These Are The 10 Dumbest Cities In Georgia

Georgia is a pretty great state with some wonderfully friendly and hospitable people.

But when it comes to brains, Georgia is behind the rest of the nation. In fact, a recent Washington Post study found it to be the 13th dumbest state in America, with the 11th lowest average IQ.

That doesn’t mean every single place in Georgia is filled to the brim with blockheads. But, by looking at the data, we can see which Georgian cities are contributing to the state’s intelligence deficit the most.

After crunching the numbers, we came up with this list of the ten dumbest cities in the Peach State:

1. Cedartown (Photos)
2. Cairo (Photos)
3. Chamblee (Photos)
4. Dalton (Photos)
5. Griffin (Photos)
6. Rome (Photos)
7. Sylvester (Photos)
8. Calhoun (Photos)
9. Doraville (Photos)
10. Norcross (Photos)

But you don’t have to be dumb — you can always live in one of the best places in Georgia. Or continue on to learn why these places aren’t the brightest peaches that Georgia has to offer.

For more Georgia reading, check out:

• Worst Cities in Georgia
• Most Dangerous Cities in Georgia
• Safest Cities in Georgia

How we determined the dumbest cities in the Peach State

We realize that formal education isn’t everything when it comes to being smart, but on the other hand not knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there is always going to make you look pretty stupid.

So we narrowed down our criteria to focus both 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 city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
• % of high school dropouts (Ages 16-19)

Note: We only looked at cities with populations greater than 5,000, leaving us 127 cities in Georgia to rank. We also looked at the graduation rates of the entire population, not the current rates for high schoolers.

1. Cedartown

Population: 9,760
Adults Without High School Diploma: 38.7%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 15.2%

Located in northwestern Georgia, Cedartown ranks as the dumbest city in the state, with both a large undereducated adult population and a youth population that doesn’t think school is very cool either.

Cedartown has the second highest proportion of adults without high school degrees in the state, with nearly 4 in 10 residents over the age of 25 having never completed basic education.

Cedartown’s high school dropout rate of 15.2% is also more than double the state average for cities with populations greater than 5,000.

With so many uneducated adults and an incredibly high rate of teenage dropouts, Cedartown seems secure in its position as the dumbest city in Georgia.

2. Cairo

Population: 9,750
Adults Without High School Diploma: 31.3%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 22.2%

Cairo ranks as the second dumbest city in Georgia with incredibly bad scores in both categories.

31.3% of Cairo’s adult population never completed high school, which, in not-so-bright Georgia, only ranks as the 8th worst in the state for cities with populations above 5,000.

However, the real stupidity problem ailing Cairo is the super high rate of teenage high school dropouts (the second highest in the state), with 22 out of every 100 students dropping out each year.

In fairness, with a football team called “the Syrupmakers,” dropping out seems a bit more understandable.

3. Chamblee

Population: 15,835
Adults Without High School Diploma: 27.1%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 41.8%

Located just northeast of Atlanta, Chamblee’s motto is “A City on the Right Track,” which is a throwback to its status as a 20th century railroad community.

The motto is a lie in terms of education though, since Chamblee has the highest rate of high school dropouts in all of Georgia, with a whopping 41.8% of students dropping out of basic education.

To be fair, 25% of people under the age of 18 live below the poverty line, so school may not be a priority, but either way, the next generation isn’t positioning itself to improve its economic situation by leaving school so young.

4. Dalton

Population: 33,336
Adults Without High School Diploma: 36.3%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 12.7%

Located in northwestern Georgia (like many cities on this list), Dalton is the fourth dumbest city in Georgia.

A staggeringly high 36.3% of Dalton’s adult population doesn’t have a GED, which is the fourth highest rate in Georgia and more than twice as high as the state’s average.

On top of that, the dropout rate is nearly double the state average for cities with populations over 5,000, so Dalton seems like it’s going to continue to be dumber than its Georgian peers.

5. Griffin

Population: 23,425
Adults Without High School Diploma: 26.0%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 16.8%

A southern suburb of Atlanta, Griffin ranks as the fifth dumbest city in Georgia with the fifth highest rate of teenage high school dropouts in the state.

About 17 students drop out for every 100, which is about three times higher than the state average. That means a large portion of the upcoming generation will be unqualified for a number of jobs.

Add to that the fact that more than a quarter of adults in Griffin never completed high school, and you’ve got yourself one of the dumbest cities in Georgia.

6. Rome

Population: 36,099
Adults Without High School Diploma: 27.4%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 12.1%

Located at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Rome is the largest city in northwestern Georgia, the apparent epicenter of the state’s stupidity.

27.4% of Rome’s adult residents never earned a high school diploma, which is a full 10% higher than the average for Georgian cities with populations over 5,000.

While Rome is home to four colleges, 12.1% of the city’s high school students drop out each year, meaning they won’t be able to take advantage of these educational opportunities.

