Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Calais grades C+ overall, 85th among Maine's 142 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It has 22 miles of trail. On the other side, the median household income is $64K, and 21% of residents live below the poverty line. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 99% of U.S. towns, with 18 places on the National Register. 44% of working residents work locally in Calais, where Maine’s towns sit at 12% and U.S. towns at 8%. Only 23 of Maine’s 285 towns score lower on health. Its National Register listings include Calais Observatory and Whitlocks Mill Light Station.
Where Calais beats most towns.
Census counts: 372 in 1810, a peak of 7,655 in 1900, 3,079 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1613 and 5 maps from 1929 on.
18 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Calais is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Calais, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Calais.
Calais gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and has homes that are cheap against local pay, but it has poverty well above the Maine rate.
At 2.9 years of the county’s $56K median household income, the typical home (about $161K) costs less against local pay than in 96% of Maine towns; that ratio is one input to its B− for cost of living.
The typical Calais home is worth about $161,000, up 2.2% in a year, 61% below the Maine typical home.
| Calais | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,010 a month | $1,108 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 81% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Calais Public Schools. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calais Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 250 | B+ |
| Calais Middle/High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 289 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
32% of adults get no exercise outside work in Calais. Among 143 Maine towns, just 2 have a higher share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Calais. 18% of adults smoke cigarettes in Calais.
| Calais | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 23% | 25% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 33% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 32% | 33% |
| What stands out | Calais | ME |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing food insecurity | 15.1% | 10.7% |
| More adults who get no exercise | 32.2% | 23.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.1% | 8.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The biggest place to walk is Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge: Bering Unit, 4,645 acres with 6.7 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge: Bering Unit | 6.7 mi | 4,645 |
| 2. Saint Croix Island International Historic Site | 0.1 mi | 20 |
| 3. Meridian Park | 0.1 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Maine has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Calais sits closer to the middle.
| Calais | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.5 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.4 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Robbinston weather station, 6 miles away, records that 95 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 97% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 76.6°, cooler than in 97% of U.S. towns; January nights average 11.3°.
Calais has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Calais’ July high is 77°F.
| Calais | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 77°F | 79°F | 85°F |
| January low | 11°F | 10°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 1,199 working residents takes 15.9 minutes, against 24.6 across Maine.
The average trip to work in Calais is 16 minutes. Since 2013, Calais has lost 310 jobs, to 1,674 in 2023. The top destinations are Baileyville (10%), Bangor (5%) and Ellsworth (3%).
| Calais | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $64,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 52% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Calais
About 5 of every 100 Calais residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maine.
18 places in Calais on the National Register of Historic Places.
19 notable people were born in Calais.
City in Maine, United States
Calais (; similar to the word "callous") is a city in Washington County, Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 3,079, making Calais the largest municipality by population in Washington County, but the third least-populous city in Maine (after Hallowell and Eastport). The city has three Canada–US border crossings (also known as ports of entry) over the St. Croix River connecting to St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada. Calais has been a city of commerce and is recognized as the primary shopping center of eastern Washington County and of Charlotte County, New Brunswick. Retail, service, and construction businesses are the primary components of the Calais economy.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Calais.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calais | #85 | C+ | B− | B+ | B | D |
| Baring plantation | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Robbinston | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Baring plantation and Robbinston aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Calais with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Calais grades C+ overall, better than 35% of U.S. towns and #85 of 142 in Maine. It grades D for health, B+ for safety and B for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes, by national standards. Maine has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Calais sits nearer the middle.
That is 2.9 years of the area's median household income ($56,024 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
19 notable people were born here, including Andrea Gibson and Harriet Elizabeth Prescott Spofford.
