What it's like to live in Picayune
Picayune is a small city in Mississippi with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, county unemployment below the national average, and schools with class sizes near the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Picayune deals with household incomes below the national average, commute times longer than most cities, college degree attainment below the national average, and a poverty rate above the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low unemployment in the county
- Average class sizes
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Above-average commute times
- Low college degree attainment
- High poverty rate
- Hot summers
- Very rainy — 67" of rain per year
How Picayune compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Picayune
Based on Picayune's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,862
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $37,240 a year
- 44% of Picayune renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$31,420
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $15,710
- Homes cost 3.8× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 34% below US
$931/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $931 a month. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $157,100. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $157,100 · 44% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
3.7% county unemployment
Unemployment in Pearl River County is 3.7%, a little below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Pearl River County (county-wide)
SafetyNear US average
315 violent crimes per 100k
Crime runs about typical for a city this size. Some neighborhoods are safer than others, and one overall rate doesn't tell the whole story, so a neighborhood-level look matters more than the headline stat.
Property crime 1825/100k · Picayune Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▲ 23% above US
32 min average commute
Traffic is a real factor here. The 32.1 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 6% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are hot and humid, with highs regularly hitting 91°F, and winters are chilly but manageable, with lows around 39°F. It's a wet climate overall.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 1.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 55% below US
16% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
9 public schools inside the boundary
There are 9 public schools inside the boundary and 1 private school. The student-to-teacher ratio is 15:1, close to the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park (46 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Picayune's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and commute times longer than most cities. A year of median rent ($931/mo) equals 27% of the median household income here, more than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget. It may be a harder fit for people who dread long commutes.
Other places near Picayune
All Mississippi guides →Moving to Long Beach →
33 mi away · pop. 17,009
Rent $1,215/mo · Income $70,332
Compare with Picayune →Moving to D'Iberville →
46 mi away · pop. 13,203
Rent $1,249/mo · Income $66,016
Compare with Picayune →Not sure Picayune is the one?
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