South Carolina Counties Map: Click All 46 Counties

How many counties are in South Carolina?

South Carolina has 46 counties. 30 states have more, and 19 have fewer.

South Carolina has 46 counties. Greenville County, in the Upstate, has the most people. Richland County holds the capital, Columbia, near the middle of the state, and Horry County (Myrtle Beach) is the largest.

How South Carolina's counties were formed

South Carolina's local units were called districts for most of its early history. The 1868 constitution turned the districts into counties. New counties were split off into the early 1900s, and Allendale County, created in 1919, was the 46th and last. Charleston, the colony's first permanent settlement, dates from 1670.

South Carolina regions and the counties in each

South Carolina's four tourism regions line up well with its counties. The Upstate is the northwest, including Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, Pickens and Oconee, at the foot of the Blue Ridge. The Midlands surround Columbia in Richland and Lexington counties. The Pee Dee is the northeast, including Florence and Darlington, and the Grand Strand is Horry and Georgetown on the coast. The Lowcountry covers the southern coast: Charleston, Berkeley, Dorchester, Colleton, Beaufort and Jasper, with the Sea Islands.

Notable places on the South Carolina county map

Sassafras Mountain, the state's highest point at 3,560 feet, is in Pickens County. Fort Sumter, where the Civil War began in 1861, sits in Charleston Harbor in Charleston County. Congaree National Park, with some of the tallest trees in eastern North America, is in Richland County, and Myrtle Beach is in Horry County.

South Carolina counties map: the biggest and smallest

Horry County is the largest county in South Carolina, with 1,133 square miles of land, about 4% of the state. That's more land than the whole state of Rhode Island. McCormick County is the smallest, at 359 square miles.

The smallest counties by land area are McCormick County (359 sq mi), Calhoun County (381 sq mi) and Cherokee County (393 sq mi).

Which counties in South Carolina have the most people?

Greenville County has the most people, about 570,745 in the Census Bureau's July 2024 estimate, or 10% of everyone in South Carolina. The three biggest counties together hold 26% of the state's 5,478,831 people. Allendale County has the fewest, about 7,551.

The most crowded is Greenville County, with about 726 people per square mile. The emptiest is Allendale County, with about 19 people per square mile. Comparing the two is a quick way to show children that a big county on the map isn't always a big county in people.

What county is Columbia in?

Columbia, the capital of South Carolina, is in Richland County. Richland County ranks 3rd of 46 by population. South Carolina is called the Palmetto State, and it became the 8th state in 1788.

Counties on the South Carolina border

Learning the edge of the map first gives children a frame to fill in. South Carolina shares a border with Georgia and North Carolina.

How South Carolina's counties compare with other states

South Carolina ranks 40th among the 50 states in land area and 23rd in population. Its average county covers about 654 square miles and holds about 119,105 people. Across the 50 states, the average county-level area covers about 1,139 square miles and holds about 109,381 people, so South Carolina's counties are smaller than usual in size. Small counties pack more names into the same space, so zooming in helps.

Landmarks for learning the counties of South Carolina

• The Upstate counties (Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson) are in the northwest.
• Richland County (Columbia) sits near the center.
• Charleston, Beaufort and Horry counties line the Atlantic coast.

With 46 counties, work one region at a time: study it with names on, then take a Practice round and stop when you've found that group. Then print the South Carolina county map worksheet to check that it sticks on paper.

All 46 South Carolina counties

Every county on the map, A to Z, with its land area and July 2024 population estimate.

South Carolina geography for homeschoolers

Pair this map with the Southeast states and capitals quiz and the US states quiz. If you teach at home, see homeschooling in south carolina, and check sc education scholarship trust fund to see whether a program may help pay for South Carolina history and geography curriculum. Each program decides what it covers.