Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Ellis’ subject grades are an A− for history and a B for health; the weakest is a C− for hazard risk. 33% of residents are under 18 in Ellis, where Kansas’ towns sit at 24% and U.S. towns at 22%. On hazard risk, just 34 of Kansas’ 373 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Ellis Congregational Church and Walter P. Chrysler House. Ellis has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Ellis beats most towns.
Where Ellis’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kansas), ordered by how far Ellis is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 120 in 1870, a peak of 2,649 in 1950, 1,958 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1903 and 4 maps from 1893 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Ellis, 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 Ellis.
Its public schools are run by the Ellis school district. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington ElemLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 182 | A |
| Ellis Jr/Sr HighLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 161 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KS on state tests and graduation
Most working residents leave Ellis for work: only 15% work in town. 21% of residents live below the poverty line in Ellis, against 9.1% in Kansas’ towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Jobs based in Ellis fell to 531 in 2023, 88 fewer than in 2013.
| Ellis | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 21% | 9.1% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 15% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The typical Ellis home is worth about $165,000, up 2.9% in a year, 33% below the Kansas typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 74% of U.S. communities. Since 1993, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Ellis.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Ellis’ median age is 35.3 years. 32% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across Kansas.
| Ellis | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 35.3 years | 38.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 32% | 29% | 29% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.1 points. Across Kansas, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Ellis | KS | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 16.9% | 12.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 15.9% | 11.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.6% | 10.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.3% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 16.8% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.9% | 11.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.6% | 12.2% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.3% | 10.1% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.6% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.5% | 8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.3% | 25.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.5% | 21.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20.9% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 10.8% | 13.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,900, single groups can be off by several points
Ellis has chilly winters and hot summers. The July high in Ellis is 93°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Ellis tracks Kansas closely on all 32 CDC measures. 18% of Ellis adults binge drink.
| Ellis | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 16% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 31% | 33% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 22% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 37% | 35% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Memorial Park | 0.1 mi | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Ellis
About 5 of every 100 Ellis residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Kansas.
4 places in Ellis on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in Ellis County, Kansas
Ellis is a city in Ellis County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 1,958.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
That is 2.6 years of the area's median household income ($63,084 across the Hays, KS area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