7. Sylvester

Population: 6,180
Adults Without High School Diploma: 28.3%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 10.9%

Sylvester’s motto is “Small Town. Big Heart.” An alteration to that might read: “Small Town. Big Heart. Small Brain.”

Sylvester is indeed the smallest city to make the dumb-cut, with 28.3% of the city’s adult population having never earned their GED.

The dropout rate of 10.9% is also much worse than the state’s average, leaving us to see Sylvester in a dim light.

8. Calhoun

Population: 15,837
Adults Without High School Diploma: 33.3%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 8.6%

Another northwest Georgian city, Calhoun has one of the highest education-less adult populations in the state.

For every three adults you meet in Calhoun, one of them never completed high school, meaning it isn’t the best city to get a book club started in.

Adding to Calhoun’s stupid-points is the fact that 17 out of every 200 students drop out of high school.

9. Doraville

Population: 10,513
Adults Without High School Diploma: 39.5%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 7.0%

A northeastern suburb of Atlanta, Doraville has the highest rate of adults without GEDs in all of Georgia.

An incredibly high 39.5% of Doraville’s population over the age of 25 never completed the basic education offered in high school, which is well over twice as high as the state’s average.

On the “bright” side, the dropout rate in Doraville is only 0.6% higher than the state average for cities with populations over 5,000, so in years to come, Doraville’s stupidity might be phased out.

10. Norcross

Population: 15,799
Adults Without High School Diploma: 29.4%
Teenage High School Dropouts: 8.9%

Located just northeast of Doraville, Norcross is the last place to make the list of dumbest cities in Georgia.

Nearly 3 in 10 adults in Norcross never completed high school, which is the ninth highest rate in the state.

On top of that, 9 out of every 100 teenage high school students drops out each year, which means Norcross isn’t poised to climb out of the stupid hole any time soon.

Putting a dunce cap on our analysis

If you’re measuring the locations in Georgia where there are a high number of teenage dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious, the five smartest cities in Georgia with populations greater than 5,000 are, in order: Pooler, Alpharetta, Suwanee, Kennesaw, St. Mary’s.

Alpharetta, Suwanee, and Kennesaw are all suburbs north of Atlanta, while Pooler and St. Mary’s are located in the southeastern part of the Georgia.

Other notable cities: Atlanta ranked as the 36th smartest city out of the 127 cities we looked at data for, with a dropout rate of 4.8% and only 11.6% of adults not having a GED.

Savannah is in the middle of the pack in terms of intelligence, ranking as the 62nd dumbest city in Georgia with a dropout rate of 8.5% and 14.4% of adults not having a GED.

We also wrote about the 10 drunkest cities in Georgia if you want another interesting read. Click here to read it.

