Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,545, settled in 1885.
Hugoton gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $162K for a typical one, or 2.5 years of the county’s $64K median household income. It grades C overall, 106th among Kansas's 150 graded towns. The low prices come with trade-offs. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 88% of the country, and the median household income is $63K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, natural-hazard risk is low. 47% of working residents work locally in Hugoton, above both the Kansas town median (15%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). Among 86 Kansas towns, just 3 have a lower property crime rate than Hugoton.
Where Hugoton beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kansas), ordered by how far Hugoton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 136 in 1890, a low of 54 in 1900, 3,747 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 1881 and 2 maps from 1974 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hugoton, 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 Hugoton.
38% of Hugoton adults get no exercise outside work. Hugoton beats the Kansas average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 15. 18% of Hugoton adults smoke cigarettes.
| Hugoton | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 26% | 25% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 8.9% | 8.1% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 18% | 19% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Hugoton | KS |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 21.5% | 9.9% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 23.6% | 13% |
| More adults facing housing insecurity | 18.7% | 11.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Hugoton Public Schools. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Hugoton High, with 317 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hugoton ElemLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 511 | B+ |
| Hugoton HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 317 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KS on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 97% of Kansas towns, with expected losses of about $430 per resident a year; that rating is what its A− for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in Hugoton is 19 of 100.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Typical home values rose 5.7% in the year to September 2026. Hugoton’s median rent is $931 a month.
| Hugoton | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $931 a month | $977 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 72% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Hugoton has chilly winters and hot summers, with very little rain. Only 5 of the 151 Kansas towns we compare have a higher July high than Hugoton.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The top destinations are Liberal (7%), Wichita (3%) and Garden City (2%).
| Hugoton | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 20 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $63,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Hugoton's reported crime rate is well below Kansas's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 4 violent crimes were reported in 2024.
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
None within 15 miles of Hugoton; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Hugoton residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Kansas.
City in Stevens County, Kansas
Hugoton () is a city in and the county seat of Stevens County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,747.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Hugoton grades C overall, better than 29% of U.S. towns and #106 of 150 in Kansas. It grades D for health and B for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
2 notable people were born here, including Billy Drago and Janice Pauls.