Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Parker's standout: natural-hazard risk is low. Overall it grades C−, ranked 98th of 139 in Arizona. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 81% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is incomes: the median household income is $66K, and 13% of residents live below the poverty line. Parker’s average trip to work is 11 minutes, below both Arizona’s towns (24 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Parker Jail is on the National Register of Historic Places. Among 140 Arizona towns, just 5 have a higher July high than Parker.
Where Parker beats most towns.
Parker Jail3,083 counted in 2010 and 3,417 in 2020; an estimated 3,394 in 2025.
Growth has leveled off: within 1% of 2020, after 10.8% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Arizona), ordered by how far Parker is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for hazard risk (better than 99% of comparable towns) to D for jobs and income (better than 14%), so the C− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 420 in 1910, 3,417 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1914 and 2 maps from 1943 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Parker, 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 Parker.
Parker carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of Arizona (mostly inland flooding), fares better on crime within Arizona than nationally and keeps more of its land conserved than most of Arizona.
Its 12,449 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 99% of Arizona towns.
2.1 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Parker’s trail density is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Western Park | — | 7 |
| 2. Pop Harvey Park | — | 4 |
| 3. Parker Main Street Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Parker Unified School District. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Parker High School, with 478 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blake Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 379 | – |
| Parker High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 478 | D |
NCES · EDFacts
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 100% of Arizona towns, with expected losses of about $218 per resident a year; that rating is what its A+ for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in Parker is 3 of 100. Since 1983, 27 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Parker.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Parker weather station, 9 miles away, records that about 185 days a year reach 90°, more than in 100% of U.S. towns. January nights average 41.9°, milder than in 95% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 108.5°.
Parker has warm winters and scorching summers, with very little rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 24.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 56% of Arizona’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Parker has about as many jobs (1,618) as working residents, but only 503 people both live and work here. The average commute takes 11.2 minutes, against 25.4 across Arizona.
About one in 4 of Parker’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Phoenix (7%), Bluewater (5%) and Lake Havasu City (3%). Half commute less than 2 miles.
| Parker | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 28% | 10% | 8% |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 7.1 years of the county’s $49K median household income, the typical home (about $350K) costs more against local pay than in 82% of Arizona towns; that ratio is one input to its C for cost of living.
The typical Parker home is worth about $350,000, down 2.3% in a year, 16% below the Arizona typical home. 61% of Parker households own their home.
| Parker | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 61% | 76% | 73% |
| Median rent | $964 a month | $1,206 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 10,127 U.S. towns with household incomes like Parker’s, it is healthier than 67%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
Parker beats the Arizona average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 7. 71% of adults had a checkup this year in Parker.
| Parker | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 75% | 79% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 12% | 8.1% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 37% | 35% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Parker | AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.1% | 8.8% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 9.9% | 7.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Parker; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Parker residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Arizona.
88.9% of the town is conserved land, across 3 parks and preserves.
Town in Arizona
Parker (Mojave 'Amat Kuhwely, formerly 'Ahwe Nyava) is a town in and the county seat of La Paz County, Arizona, United States, on the Colorado River in Parker Valley. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,417.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Parker.
Bluewater isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Parker with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Parker grades C− overall, better than 22% of U.S. towns and #98 of 139 in Arizona. It grades B− for health and C+ for safety. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 7.1 years of the area's median household income ($49,478 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
2 notable people were born here, including Veronica Murdock and Margaret Wood.