, GA | 6,590 | 15.0% | 36.0% |
| 72 | Bremen, GA | 7,364 | 9.0% | 26.0% |
| 73 | Norcross, GA | 17,669 | 16.0% | 41.0% |
| 74 | Social Circle, GA | 5,113 | 8.0% | 25.0% |
| 75 | Villa Rica, GA | 17,798 | 9.0% | 27.0% |
| 76 | College Park, GA | 13,969 | 10.0% | 29.0% |
| 77 | Carrollton, GA | 27,058 | 12.0% | 34.0% |
| 78 | Conyers, GA | 17,916 | 10.0% | 30.0% |
| 79 | Hinesville, GA | 35,282 | 5.0% | 21.0% |
| 80 | Columbus, GA | 204,383 | 10.0% | 30.0% |
| 81 | Kingsland, GA | 19,101 | 6.0% | 22.0% |
| 82 | Lovejoy, GA | 10,967 | 8.0% | 28.0% |
| 83 | Hiram, GA | 5,073 | 11.0% | 35.0% |
| 84 | Acworth, GA | 22,370 | 10.0% | 32.0% |
| 85 | St. Marys, GA | 18,805 | 7.0% | 27.0% |
| 86 | Jefferson, GA | 14,249 | 10.0% | 33.0% |
| 87 | Savannah, GA | 147,546 | 10.0% | 32.0% |
| 88 | Stockbridge, GA | 35,475 | 9.0% | 31.0% |
| 89 | Warner Robins, GA | 81,438 | 8.0% | 30.0% |
| 90 | East Point, GA | 38,233 | 10.0% | 36.0% |
| 91 | Locust Grove, GA | 9,931 | 5.0% | 26.0% |
| 92 | Statesboro, GA | 33,705 | 8.0% | 30.0% |
| 93 | Powder Springs, GA | 17,414 | 10.0% | 39.0% |
| 94 | Centerville, GA | 8,323 | 6.0% | 28.0% |
| 95 | Snellville, GA | 21,203 | 9.0% | 39.0% |
| 96 | Mcdonough, GA | 30,056 | 5.0% | 28.0% |
| 97 | Marietta, GA | 61,773 | 10.0% | 47.0% |
| 98 | Hampton, GA | 8,491 | 5.0% | 30.0% |
| 99 | Douglasville, GA | 36,284 | 8.0% | 36.0% |
| 100 | Perry, GA | 22,243 | 6.0% | 31.0% |
Just because some adults dropped out or didn’t go to school it does not mean they are dump. Being uneducated is different than being dumb.
I am from Cairo. I graduated high school, and have BSIT and MBA degrees. My IQ is in the upper 0.5% of the global populace. I work as an engineer in high tech.
So maybe your criteria is less than scientifically derived? Perhaps the compilers and authors of the article should consider themselves for inclusion instead of Cairo.
If you will notice, those towns that make up the top portion of the list have long and deep Democrat-run roots, which is why they have lost private businesses, are poorer, and rely more heavily on government. Those attributes lead to high dropout rates.
Now, if you had surveyed known IQs, your results would have been more believable. Less educated does not mean less intelligent.
So true they also look only at the percent of how many people dropped out plus there is this county in georgia where nobody can’t read fluently, I don’t see them anywhere
Except the Majority of the top 10 are in the 14th and 3rd Districtus and the North West suburbs of Atlanta District 7. Your eloquence is appreciated but you just lied when you said these were all Democratic Towns. The seem to have Republican House Representatives.
Utterly offensive, and disgusting… suggesting that high school graduation rates directly correspond to the intelligence of an entire community is just sad, and does nothing but showcase how uninformed the pseudo intellectual “journalist” who wrote this article truly is.
What does the amount of people that didn’t finish high school or amount of dropouts have a thing to do with how intelligent someone is? Are you saying that knowledge from any other source is not recognized? Or you one of the school bred, book knowledge dumb asses? I’m just curious really cause the way you come to this conclusion is ridiculous. For the record, I’m not from any of “your” top 50 dumbest conclusions!
You guys apparently got a ticket going through town !
Wish l was smart enough to understand this list.
Henry Ford did not finish school. You have got to asked how many people were included that were not born in the USA . That will wipe out all the stupid data you have collected. You also have to ask yourself why you wasted time doing this.
Somebody has to cook the fries…! (I live in one of these ‘top 10’ towns however my IQ has been measured at 160. I did graduate high shool but dropped out of college and went eentrepreneural… Have made a lot of $$$s and need other folks to work and do the lower paying jobs.)
Is spelling a sign of dumbness? *See my misspelling of ‘school’. (You want catsup on your fries sir? ; )
Some of the most intelligent people I have ever met grew up in one of the top ten listed. Social pressures, high teen pregnancy rates, lack of structured and disciplined public schooling, lower cost of living, and a fairly rich entry level job market all contribute to these statistics.
As one poster stated, a summary as this should also include a survey of the relative brilliance emerging from these areas.
I’m proud Ludowici wasn’t on the list!!!!!
Oh my! I just wasted 10 minutes perusing this article/site. Geepers folks~ Did you all know that some dummies are sharing this as FACT. REALLY?
I guess it creates jobs for those too lazy to get out and get the real numbers!
Sadly, our numbers are somewhat dismal, but we are also working to address the issues……thanks for the encouragement~NOT
I HIGHLY disagree with this list.. Tifton ga needs to be #1 on this list.. they are the dumbest mother f-ers I have ever encounter… they are so stupid here I can feel myself getting dumber just being around them all…