Worthington, OH
What Worthington is actually like
In September 1803, James Kilbourne led eleven families roughly 600 miles from Connecticut's Farmington River Valley — a six-week wagon trip — to 16,000 acres the Scioto Company had bought along the Whetstone River (renamed the Olentangy River in 1833); Kilbourne platted a New England-style village of 164 lots around a central public square and named the settlement for Thomas Worthington, the Ohio senator and future governor who helped finance the land purchase, per the City of Worthington and Wikipedia.
The Ohio legislature incorporated Worthington as a village in 1835, and it stayed a village for well over a century — not becoming a city until 1954, after the annexation of the Colonial Hills subdivision pushed its population past the state's city threshold, per the City of Worthington. That late, gradual growth let the original village square and street grid survive largely intact even as postwar development split the school system into two high schools, Thomas Worthington and Worthington Kilbourne, per Wikipedia.
Worthington had 14,786 residents at the 2020 U.S. Census across 5.55 square miles, per Wikipedia.
Home values in Worthington
Zillow's home value index put Worthington's typical home value at $501,313 as of June 30, 2026, up 4.4% year-over-year, per Zillow.
Getting around
Old Worthington's original village square and High Street grid are walkable in the historic core — Walk Score rates the community 59 overall — but the surrounding postwar subdivisions are more car-dependent, and COTA's Line 102 bus is the main transit link south into Clintonville and downtown Columbus.
Worthington FAQ
Is Worthington a good place to live?
Its A-rated school district, historic village square and 59 Walk Score draw buyers who want an established, close-in suburb with a genuinely walkable core; Zillow's typical home value was $501,313 as of June 2026, up 4.4% year-over-year.
What's the Worthington school district like?
Worthington City Schools serves about 10,874 students, carries an overall A grade from Niche, and splits high schoolers between two schools, Thomas Worthington and Worthington Kilbourne, with a 90% graduation rate.
Is Worthington walkable?
The historic Old Worthington core around the original village square is walkable, but Walk Score rates the community overall a 59 (Somewhat Walkable), and most postwar subdivisions outside that core are more car-dependent.
Does Worthington flood?
The Olentangy River runs through the community's eastern side, near where the city was originally platted in 1803, but most residential neighborhoods sit away from the immediate riverbank; confirm flood-zone status for a specific address via FEMA's flood map tool.
Nearby alternatives*We're not ranking these — every place has real trade-offs, and which ones matter is up to you.
Clintonville
Clintonville picks up directly south of Worthington along High Street.
Upper Arlington
Upper Arlington sits a few miles southwest, across the Olentangy River.
Powell
Powell, an outer Columbus suburb, is a short drive north via US-23.
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