Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Rifle is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B− overall, 105th among Colorado's 158 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is health: residents are healthier than 74% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Its lowest everyday mark is in schools: its schools rank behind 62% of the state's. A typical home there costs about $498K, 5.2 years of the Rifle area’s $96K median household income. 19% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Rifle, where Colorado’s towns sit at 45% and U.S. towns at 29%. Rifle has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them US Post Office-Rifle Main and Rifle Bridge.
Where Rifle beats most towns.
9,172 counted in 2010 and 10,437 in 2020; an estimated 10,844 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Rifle is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 273 in 1900, 10,437 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1905 and 2 maps from 1952 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rifle, 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 Rifle.
Rifle has home values rising while Colorado’s fall, but it is a long drive from an emergency room and has lost a quarter or more of its jobs in ten years.
Its public schools are run by the Garfield School District No. Re-2. The largest public high school is Rifle High School, with 778 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rifle Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 552 | C− |
| Rifle High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 778 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
Jobs based here fell from 4,571 in 2013 to 2,668.
Most working residents leave Rifle for work: only 16% work in town. The average trip to work in Rifle is 30 minutes. Since 2013, Rifle has lost 1,903 jobs, to 2,668 in 2023.
| Rifle | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 6.8% | 18% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 6% | 8.5% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The nearest emergency room, Grand River Hospital District, is 23.5 miles away in a straight line. Within Colorado it is less healthy than 67% of the 159 graded towns: Colorado sets a high bar.
68% of adults had a checkup this year in Rifle. Rifle beats the Colorado average on 1 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 17% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Rifle.
| Rifle | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 68% | 71% | 79% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 10% | 8.1% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 27% | 35% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 26% | 35% |
| What stands out | Rifle | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.3% | 7.8% |
| More uninsured adults | 17.4% | 11.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Rifle has cold winters and warm summers, with very little rain. Rifle’s July high is 91°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
6.8 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves.
| Rifle | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.1% | 7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Centennial Park | 0.8 mi | 9 |
| 2. Davidson Park | — | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Within Colorado, it does better than 66% of towns.
| Rifle | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.5 per 1,000 residents | 2.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 13.5 per 1,000 residents | 15.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 58% of U.S. communities. Since 1993, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Rifle.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Values rose 3.5% in the past year while the Colorado typical home fell 1.3%. Home values rose 34% in five years, to about $498K, against 6% across Colorado.
The typical Rifle home is worth about $498,000, 6% below the Colorado typical home.
| Rifle | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,308 a month | $1,812 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 66% | 71% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
None within 15 miles of Rifle; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Rifle residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Colorado.
Where Rifle’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
2 places in Rifle on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Rifle.
City in Colorado, United States
Rifle is a home-rule municipality in, and the most populous community of, Garfield County, Colorado, United States. Its population was 10,437 at the 2020 census. Rifle is a regional center of the cattle-ranching industry located along Interstate 70 and the Colorado River just east of the Roan Plateau, which dominates the western skyline of the town. The town was founded in 1882 by Abram Maxfield, and was incorporated in 1905 along Rifle Creek, near its mouth on the Colorado. The community takes its name from the creek.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Rifle grades B− overall, better than 46% of U.S. towns and #105 of 158 in Colorado. It grades B+ for health, C+ for safety and C+ for schools.
Within Colorado, it does better than 66% 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 B−.
5 notable people were born here, including David L. Bernhardt and Bo Nickal.
