Lithia Springs, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Lithia Springs · Douglas County, Georgia
Population 16,138 (est. 2026: ~18,700)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + 4.57% annual growth projection

Lithia Springs, Georgia

Douglas County, Georgia · Population 16,644

Lithia Springs sits on the western edge of the Atlanta metropolitan area, roughly 20 miles from downtown along the I-20 corridor. It is an unincorporated community and Census-Designated Place within Douglas County — meaning it functions like a town without operating as one legally. The name traces to mineral springs that drew visitors in the 19th century; today the draw is proximity to Atlanta jobs at suburban prices. It is younger, more diverse, and more renter-heavy than the county averages suggest, and it carries the compressed economic pressures common to communities that serve as affordable staging grounds for a major metro.

People & Demographics

Lithia Springs holds 16,644 residents, representing about 11.5% of Douglas County's 144,237 people. The median age is 32.4 — notably young. The racial composition reflects a genuinely diverse community: 7,776 residents identify as Black, 5,541 as White, and 288 as Asian. The Hispanic and Latino population stands at 3,690, a significant share of the total. Of 6,727 total households, 3,772 are family households. The average household size is 2.38, and 3,824 residents are children under 18 — nearly a quarter of the population.

Economy & Employment

The median household income is $50,694, and per capita income sits at $26,844. Both figures fall below Georgia's broader income benchmarks, reflecting a workforce that commutes into Atlanta-area employment centers rather than one anchored by high-wage local employers. Of 8,520 residents in the labor force, 369 are unemployed — an unemployment rate around 4.3%. The poverty count stands at 3,043 residents, roughly 19% of the population — a meaningful share that shapes demand for local services.

Housing

Lithia Springs has 7,333 total housing units. Of those, 6,727 are occupied and 606 are vacant — a vacancy rate near 8.3%. The owner-renter split tells a clear story: 3,864 units are renter-occupied compared to 2,863 owner-occupied, making this a majority-renter community. That is unusual for a suburban setting and signals that Lithia Springs absorbs households priced out of homeownership closer to Atlanta. The median home value is $171,600 — low by metro standards — while median gross rent runs $1,230 per month. For renters spending that amount on a $26,844 per capita income, housing costs consume a substantial portion of household budgets.

Schools

Public schools serving Lithia Springs fall within Douglas County School System. The anchor institution is Lithia Springs Comprehensive High School, a grades 9–12 campus with 1,494 students — one of the larger high schools in the county. Feeding into it:

Combined elementary enrollment across six schools exceeds 2,800 students. The presence of D.E.L.T.A. STEAM Academy signals a district investment in specialized programming at the elementary level.

Among residents 25 and older (9,808 total), 2,434 hold a high school diploma as their highest credential, 1,724 hold a bachelor's degree, 795 hold a master's degree, and 78 hold a doctorate.

Getting Around

Lithia Springs is car-dependent. Of 7,979 workers, 5,839 drive alone and 903 carpool. Only 114 use public transit and 60 walk to work. A notable 810 work from home. The aggregate travel time for all workers totals 208,345 minutes — averaging roughly 26 minutes per commute, consistent with Atlanta exurban patterns. The I-20 corridor is the primary artery connecting residents to employment in Atlanta and the broader metro.

Healthcare

WellStar Douglas Medical Center serves as the county's primary hospital. WellStar's Douglas campus is the closest full-service hospital for Lithia Springs residents. For a searchable directory of individual healthcare providers registered in Lithia Springs, the CMS National Provider Identifier registry can be queried directly: NPI Registry — Lithia Springs, GA providers.

Library

The Betty C. Hagler/Lithia Springs Public Library serves the community as part of the Douglas County Public Library system. Phone: (770) 944-5931.

Parks & Recreation

Three National Park Service units sit within reasonable distance of Lithia Springs:

These three NPS units give Lithia Springs residents access to Civil War history, national civil rights heritage, and river recreation without leaving the immediate region.

Natural Hazards

Douglas County has accumulated fifteen FEMA disaster declarations since 1995 — a frequency that reflects both Georgia's weather exposure and the county's location in a zone that sees severe storms, flooding, and occasional hurricane-track remnants. Declared events include:

Winter storms, flooding, and hurricane remnants are the primary recurring threats. Residents should maintain preparedness for both rapid-onset flooding and ice events.

Government & Municipal Code

Lithia Springs is a Census-Designated Place, not an incorporated municipality, which limits the scope of local governance compared to a chartered city. The municipal code is published through Municode and available at library.municode.com/ga/lithia-springs-cdp-georgia. No local building code is on file for this jurisdiction — building and development standards are administered at the Douglas County level.

Weather

The National Weather Service forecast for Lithia Springs is available at forecast.weather.gov. Active weather alerts can be checked at alerts.weather.gov. The nearest observation station is Lithia Springs 1.8 S, approximately 1.9 miles from the community center.

References

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)