Detailed List Of Dumbest Cities In Georgia

City	Rank	Population	Adults Without High School Diploma	Teenage High School Drop Outs
Cedartown	1	9,760	38.7%	15.2%
Cairo	2	9,750	31.3%	22.2%
Chamblee	3	15,835	27.1%	41.8%
Dalton	4	33,336	36.3%	12.7%
Griffin	5	23,425	26.0%	16.8%
Rome	6	36,099	27.4%	12.1%
Sylvester	7	6,180	28.3%	10.9%
Calhoun	8	15,837	33.3%	8.6%
Doraville	9	10,513	39.5%	7.0%
Norcross	10	15,799	29.4%	8.9%
Gainesville	11	34,938	27.5%	10.0%
Locust Grove	12	5,573	23.5%	16.1%
Moultrie	13	14,467	27.7%	9.9%
Covington	14	13,342	28.4%	8.5%
Commerce	15	6,535	25.4%	10.8%
Canton	16	23,841	23.4%	13.0%
Buford	17	12,864	23.5%	12.6%
Swainsboro	18	7,431	26.4%	8.7%
Adel	19	5,294	25.4%	9.5%
College Park	20	14,019	21.7%	13.0%
Cordele	21	11,177	26.3%	8.0%
Camilla	22	5,078	25.0%	8.7%
Bremen	23	6,204	18.2%	19.1%
LaGrange	24	30,138	20.5%	12.8%
Waynesboro	25	5,820	24.0%	8.8%
Bainbridge	26	12,600	22.3%	10.2%
Thomaston	27	9,068	27.0%	5.9%
Jesup	28	10,275	18.7%	13.1%
Cartersville	29	19,858	18.0%	14.9%
Thomson	30	6,682	31.7%	2.9%
Fairburn	31	13,520	17.6%	14.0%
Toccoa	32	8,327	15.9%	17.0%
Clarkston	33	7,717	37.0%	1.0%
Forest Park	34	18,783	33.2%	1.4%
Albany	35	76,946	21.6%	8.0%
Austell	36	6,944	16.9%	12.8%
Brunswick	37	15,648	22.5%	6.5%
Thomasville	38	18,558	19.3%	8.9%
Hapeville	39	6,611	22.4%	6.6%
Dublin	40	16,200	16.5%	11.4%
Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance)	41	196,551	16.4%	11.0%
Marietta	42	58,436	15.0%	12.5%
Lawrenceville	43	29,364	19.3%	7.8%
Vidalia	44	10,596	17.2%	9.5%
Garden City	45	8,924	20.2%	6.2%
Morrow	46	6,837	23.3%	4.0%
Douglas	47	11,738	24.1%	3.1%
Monroe	48	13,427	24.8%	2.7%
Lilburn	49	12,162	19.5%	6.0%
Winder	50	14,495	22.8%	3.3%
Eastman	51	5,442	20.5%	5.5%
Milledgeville	52	18,840	20.2%	5.6%
Fort Valley	53	9,448	24.4%	1.2%
Glennville	54	5,166	22.5%	3.0%
Americus	55	16,557	22.5%	2.8%
Perry	56	14,714	13.8%	9.1%
Richmond Hill	57	10,334	8.3%	12.8%
Waycross	58	14,363	21.0%	3.5%
East Point	59	35,070	16.5%	7.1%
Loganville	60	10,711	18.4%	5.4%
Tifton	61	16,589	25.1%	0.2%
Savannah	62	141,298	14.4%	8.5%
Conyers	63	15,456	17.6%	5.7%
Smyrna	64	52,922	9.7%	10.8%
Eatonton	65	6,489	24.1%	0.6%
Dallas	66	12,129	15.4%	7.1%
Union City	67	20,200	15.4%	6.9%
Fayetteville	68	16,323	6.9%	11.7%
Hawkinsville	69	5,588	21.1%	1.5%
Sandersville	70	5,839	19.7%	2.8%
Valdosta	71	56,324	17.2%	5.3%
Lovejoy	72	6,433	12.9%	7.1%
Carrollton	73	25,138	21.9%	0.7%
Hampton	74	7,092	17.9%	4.0%
Fort Oglethorpe	75	9,368	17.9%	3.3%
Snellville	76	18,939	7.0%	9.3%
Fitzgerald	77	9,054	19.8%	1.3%
Warner Robins	78	71,359	12.0%	6.2%
Newnan	79	34,457	14.4%	5.6%
Columbus	80	198,247	14.5%	5.3%
McRae	81	5,762	21.2%	0.0%
Stockbridge	82	26,992	11.5%	6.0%
Brookhaven	83	50,181	12.6%	5.6%
Cusseta-Chattahoochee County unified government	84	11,846	7.0%	8.2%
Auburn	85	7,388	17.4%	2.1%
Sandy Springs	86	98,480	5.5%	8.9%
Cumming	87	5,538	17.9%	1.6%
LaFayette	88	7,105	18.2%	1.1%
McDonough	89	22,560	9.6%	5.8%
Folkston	90	5,233	17.9%	1.1%
Villa Rica	91	14,266	14.3%	3.7%
Atlanta	92	440,641	11.6%	4.8%
Peachtree Corners	93	39,381	6.5%	7.3%
Grovetown	94	12,179	18.5%	0.0%
Riverdale	95	15,496	18.2%	0.0%
Sugar Hill	96	19,688	10.6%	5.0%
Woodstock	97	25,672	4.9%	6.7%
Hinesville	98	34,253	8.8%	4.6%
Statesboro	99	29,630	14.1%	1.8%
Athens-Clarke County unified government (balance)	100	118,514	14.5%	1.1%
Acworth	101	21,169	9.9%	3.2%
Flowery Branch	102	6,012	4.5%	5.9%
Peachtree City	103	34,701	5.2%	5.7%
Tyrone	104	7,028	6.6%	5.2%
Powder Springs	105	14,271	12.3%	1.6%
Douglasville	106	31,573	10.4%	2.0%
Kingsland	107	16,147	7.1%	3.2%
Barnesville	108	6,617	14.5%	0.0%
Holly Springs	109	9,678	5.6%	4.6%
Jefferson	110	9,630	12.9%	0.0%
Roswell	111	92,364	6.7%	3.1%
Milton	112	34,874	2.0%	4.6%
Stone Mountain	113	5,924	11.4%	0.0%
Dahlonega	114	5,884	10.5%	0.3%
Centerville	115	7,468	10.5%	0.0%
Port Wentworth	116	6,189	9.7%	0.0%
Braselton	117	8,212	9.3%	0.0%
Dunwoody	118	47,182	6.1%	1.4%
Duluth	119	27,821	8.6%	0.4%
Rincon	120	9,273	9.0%	0.0%
Decatur	121	19,888	4.7%	1.8%
Johns Creek	122	80,979	4.1%	1.9%
St. Marys	123	17,555	7.1%	0.0%
Kennesaw	124	31,358	5.5%	0.9%
Suwanee	125	16,648	6.3%	0.0%
Alpharetta	126	60,903	3.2%	0.6%
Pooler	127	20,646	5.3%	0.0%