The 10 Worst Small Towns In Florida For 2022


Using science and data, we can tell you which teeny specks in FL are the pits.

Sam Sparkes, RoadSnacks
April 7, 2022 - 112,135 views
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Editor’s Note: This article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. Don’t freak out we updated this article for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the worst small places to live in Florida.

Most Americans have never been to Florida. However, as the people who live there know, Florida is an awesome state.

But is it all roses? Definitely not. Just like any other state, Florida has its trouble spots. This article aims to determine, using science, the absolute worst small towns to live in the Sunshine State. Don't shoot the messenger, this is all using data.

After analyzing more than 285 of Florida's smallest cities, we came up with this list as the 10 worst small towns in Florida where you'd never want to live:

So what is the worst small town to call home in Florida for 2022? According to the most recent census data, Lake Placid is the worst small town to live in Florida.

Of course, many of these cities would rank highly if they were in other states, since Florida has its stuff figured out.

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers, or scroll to the bottom to see how your town ranked.

And if you already know about the small towns, check out the best places to live in Florida or the worst places to live in Florida.

If you're looking for something more national, check out the worst cities in America or the worst states in America.

The 10 Worst Small Towns In Florida For 2022

1. Lake Placid

Lake Placid, FL

Source: Wikipedia User Ebyabe | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

1
/10

Population: 2,306
Rank Last Year: 36 (Up 35)
Median Home Value: $108,000 (57th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 24.5% (9th worst)
More on Lake Placid:  Data | Photos

2. Lake Mack-Forest Hills

Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 2,425
Rank Last Year: -
Median Home Value: $108,300 (59th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 30.5% (4th worst)
More on Lake Mack-Forest Hills:  Data

3. Moon Lake

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 4,234
Rank Last Year: 17 (Up 14)
Median Home Value: $58,800 (10th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 22.7% (12th worst)
More on Moon Lake:  Data

4. Lacoochee

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 1,690
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 3)
Median Home Value: $60,000 (11th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 50.4% (worst)
More on Lacoochee:  Data

5. Crescent City

Source: Public Domain
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 1,704
Rank Last Year: 20 (Up 15)
Median Home Value: $134,900 (93rd worst)
Unemployment Rate: 26.0% (8th worst)
More on Crescent City:  Data

6. Lawtey

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 1,054
Rank Last Year: -
Median Home Value: $83,300 (33rd worst)
Unemployment Rate: 34.0% (2nd worst)
More on Lawtey:  Data

7. Graceville

Graceville, FL

Source: Wikipedia User JohnCLain | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

1
/10

Population: 2,188
Rank Last Year: 44 (Up 37)
Median Home Value: $100,600 (54th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 9.9% (49th worst)
More on Graceville:  Data | Photos

8. Five Points

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 1,276
Rank Last Year: 19 (Up 11)
Median Home Value: $161,000 (124th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 20.7% (14th worst)
More on Five Points:  Data

9. Gretna

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 1,164
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 1)
Median Home Value: $77,100 (25th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 7.9% (77th worst)
More on Gretna:  Data

10. Chattahoochee

Overall SnackAbility

1
/10

Population: 3,125
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 8)
Median Home Value: $68,400 (18th worst)
Unemployment Rate: 6.6% (98th worst)
More on Chattahoochee:  Data

How do you decide if a place is lousy or not?

In order to rank the worst small towns to live in Florida, we had to determine what criteria people like or dislike about a place. It isn't a stretch to assume that people like low crime, solid education, things to do and a stable economy.

So we scraped the internet for those criteria, and it spit out the answer. Like magic.

How we determined the worst small towns to live in Florida for 2022

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using FBI crime data and the Census's 2016-2020 American Community Survey, this is the criteria we used:

  • Population Density (The lower the worse)
  • Highest Unemployment Rates
  • Low housing costs (meaning there's no demand)
  • Adjusted Median Income (Median income adjusted for the cost of living)
  • Education (Number of high school dropouts)
  • High Crime

We looked at cities with populations between 1,000 and 5,000 people, of which, there were a lot - 285 to be exact.

Additional note: We get the crime numbers from the FBI, which gets its crime numbers from the cities themselves. Dropout numbers are based on the adult population, not just the current graduation rates of teenagers.

This list is a scientific analysis based on real data and is completely unbiased.

There You Have It - The Worst Small Towns In Florida

If you're analyzing teeny places in the Sunshine State with the worst economic situations, where there's high crime and there's not a lot to do, this is an accurate list.

