Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,337, settled in 1882. 26% more nonprofits per person than the typical Colorado town.
Trash day: look up yoursBrush gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $293K, 4 years of the Fort Morgan area’s $73K median household income. It grades B overall, ranked 72nd of 158 in Colorado. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top, and the median household income is $73K, and 14% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, its schools outperform 80% of the state's. Brush’s trail density is 0.3 miles per square mile, below the Colorado town median (1.3) and near the median of U.S. towns (0.4). On history, just 15 of Colorado’s 218 towns do better. Brush's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 92% of U.S. towns.
Where Brush beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Brush is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 112 in 1890, 5,339 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1908 and 3 maps from 1954 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Brush, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Brush.
Brush pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices and is healthy by national standards but behind most towns in Colorado; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Colorado (mostly inland flooding).
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 95% of Colorado towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Among 159 Colorado towns, just 8 have a higher FEMA risk score than Brush. Since 1981, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Brush.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its A− for schools comes with a B for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $293K.
Its public schools are run by School District No. Re-2 Brush. The largest public high school is Brush High School, with 350 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomson Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 452 | – |
| Brush High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 350 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
67% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 52.9% across Colorado.
Brush’s median rent is $692 a month, where Colorado’s towns sit at $1,812 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month. 61% of households own their home in Brush. The typical Brush home is worth about $293,000, down 1.9% in a year, 45% below the Colorado typical home.
| Brush | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $692 a month | $1,812 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 61% | 71% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The average commute for its 2,544 working residents takes 18 minutes, against 25.2 across Colorado.
Most working residents leave Brush for work: only 19% work in town. The average trip to work in Brush is 18 minutes. The top destinations are Fort Morgan (28%), Denver (7%) and Greeley (4%).
| Brush | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Median household income | $73,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Brush has cold winters and warm summers, with very little rain. Brush’s July high is 91°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Within Colorado it is less healthy than 82% of the 159 graded towns: Colorado sets a high bar.
Brush beats the Colorado average on 2 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 13. 18% of Brush adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance. Only 10 of the 159 Colorado towns we compare have a lower share of adults who binge drink than Brush.
| Brush | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 10% | 8.1% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 12% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 18% | 16% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 15% | 19% |
| What stands out | Brush | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 15% | 19% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 73.5% | 69.5% |
| More uninsured adults | 17.8% | 11.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Museum Park | — | 10 |
| 2. Pretteys Park | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Brush
About 4 of every 100 Brush residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Colorado.
5 places in Brush on the National Register of Historic Places.
Statutory city in Morgan County, Colorado, United States
Brush is a statutory city located in Morgan County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 5,339 at the 2020 United States census. Brush is a part of the Fort Morgan, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Brush grades B overall, better than 62% of U.S. towns and #72 of 158 in Colorado. It grades B for health and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
