Isle of Palms vs Sullivan's Island: Prices and Commute Compared

The market, side by side

	Median sale	Days on market	Sale / original list	Sales in 12 months	Months of supply
Isle of Palms	$1.79M	66	93.2%	241	4.6
Sullivan's Island	$4.7M	108	92.1%	38	10.4

Residential closed sales, CHS Regional MLS via Flexmls, Nov 2025 – Oct 2026. Median of monthly medians; "sale / original list" includes price cuts. Months of supply under about 4 favors sellers.

Drive times

Without traffic, to…	From Isle of Palms	From Sullivan's Island
Downtown (Marion Square)	25 min	20 min
MUSC	25 min	20 min
Airport	30 min	25 min
Boeing	30 min	30 min
Closest beach	5 min	10 min

OSRM on OpenStreetMap roads, no traffic, rounded to 5 minutes, from Isle of Palms City Hall and Sullivan's Island Town Hall. Try your own addresses in the commute calculator.

Quick facts

Isle of Palms

Government: City of Isle of Palms · Charleston County; a city since 1957
Population: 4,347 · 2020 Census
2026 total millage: 240.7 mills · Tax district 24, before 4% credits
Short-term rentals: Allowed, licensed · No cap; a 2023 cap referendum failed

Sullivan's Island

Government: Town of Sullivan's Island · Charleston County
Population: 1,891 · 2020 Census
2026 total millage: 275.0 mills · Tax district 23, before 4% credits
Rentals: 28-night minimum · Shorter stays are illegal

The honest trade-offs

Isle of Palms

Pros

Wide beaches with a county park, free right-of-way parking and more than 50 public access paths.
Short-term rentals are allowed with a license and no cap.
A fresh 2026 renourishment adds sand and dunes along the whole oceanfront.
Lower total millage than Sullivan's Island next door.

Cons

High flood and wind exposure, with VE zones and wind pool Zone 1 deductibles.
Erosion at Wild Dunes and Breach Inlet keeps coming back.
Summer weekend traffic on the IOP Connector and paid parking near Front Beach.
A large share of homes are rentals or second homes, so many streets turn over weekly.

Sullivan's Island

Pros

No vacation rentals, so no weekly guest turnover next door.
Fort Moultrie, a walkable Middle Street and wide beaches with free parking.
Strong historic preservation and design review protect the island's look.
Close to Mount Pleasant over the Ben Sawyer Bridge.

Cons

No short-term rental income; leases must be 28 nights or longer.
Very few homes sell, so choices are thin and prices are hard to read.
Every property is in a high-risk flood zone, plus wind pool Zone 1 exposure.
Higher total millage than Isle of Palms, and design review adds time to projects.

Common questions

Is Sullivan's Island more expensive than Isle of Palms?

Yes. The median sale over Nov 2025 – Oct 2026 was about $4.7M in Sullivan's Island, against about $1.79M in Isle of Palms.

Which is closer to downtown Charleston, Isle of Palms or Sullivan's Island?

Sullivan's Island, at about 20 minutes without traffic, against about 25 from Isle of Palms. Rush hour can add half again or more.

Do homes sell faster in Isle of Palms or Sullivan's Island?

Over Nov 2025 – Oct 2026, homes averaged about 66 days on market in Isle of Palms and about 108 in Sullivan's Island. That's an average across all price points; it varies a lot by neighborhood and price.

Read the full guides

Living in Isle of Palms: taxes, flood zones, schools and what your money buys
Living in Sullivan's Island: taxes, flood zones, schools and what your money buys
Which Charleston area fits you? (quiz)

Sources

The facts, pros and cons above come from my two guides, where every claim is sourced. A few of those sources: