Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Manitou Springs’s grades pull in different directions. At B overall, Manitou Springs is better than 55% of U.S. towns and ranks 86th of 158 in Colorado. Health is where it shines — it is healthier than 87% of U.S. towns. What holds it back is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $542K, 6 years of the Colorado Springs metro’s $90K median household income. Hazard risk is weaker too (D−): FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Manitou Springs’ trail density is 5.0 miles per square mile, against 1.3 in Colorado’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. No town in Colorado scores higher than Manitou Springs on history. This Colorado town is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 94% of U.S. towns.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenStreetMap · National Register of Historic Places.
Where Manitou Springs beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 422 in 1880, 4,858 in 2020. The archive holds 15 old photos and papers going back to 1870 and 5 maps from 1948 on.
13 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Manitou Springs is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 94% of comparable towns) to D− for hazard risk (better than 3%), so the B overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Manitou Springs. Close and well known come first.
Big draw7 mi MountainPikes Peak
Big draw13 mi LandmarkNorth American Aerospace Defense Command
3 mi Park & preserveGarden of the Gods
in town Scenic railwayThe Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway
10 mi Stadium & arenaFalcon Stadium
5 mi Stadium & arenaWeidner FieldPikes Peak: David Shankbone, CC BY-SA 3.0 · North American Aerospace Defense Command: Unknown, Public domain · Garden of the Gods: Dicklyon, CC BY-SA 4.0 · The Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway: Milan Suvajac, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Falcon Stadium: David Shankbone, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Weidner Field: KM Newnham, CC BY-SA 2.5
Who provides power, water and the rest in Manitou Springs, 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 Manitou Springs.
Manitou Springs has added a third more jobs in ten years and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Colorado; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Colorado (mostly inland flooding).
Conserved land makes up 13% of Manitou Springs. Trails run 16 miles in 10 parks and preserves.
| Manitou Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 5.0 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 13% | 6.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Manitou Mesa | 0.3 mi | 7 |
| 2. The Fields Community Park | — | 12 |
| 3. Deer Valley Nature Park | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The largest public high school is Manitou Springs High School, with 367 students. The Manitou Springs School District No. 14 runs its public schools. Two of the 3 schools are below, and why each made the list.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manitou Springs Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 331 | B |
| Manitou Springs High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 367 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 99% of Colorado towns, with expected losses of about $616 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
Paid flood insurance claims in Manitou Springs since 1988: 67. FEMA puts just over two thirds of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 16% to avalanches. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Manitou Springs after 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2013.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Within Colorado it is less healthy than 56% of the 159 graded towns: Colorado sets a high bar. Its widest gap with Colorado is no health insurance: 6.4% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 11.1% statewide.
6.4% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Manitou Springs. Among 159 Colorado towns, just 7 have a higher share of adults who had a checkup this year than Manitou Springs. CDC measures, 26 in all: Manitou Springs beats Colorado on 6 and trails on 4. Two figures for adults here: 25% have been diagnosed with depression, 27% have obesity.
| Manitou Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 77% | 71% | 79% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 23% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 26% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 18% | 16% |
| What stands out | Manitou Springs | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.4% | 11.1% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 15.9% | 19% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10% | 7.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Within Colorado, it does better than 57% of towns. In Manitou Springs, the rate of reported violence is 2.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Manitou Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 15.2 per 1,000 residents | 15.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.4 per 1,000 residents | 2.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Manitou Springs’ midsummer high comes in at 85°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Jobs based here grew from 1,117 in 2013 to 1,527.
For most workers, Manitou Springs is a place to come home to: only 14% work in town. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs in the town rose by 410, to 1,527. The top destinations are Colorado Springs (51%), Denver (6%) and Aurora (2%). In Manitou Springs, 11% of residents live below the poverty line.
| Manitou Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $85,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The typical Manitou Springs home is worth about $542,000, up 0.8% in a year, close to the Colorado typical home. For households in the town, the share who own their home is 62%. Manitou Springs’ going rate for rent stands at $1,283 a month.
| Manitou Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 62% | 71% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,283 a month | $1,812 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
5 within 15 miles of the center of Manitou Springs
About 7 of every 100 Manitou Springs residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Colorado.
13% of the town is conserved land, across 10 parks and preserves.
13 places in Manitou Springs on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in Colorado, United States
Manitou Springs is a home rule municipality located at the foot of Pikes Peak in western El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The town was founded for its natural mineral springs. The downtown area continues to be of interest to travelers, particularly in the summer, with many shops and restaurants, as well as a creekside city park. The main road through the center of town was one of the direct paths to the base of Pikes Peak. Barr Trail, which winds its way up Pikes Peak, is accessible from town. The subdivision Crystal Hills was added to the municipality in the 1960s. The city population was 4,858 at the 2020 United States census. Students are served by Manitou Springs School District…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Manitou Springs.
| Town | CO rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manitou Springs | #86 | B | C | C | A− | A |
| Colorado Springs | #138 | C− | C | D | C | A− |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Manitou Springs grades B overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #86 of 158 in Colorado. It grades A for health, C for safety and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within Colorado, it does better than 57% of towns.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
