Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 8,606, settled in 1853.
The typical home is worth about , years of the Manhattan metro’s $65K median household income. Overall it grades C, 115th of 150 graded towns in Kansas. It is healthier than 82% of U.S. towns and natural-hazard risk is low. Its weakest subject is incomes: the median household income is $54K, and 11% of residents live below the poverty line. Fort Riley’s average trip to work is 8 minutes, below both the Kansas town median (20 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). On cost of living, just 1 of Kansas’ 373 towns do worse. Fort Riley is more walkable than 68% of U.S. towns.
Where Fort Riley beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Fort Riley | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 0.9% | 8.1% |
Barbara Babcock7,761 counted in 2010 and 9,230 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kansas), ordered by how far Fort Riley is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1853, comes before those of 97% of the Kansas towns we grade with a known year.
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1866 and 4 maps from 1947 on.
Fort Riley is unincorporated, so Geary County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Fort Riley.
Fort Riley has less cancer than most of Kansas, carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of Kansas (mostly tornadoes) and has more 90° days than most of the country, though not than most of Kansas.
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its widest gap with Kansas is cancer: 0.9% of its 7,550 adults have had cancer, against 8.1% statewide. Against the 7,229 U.S. towns with household incomes like Fort Riley’s, it is healthier than 99%, so its A− isn’t only a matter of income.
2.4% of Fort Riley adults have diabetes. Of the 150 Kansas towns we compare, none has a lower share of adults who have obesity than Fort Riley. 13% of Fort Riley adults have high blood pressure.
| Fort Riley | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 2.4% | 11% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 8% | 13% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 16% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 35% | 35% |
| What stands out | Fort Riley | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 0.9% | 8.1% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 1.2% | 6.4% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 12.2% | 7.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 99% of Kansas towns; that rating is what its A− for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in Fort Riley is 16 of 100.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Fort Riley has 243 jobs for its 843 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here fell from 706 in 2013 to 243.
Most working residents leave Fort Riley for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Fort Riley fell to 243 in 2023, 463 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Manhattan (11%), Junction City (10%) and Wichita (10%).
| Fort Riley | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 1.7% | 15% | 8% |
| Median household income | $54,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Manhattan weather station, 14 miles away, records that about 59 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 82% of Kansas places with climate records.
Fort Riley has chilly winters and warm summers. Fort Riley’s July high is 90°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Fort Riley. Close and well known come first.
25 mi MuseumDwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home
3 mi MuseumU.S. Cavalry Museum13 mi Zoo & aquariumSunset Zoo
14 mi MuseumFlint Hills Discovery CenterDwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home: Unknown, Public domain · U.S. Cavalry Museum: US Army, Public domain · Flint Hills Discovery Center: Kgwo1972, CC BY-SA 3.0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Fort Riley
About 5 of every 100 Fort Riley residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Kansas.
Where Fort Riley’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
18 notable people were born in Fort Riley.
Army installation in Kansas, US
Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Geary and Riley counties. The Fort consists of six functional areas, including the Main Post, Camp Funston, Marshall Army Airfield (MAAF), Camp Whitside, Camp Forsyth, and Custer Hill. The portion of the fort that contains housing development is part of the Fort Riley census-designated place, with a residential population of 9,230 as of the 2020 census. The ZIP Code is 66442.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Fort Riley.
| Town | KS rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Riley | #115 | C | D− | — | B− | A− |
| Milford Township | — | — | C | — | B− | B− |
| Madison Township | — | — | C | — | B | — |
Milford Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Fort Riley, Milford Township and Madison Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Madison Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Fort Riley with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Fort Riley grades C overall, better than 25% of U.S. towns and #115 of 150 in Kansas. It grades A− for health and B− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
18 notable people were born here, including Barbara Babcock and Johnny Damon.
