Southaven is a city in DeSoto County, Mississippi, United States. It is a principal city in the Greater Memphis. The population was 54,648 at the 2020 census, and was estimated at 57,493 in 2024, making it the third-most populous city in Mississippi and the largest suburb of Memphis by population. Southaven surpassed Bartlett, Tennessee as Memphis' largest suburb by population according to the 2024 Census estimates. Southaven is traversed north to south by the I-55/I-69 freeway. The city's name derives from the fact that Southaven is located south of Whitehaven, a neighborhood in Memphis.
History Southaven began as a village when Memphis homebuilder Kemmons Wilson (founder of Holiday Inn) wished to develop a few residential subdivisions featuring small starter homes just across the Mississippi border from what was then Whitehaven, Tennessee, an unincorporated area just a few miles south of the Memphis city limits. Memphis eventually annexed Whitehaven in the 1970s. Officially incorporated in 1980, Southaven is one of the fastest-growing cities in the southeastern United States. In just 20 years, Southaven doubled its land area, while its population tripled.
The construction of Interstate 55 through Southaven in the 1970s helped to promote growth and make for easier access to the city from Memphis, Jackson, St. Louis, and Chicago. Interstate 69, which will eventually run from Canada to Mexico, was cosigned with I-55 in Southaven in 2007.
In 1988, Baptist Hospital-DeSoto opened in Southaven as a two-story hospital. In 2001, Baptist DeSoto started an expansion project, nearly doubling the size of the hospital. In 2002, Baptist Hospital-DeSoto added an Outpatient Diagnostic Center and a Women's Center. In November 2006, Baptist DeSoto opened an eleven-story hospital tower that added 140 beds to the facility, allowing it to offer all private rooms. In addition, the new hospital tower added a new and expanded Emergency Department, more operating suites and space for future additions. It is the first high-rise building constructed in DeSoto County.
The exponential growth of Memphis International Airport (2 miles north of the city limits) in the 1980s led to increased air traffic over Southaven. The city continues to see large amounts of air traffic from Memphis International Airport, as flight paths to both north–south runways lead directly over the city. October 2007 saw the opening of Southaven's first large-scale shopping mall, Southaven Towne Center, which is located just south of Goodman Road between I-55/I-69 and Airways Boulevard. The mall is open-air with various stores and restaurants. Numerous buildings in Southaven were damaged on February 5, 2008, when an EF-2 tornado touched down during the so-called Super Tuesday tornado outbreak. Memphis television station WREG broadcast live images of the tornado as it moved through the city and into Memphis. No fatalities were reported in Southaven. By February 2011, Southaven had become the third-largest city in Mississippi. In the late 2000s, an outlet mall was proposed for Southaven. Tanger Outlets Southaven began construction in January 2015 and opened in November 2015. The mall, located near I-55/I-69 and Church Road, includes 70 outlet stores and outparcels of restaurants. Southaven was the boyhood home of noted novelist John Grisham, who also practiced law there for almost a decade, and of singer-songwriter Cory Branan.
President Donald Trump visited the city of Southaven twice, in 2018 and 2022. He held a campaign rally for Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith's special general election on October 3, 2018. Four years later, the president returned to Southaven to hold another rally (this time on the American Freedom Tour) on June 18, 2022. Both rallies took place at the Landers Center. These campaign rallies were broadcast on national television and garnered attention from news networks, including CNN and Fox News.
Data center pollution On July 21, 2025, XAI, a company owned by Elon Musk, has bought a former gas power plant site close to a new AI data center in Memphis. However, Southaven residents had complaints about noise and fear about pollution from its data center turbines. On January 8, 2026, XAI, has announced plans to build a new data center called MACROHARDRR. The company plans to spend $20 billion dollars on its behalf, making its third data center in the Memphis metropolitan area. Regulators from the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality planned a key meeting on Election Day during the 2026 midterms. The second planned data center faced opposition from its residents over concerns of pollution within the city.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.49%) is water.
The center of the city is approximately south of downtown Memphis and southwest of Memphis International Airport.
Climate
Southaven experiences a humid subtropical climate, with average annual precipitation of nearly , which is well distributed throughout the year. April is the wettest month of the year, and August the driest. The average high temperature is in January and in July.
