Financial Literacy in Charleston County, South Carolina

With a population of roughly 431,001, Charleston County, South Carolina is the 2nd-largest of 46 counties in South Carolina. The population has grown 5.1% since 2020, from 409,958 to 431,001. The median age is 39.

49% of Charleston County residents 25 and older have completed a bachelor's degree or more. That runs 29.5 points above the South Carolina average of 19.5%. Put the other way round: of the 298,970 adults 25 and over counted in the 2019–2023 ACS, roughly 152,475 — 51% — are building their financial lives without a four-year degree behind them.

The typical household here earns $84,320 a year. That is $31,760 above the South Carolina median. About 11.6% of residents live below the poverty line. The median home is valued at $450,800 — about 5.3× the median household income, a ratio that makes the arithmetic of a mortgage worth understanding before signing one.

Charleston County by the numbers

Measure	Value
Population (2024)	431,001
Change since 2020	+5.1%
Median household income	$84,320
Adults 25+ with a bachelor’s degree	49%
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma	92.9%
Median age	39
Poverty rate	11.6%
Unemployment rate	3.6%
Median home value	$450,800
Land area	918.165 sq mi
Population density	469 / sq mi

What South Carolina teaches — and to whom

South Carolina has committed to 1 semester of personal finance as a graduation requirement, phasing in with the class of 2027 — so today's middle schoolers will be the first cohort held to it. That covers students still in the system. It does nothing for the adults already out of it — which, in Charleston County, is most of the people reading this.

LearnLife organises this the way the decisions actually arrive: Emotional regulation — the self-management that decides whether the other skills ever get used; Money — budgeting, credit, debt and taxes — the mechanics nobody is formally taught; Legal literacy — leases, contracts, employment rights and what a signature actually commits you to.

Where to start in Charleston County

Learn the mortgage arithmetic first

Homes in Charleston County run about 5.3× median household income — well past the 3× rule of thumb. That makes amortisation, escrow, PMI and the true cost of a rate difference the most valuable arithmetic a resident can learn before signing anything.

Questions people ask about Charleston County

Do high school students in Charleston County, South Carolina have to take a personal finance class?

Yes — South Carolina has adopted a standalone requirement, phasing in with the graduating class of 2027. Students graduating before then are not covered.

How many adults in Charleston County, South Carolina have a college degree?

49% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor's degree or higher, based on the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey. The remaining 51% are managing their finances without one.

What is the median household income in Charleston County, South Carolina?

$84,320, per the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey.

Where can adults in Charleston County, South Carolina learn personal finance?

Graduation requirements only ever reach people still in school. For adults, LearnLife covers the same ground on demand — money, legal literacy and the self-management that decides whether either gets used.

Start with whichever one is costing you money right now.

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Population and demographic figures: U.S. Census Bureau — 2024 Gazetteer, Vintage 2024 Population Estimates, and the American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-year estimates. Graduation-requirement status: NGPF Live U.S. Dashboard, read 2026-09-14. Figures marked as unavailable are suppressed by the Census Bureau for small populations.