Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 12,709.
Cottonwood's standout: it has 67 miles of trail and 66% conserved land. Overall it grades C−, 106th of 139 graded towns in Arizona. Its weakest subject is incomes: the median household income is $48K, and 19% of residents live below the poverty line. 37% of residents are 65 or older in Cottonwood, above both the Arizona town median (22%) and the median of U.S. towns (18%). The biggest place to walk is Coconino National Forest, 7,812 acres with 31.7 miles of trail. Cottonwood is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns.
Where Cottonwood beats most towns.
Building at 826 North Main StreetEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Arizona), ordered by how far Cottonwood is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,626 in 1950, 12,029 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1918 and a map from 1973 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Cottonwood, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Cottonwood.
Cottonwood fares better on crime within Arizona than nationally, keeps more of its land conserved than most of Arizona and has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns.
Its 11,740 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 95% of Arizona towns.
Cottonwood’s trail density is 2.4 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Coconino National Forest | 31.7 mi | 7,812 |
| 2. Riverfront Park | 3.3 mi | 101 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Mingus Union High School District. Two of its 13 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Mingus Union High School, with 1,165 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cottonwood Community SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 430 | D |
| Mingus Union High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,165 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AZ on state tests and graduation
People 65 and older are 37% of residents (19% statewide); children under 18 are 11% of residents (22% statewide). The median age in Cottonwood is 54.7 years. Cottonwood has grown 5.2% since 2020, to 12,709 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Cottonwood | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 11% | 21% | 22% |
| Median age | 54.7 years | 41.8 years | 40.5 years |
55% women, 45% men
About 82 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.9 points). Across Arizona, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Cottonwood | AZ | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.7% | 11.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 5.2% | 10.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.3% | 9.4% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8.5% | 13.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.9% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.7% | 12% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 17.4% | 10.8% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 19.4% | 8.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.2% | 10.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24% | 23.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 27.4% | 23.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11% | 9.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.1% | 20.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 9.4% | 13% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The Tuzigoot weather station records that about 128 days a year reach 90°, more than in 98% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 99.3°, hotter than in 99% of U.S. towns; January nights average 30.5°.
Cottonwood has mild winters and hot summers, with very little rain. About 1 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Cottonwood | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 99°F | 100°F | 85°F |
| January low | 31°F | 37°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Cottonwood has about as many jobs (5,225) as working residents, but only 1,141 people both live and work here. The average commute takes 19 minutes, against 25.4 across Arizona.
About one in 5 of Cottonwood’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Cottonwood has added 554 jobs, to 5,225 in 2023. The top destinations are Phoenix (14%), Sedona (13%) and Flagstaff (7%).
| Cottonwood | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $48,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 59% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Cottonwood.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical Cottonwood home is worth about $389,000, about the same as a year ago, 7% below the Arizona typical home. 54% of households own their home in Cottonwood.
| Cottonwood | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 54% | 76% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,120 a month | $1,206 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 19.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 63% of Arizona’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 226 to 131 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 5,192 U.S. towns with household incomes like Cottonwood’s, it is healthier than 90%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
Cottonwood beats the Arizona average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 12. 17% of Cottonwood adults report frequent physical distress.
| Cottonwood | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 31% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 14% | 16% |
| What stands out | Cottonwood | AZ |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 79.4% | 73.9% |
| More adults getting cholesterol checked | 87% | 85.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.5% | 6.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Cottonwood. Close and well known come first.
12 mi National MonumentMontezuma Castle National Monument320K visitors a year
12 mi MountainCathedral Rock
13 mi National forestCoconino National Forest
2 mi National MonumentTuzigoot National Monument86K visitors a year
18 mi Canyon & gorgeOak Creek Canyon
37 mi National MonumentWalnut Canyon National Monument153K visitors a yearMontezuma Castle National Monument: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cathedral Rock: Terrydarc, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Coconino National Forest: Adam Baker from Houston / Moscow / Toulouse (travel a lot), CC BY 2.0 · Tuzigoot National Monument: The original uploader was Jhugg at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Oak Creek Canyon: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Walnut Canyon National Monument: Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Cottonwood; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Cottonwood residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Arizona.
9 places in Cottonwood on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Cottonwood.
City in the United States
Cottonwood is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. As of the 2020 census, Cottonwood had a population of 12,029. It is located on the Verde River.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Cottonwood.
| Town | AZ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cottonwood | #106 | C− | C | B− | C | B− |
| Verde Village | #114 | C− | C | — | C | B+ |
| Clarkdale | #84 | C | C− | A | C+ | C+ |
| Cornville | #129 | D | C− | — | C | A− |
| Camp Verde | #92 | C− | B− | B− | B− | C+ |
Verde Village and Cornville report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Cottonwood with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Cottonwood grades C− overall, better than 20% of U.S. towns and #106 of 139 in Arizona. It grades B− for health, B− for safety and C for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a C−.
That is 5.6 years of the area's median household income ($69,613 across the Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
4 notable people were born here, including Junior Brown and Debra Brimhall.
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