Demographics
According to realtor website Zillow, the average price of a home as of March 31, 2026, in Southaven is $274,141.
As of the 2024 American Community Survey, there are 21,251 estimated households in Southaven with an average of 2.63 persons per household. The city has a median household income of $78,483. Approximately 12.6% of the city's population lives at or below the poverty line. Southaven has an estimated 65.0% employment rate, with 28.8% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 92.9% holding a high school diploma. There were 23,046 housing units at an average density of .
The top five reported languages (people were allowed to report up to two languages, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (94.9%), Spanish (3.7%), Indo-European (0.2%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.8%), and Other (0.3%).
The median age in the city was 36.2 years.
+Southaven, Mississippi – racial and ethnic composition Race / ethnicity (NH = non-Hispanic) Pop. 1990 Pop. 2000 Pop. 2010Pop 2020 % 1990 % 2000 % 2010% 2020 White alone (NH) 17,297 25,883 33,99229,164 92.47% 89.32% 69.40%53.37% Black or African American alone (NH) 449 1,920 10,82718,517 2.40% 6.63% 22.10%33.88% Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 40 89 12078 0.21% 0.31% 0.24%0.14% Asian alone (NH) 55 208 8331,317 Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) — 5 2554 — 0.02% 0.05%0.10% Other race alone (NH) 0 17 42182 0.00% 0.06% 0.09%0.33% Mixed race or multiracial (NH) — 201 6711,990 — 0.69% 1.37%3.64% Hispanic or Latino (any race) 108 654 2,4723,346 0.58% 2.26% 5.05%6.12%Total18,70528,97748,98254,648100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, there were 54,648 people, 20,697 households, and 14,466 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 22,328 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 54.40% White, 34.02% African American, 0.29% Native American, 2.42% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 3.49% from some other races and 5.28% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 6.12% of the population.
There were 20,697 households, of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 46.1% were married-couple households, 16.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 31.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
Of the residents, 24.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 89.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 84.8 males age 18 and over. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.9%.
2010 census As of the 2010 census, there were 48,982 people, 17,969 households, and 13,125 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 19,101 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 71.02% White, 22.16% African American, 0.31% Native American, 1.72% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 3.02% from some other races and 1.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 5.05% of the population.
2000 census As of the 2000 census, there were 28,977 people, 11,007 households, and 8,134 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 11,462 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.33% White, 6.65% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.13% from some other races and 0.80% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.26% of the population.
There were 11,007 households out of which 36.8% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 12.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.7% have someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $46,691, and the median income for a family was $52,333. Males had a median income of $36,671 versus $26,557 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,759. About 5.3% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.
Arts and culture Attractions
Landers Center Southaven Towne Center Tanger Outlets Southaven Snowden Grove Park BankPlus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove Southaven Arena
Sports
Southaven's Snowden Grove Baseball Park hosts the annual Dizzy Dean Baseball World Series, where 5- to 19-year-old divisions are represented by teams from across the country.
The Memphis Grizzlies operate their NBA G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, at the Landers Center in Southaven.
From 2000 to 2018, Southaven hosted the Mississippi RiverKings at the Landers Center while they were members of the Central Hockey League and the Southern Professional Hockey League. The team relocated from Memphis prior to the 2000–01 season and was the main tenant of the Landers Center for most of their time in Southaven.
Education Colleges and universities University of Mississippi – Desoto Northwest Mississippi Community College
Public secondary schools Southaven is served by the DeSoto County School District. Southaven High School DeSoto Central High School Southaven Intermediate School Southaven Middle School DeSoto Central Middle School
Public elementary schools Greenbrook Elementary School Southaven Elementary School Hope Sullivan Elementary School DeSoto Central Elementary School DeSoto Central Primary School Magnolia School (K-5)
Private schools Northpoint Christian School Church of God at Southaven Christian Academy Sacred Heart School (of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jackson)
Government
The mayor of Southaven is Darren Musselwhite, a Republican. He has served since June 28, 2013. The city council consists of seven members who are each elected from one of six wards, known as single-member districts, with one alderman being elected at large and representing the entire city.