Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,031, incorporated in 1811.
Carmel is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C− overall, 111th among Maine's 142 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is incomes: the median household earns $82K. Expect to pay for it: the typical home is worth about $329K, 5 years of the Bangor metro’s $66K median household income. Only 2 of Maine’s 285 towns score lower on the outdoors. 17% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Carmel, where Maine’s towns sit at 32% and U.S. towns at 29%. Only 28 of Maine’s 285 towns score lower on history.
Where Carmel beats most towns.
Where Carmel’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Carmel is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 153 in 1820, a low of 153 in 1820, 2,867 in 2020. The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 4 maps from 1935 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Carmel, 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 Carmel.
Carmel sends most of its workers to Bangor and beyond and has fewer 90° days than most of the country, though not than most of Maine; it also has little public open land.
Carmel has 283 jobs for its 1,442 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Carmel for work: only 6% work in town. Jobs based in Carmel grew to 283 in 2023, 94 more than in 2013. 14% of residents live below the poverty line in Carmel.
| Carmel | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.6% | 12% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by RSU 87/MSAD 23. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caravel Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 204 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests
The Bangor Intl Ap weather station, 9 miles away, records that about 6 days a year reach 90°: fewer than most of the country, but more than 89% of Maine places with climate records. July afternoons average 79.4°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 77% of Maine places with climate records; January nights average 8.8°.
Carmel has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The January low in Carmel is 9°F. About 75 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Carmel | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 9°F | 10°F | 22°F |
| July high | 79°F | 79°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
88% of Carmel households own their home. The typical Carmel home is worth about $329,000, up 2% in a year, 20% below the Maine typical home.
| Carmel | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 88% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,276 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Carmel beats the Maine average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. Among 143 Maine towns, just 10 have a higher share of adults who feel lonely than Carmel.
| Carmel | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 17% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 32% | 33% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Carmel | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 11.8% | 14.8% |
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 8.9% | 9.9% |
| More adults with obesity | 38.6% | 32.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 59% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Just 300 of its 23,536 acres are conserved, so there is little public open land in Carmel itself; its outdoors grade is D.
1.3 miles of trail in 0 parks and preserves.
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Carmel. Close and well known come first.
19 mi LandmarkFort Knox
36 mi MuseumColby College Museum of Art11 mi MuseumUniversity of Maine Museum of Art
24 mi MuseumPenobscot Marine Museum
32 mi MuseumL. C. Bates Museum
36 mi MuseumRedington MuseumFort Knox: Unknown, Public domain · Colby College Museum of Art: Colby Mariam, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Penobscot Marine Museum: John Smith, Public domain · L. C. Bates Museum: W.A. Judge, Public domain · Redington Museum: Magicpiano, CC BY-SA 4.0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Carmel
About 2 of every 100 Carmel residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
3 notable people were born in Carmel.
Town in Maine, United States
Carmel is a town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. It is part of the Bangor Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,867 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Carmel.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carmel | #111 | C− | C | — | C+ | C+ |
| Etna | — | — | A− | — | C | D |
| Hermon | #84 | C+ | C− | — | B | B− |
| Newburgh | — | — | C | — | A− | A− |
Etna and Newburgh have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Carmel, Etna, Hermon and Newburgh report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Carmel with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Carmel grades C− overall, better than 19% of U.S. towns and #111 of 142 in Maine. It grades C+ for health and C+ for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
Carmel was incorporated in 1811. 3 notable people were born here, including Myrna Fahey and Emory A. Hebard.
