Living in Hickory, NC
Small city in North Carolina
Hickory is a small city in North Carolina, home to about 44,000 people, with 365,000 living within 31 mi. Day to day, a car is essential. Life moves at a slow, calm pace, and homes are a mix of apartments and houses.
Is Hickory a good place to live? Pros and cons
👍 Pros
- Affordable housing: a typical 3-bedroom home is about $290k and rents for $1,370 a month
- Low natural disaster risk: 4 federally declared disasters since 2000
- Low taxes: about $1,615 state income tax per resident, 0.77% property tax
- Mild summers: highs around 86°F
👎 Cons
- Fewer family amenities than most places
- Quieter on culture: few museums and attractions nearby
- Few dog parks: 1 within 9 mi
- Fewer graduates: 36% of adults have a bachelor's degree or higher
Whether it's a good place for you depends on what you value. Take the quiz to see how Hickory ranks against your own priorities.
Key facts
Living in Hickory: common questions
What is the cost of living in Hickory?
A typical 3-bedroom home is worth about $290k, and a 3-bedroom rents for about $1,370 a month including utilities. Overall living costs are below the US average (index 88, where the US is 100).
What are taxes like in Hickory?
North Carolina collects about $1,615 in state income tax per resident, and homeowners here pay about 0.77% of their home's value in property tax each year.
Is Hickory safe?
Violent crime is close to the national rate (1.1× in FBI 2019 data).
What is the weather like in Hickory?
Hickory has cool winters: winter days average around 51°F and summer days around 86°F.
Does Hickory get natural disasters?
Natural disaster risk is low, mainly from flooding and tornadoes: 4 federally declared disasters have hit the county since 2000, and FEMA expects about 0.38 deaths or injuries per 100,000 residents a year.
What is the nearest major airport to Hickory?
The nearest major airport is CLT, about 42 mi away.
How Hickory scores
Each bar compares Hickory with the other 1143 places in Best Life Fit Me. A dot shows where it sits between two ends, such as major metro and small town; neither end is better. Coloured bars run from poor (red) to excellent (green).
Places like Hickory
These places have the most similar overall profile across all 23 aspects.
Nearby
See all the best places to live in North Carolina.
Is Hickory right for you?
Answer 27 quick questions and see how it ranks against your priorities.