If you're curious enough, here are the best small towns to live in Florida, according to science:

  1. Vineyards (Pop. 3,407)
  2. Highland Beach (Pop. 3,907)
  3. Tierra Verde (Pop. 4,013)

For more Florida reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Worst Small Towns In Florida

Rank Town Population Unemployment Rate Home Value
1 Lake Placid 2,306 24.5% $108,000
2 Lake Mack-Forest Hills 2,425 30.5% $108,300
3 Moon Lake 4,234 22.7% $58,800
4 Lacoochee 1,690 50.4% $60,000
5 Crescent City 1,704 26.0% $134,900
6 Lawtey 1,054 34.0% $83,300
7 Graceville 2,188 9.9% $100,600
8 Five Points 1,276 20.7% $161,000
9 Gretna 1,164 7.9% $77,100
10 Chattahoochee 3,125 6.6% $68,400
11 Center Hill 1,034 13.6% $80,900
12 Bonifay 2,697 12.9% $98,600
13 Flagler Estates 3,348 11.0% $89,300
14 Pomona Park 1,179 6.1% $77,700
15 Madison 2,790 11.0% $66,000
16 Gifford 4,481 15.1% $115,700
17 Century 1,998 8.6% $55,900
18 Suncoast Estates 4,759 27.4% $70,400
19 Greenville 1,358 2.0% $39,400
20 Dade City North 2,569 7.7% $62,700
21 Bowling Green 2,910 11.7% $60,300
22 Plantation Mobile Home Park 1,653 26.8% $31,000
23 Mayo 1,526 18.8% $71,900
24 Inglis 1,768 9.2% $139,000
25 Pine Manor 4,582 16.7% $124,600
26 Moore Haven 2,302 18.0% $78,300
27 Medley 1,053 3.4% $45,300
28 Montura 3,514 3.5% $70,500
29 Interlachen 1,843 10.6% $69,200
30 Goulding 3,906 14.4% $80,200
31 Dover 3,098 5.9% $136,300
32 North Sarasota 2,289 12.0% $164,400
33 Carrabelle 2,681 8.8% $112,700
34 Weeki Wachee Gardens 1,153 33.0% $300,600
35 Chiefland 2,312 7.9% $110,100
36 Trenton 2,042 3.4% $91,800
37 Harlem 2,705 20.9% $66,300
38 Cypress Quarters 1,517 0.0% $94,300
39 Midway Cdp (Seminole County) 1,417 6.9% $117,000
40 Bunnell 2,852 4.2% $120,700
41 Eastpoint 2,521 8.6% $123,300
42 Watertown 2,381 29.2% $97,800
43 Harlem Heights 1,362 12.8% $109,900
44 Eatonville 2,399 14.2% $125,400
45 Wahneta 3,988 2.8% $58,300
46 Taylor Creek 4,337 11.6% $88,000
47 Chipley 3,590 6.9% $94,500
48 Zolfo Springs 2,149 2.0% $60,300
49 Paisley 1,301 8.9% $91,400
50 Bristol 1,062 8.2% $87,100
51 Mangonia Park 2,228 8.5% $115,700
52 Astatula 2,266 10.9% $148,800
53 Buckhead Ridge 1,455 16.6% $99,300
54 East Bronson 1,484 5.2% $113,400
55 Samoset 4,701 7.1% $117,000
56 Cross City 2,591 5.0% $80,100
57 Fanning Springs 1,187 3.3% $116,000
58 Pierson 1,491 3.5% $145,800
59 Deland Southwest 1,372 0.0% $109,100
60 Malone 2,084 2.0% $102,000
61 Sneads 2,130 12.7% $83,900
62 Manatee Road 2,100 8.2% $69,200
63 Jasper 4,157 5.2% $79,300
64 Dunnellon 2,329 9.2% $153,600
65 Hawthorne 1,500 6.9% $117,200
66 Dundee 4,738 0.6% $150,300
67 Masaryktown 1,042 4.5% $137,100
68 Lake Butler 1,492 6.9% $127,000
69 Zephyrhills North 3,636 13.0% $60,600
70 Wauchula 4,801 3.8% $76,500
71 Alturas 3,778 7.3% $108,600
72 San Castle 4,061 6.0% $152,200
73 High Point 3,966 17.2% $87,300
74 Seminole Manor 2,948 14.7% $199,800
75 Kenwood Estates 1,158 11.0% $225,000
76 Archer 1,104 3.6% $128,800
77 Ridgecrest 3,865 17.5% $225,900
78 Fussels Corner 4,780 9.4% $49,800
79 Williston Highlands 2,418 0.0% $113,200
80 North Brooksville 3,266 8.2% $175,400
81 Frostproof 3,217 8.2% $86,900
82 Campbell 2,262 8.0% $50,900
83 Pine Lakes 1,127 23.4% $101,000
84 Williston 2,718 4.4% $139,900
85 Apalachicola 2,572 7.7% $194,000
86 Clarcona 4,687 4.7% $125,000
87 Crooked Lake Park 1,591 9.5% $89,700
88 Hill 'n Dale 3,132 1.2% $83,200
89 Lake Panasoffkee 4,049 2.4% $85,800
90 Blountstown 3,273 3.3% $109,600
91 Monticello 2,259 5.9% $94,800
92 Woodville 4,077 13.6% $131,800
93 Washington Park 2,035 8.2% $201,400
94 Bronson 1,093 4.4% $114,300
95 Baldwin 1,556 6.1% $112,500
96 Cedar Grove 3,499 3.5% $93,000
97 Lake Hamilton 1,525 0.5% $178,500
98 Mulberry 4,134 9.7% $54,200
99 Webster 1,130 9.7% $202,200
100 Pine Island Center 2,255 4.7% $203,000
Download The Entire Florida Ranking Data

How Is The Area In ?

 Worst