Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Leadville gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $499K, 4.7 years of the Breckenridge area’s $106K median household income. It grades A− overall, 50th of 158 graded towns in Colorado. The low prices come with trade-offs. Its public schools trail 81% of Colorado towns on state tests and graduation. On the plus side, residents are healthier than 97% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Leadville’s July high is 73°F, where Colorado’s towns sit at 89°F and U.S. towns at 85°F. Leadville is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 95% of U.S. towns. Only 4 of Colorado’s 218 towns score higher on history.
Where Leadville beats most towns.
Leadville Historic District is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 14,820 in 1880, 2,633 in 2020. The archive holds 24 old photos and papers going back to 1879 and 4 maps from 1889 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Leadville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Leadville, 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 Leadville.
Leadville pairs an A− overall with homes cheaper than the Colorado norm, fares better on crime within Colorado than nationally and gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns.
21% of Leadville adults binge drink. Leadville beats the Colorado average on 10 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 69% of Leadville adults had a checkup this year.
| Leadville | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 18% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 69% | 71% | 79% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 26% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 27% | 35% |
| What stands out | Leadville | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.1% | 9.2% |
| Fewer adults with COPD | 3.9% | 5.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Lake County School District No. R-1. The largest public high school is Lake County High School, with 389 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake County Intermediate SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–6 | Grades 3–6 | 259 | D |
| Lake County High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 389 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
Jobs based here grew from 715 in 2013 to 1,175.
Most working residents leave Leadville for work: only 19% work in town. Jobs based in Leadville grew to 1,175 in 2023, 460 more than in 2013. 14% of residents live below the poverty line in Leadville.
| Leadville | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $86,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
1.4 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. Leadville’s trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile.
| Leadville | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.2 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.1% | 7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Ice Palace Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 10.7 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 87% of Colorado’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 2 reported in 2025, 0.8 per 1,000 residents.
The property crime rate in Leadville is 4.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Leadville | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.2 per 1,000 residents | 15.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.8 per 1,000 residents | 2.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 71% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Leadville 1.4 Wnw weather station records that 154 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 99% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 73°, cooler than in 99% of U.S. towns; January nights average 5°.
Only 3 of the 159 Colorado towns we compare have a lower January low than Leadville. Leadville has cold, snowy winters and cool summers, with very little rain.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Leadville grades A− overall with a typical home of about $499K, below the Colorado typical value; only 5 of the 31 Colorado towns graded A− or better can say that. Homes are within reach (about $499K for the typical one, B for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 28 miles.
The typical Leadville home is worth about $499,000, up 2.1% in a year, 6% below the Colorado typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Leadville. Close and well known come first.
Big draw12 mi MountainMount Elbert
26 mi Ski areaVail322 runs · 3,523 ft vertical
18 mi Ski areaCopper Mountain153 runs · 2,644 ft vertical
16 mi MuseumSouth Park City
39 mi MountainMaroon Bells
20 mi Ski areaBreckenridge157 runs · 3,193 ft verticalMount Elbert: Hogs555 (talk · contribs), CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vail: Rudi Riet from Washington, DC, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Copper Mountain: Jarrod Doll from United States of America, CC BY 2.0 · South Park City: Ken Gallager, Public domain · Maroon Bells: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Breckenridge: Ahodges7, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Leadville; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Leadville residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Colorado.
5 places in Leadville on the National Register of Historic Places.
12 notable people were born in Leadville.
City in Colorado, United States
Leadville ( LED-vil) is a statutory city that is the county seat of, the most populous community in, and the only incorporated municipality in Lake County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 2,633 at the 2020 United States census. It is situated at an elevation of 10,119 feet (3,084 m). Leadville is the highest incorporated city in the United States and is surrounded by the two tallest peaks in the state, Mount Elbert and Mount Massive. Leadville is a former silver mining town that lies among the headwaters of the Arkansas River within the Rocky Mountains. The Leadville Historic District, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961, contains many historic structures and si…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Leadville.
| Town | CO rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leadville | #50 | A− | B | B+ | C− | A+ |
| Leadville North | — | — | B+ | — | C− | A+ |
Leadville North has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Leadville North reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Leadville with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Leadville grades A− overall, better than 76% of U.S. towns and #50 of 158 in Colorado. It grades A+ for health, B+ for safety and C− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
12 notable people were born here, including June Mathis and Alphonse Burnand.
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