Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Ellsworth grades C+ overall, 75th of 142 graded towns in Maine, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Residents are healthier than 78% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and it is more walkable than 76% of U.S. towns. It also does better than most on schools: its schools outperform 61% of the state's. Its lowest everyday mark is in safety: its police reported 6 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 73% of U.S. towns. A typical home there costs about $359K, 4.9 years of the county’s $73K median household income. 36% of working residents work locally in Ellsworth, above both the Maine town median (12%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). Its National Register listings include E. B. White House and Agassiz Bedrock Outcrop. Ellsworth's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 98% of U.S. towns.
Where Ellsworth beats most towns.
Black Mansion
Its founding year, 1604, is the earliest of any Maine town we grade.
Census counts: 227 in 1800, a low of 227 in 1800, 8,399 in 2020. The archive holds 29 old photos and papers going back to 1824 and 4 maps from 1911 on.
14 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Ellsworth is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Ellsworth, 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 Ellsworth.
Ellsworth draws workers from Hancock and beyond, has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns and is safe by national standards but not by Maine’s.
5,941 jobs are based in Ellsworth, 1.5 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 3 of Ellsworth’s working residents works in town. Jobs based in Ellsworth grew to 5,941 in 2023, 915 more than in 2013. 7.1% of workers work from home in Ellsworth.
| Ellsworth | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 7.1% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Ellsworth Public Schools. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Ellsworth High School, with 521 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ellsworth Elementary-Middle SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 740 | C+ |
| Ellsworth High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 521 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
30% of Ellsworth adults sleep under 7 hours. Ellsworth beats the Maine average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 29% of Ellsworth adults have obesity.
| Ellsworth | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 33% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 33% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 23% | 25% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 82% | 81% | 79% |
| What stands out | Ellsworth | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who get no exercise | 19.3% | 23.1% |
| Fewer adults in fair or poor health | 16.2% | 18.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 30.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 88% of Maine’s graded towns. Property crime runs at 23.9 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Maine rate, most of it theft.
Ellsworth’s property crime rate is 23.9 per 1,000 residents. Ellsworth reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 73% report less.
| Ellsworth | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 23.9 per 1,000 residents | 7.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.7 per 1,000 residents | 0.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Bangor Intl Ap weather station, 22 miles away, records that about 6 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Ellsworth has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Ellsworth is 79°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
31 miles of trail in 13 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Meadowbrook Forest, 1,680 acres with 7.4 miles of trail.
| Ellsworth | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 8.8% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Meadowbrook Forest | 7.4 mi | 1,680 |
| 2. Branch Lake Public Forest | 2.2 mi | 241 |
| 3. Green Lake National Fish Hatchery | 1.5 mi | 120 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 61% of U.S. communities. Since 1989, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Ellsworth.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
62.1% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.4% across Maine.
The typical Ellsworth home is worth about $359,000, up 2.6% in a year, 13% below the Maine typical home.
| Ellsworth | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,017 a month | $1,108 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Maine average. Ellsworth has grown 5.6% since 2020, to 8,862 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 39% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across Maine.
| Ellsworth | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 39% | 32% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 22% | 21% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 18% | 18% | 22% |
| Median age | 43 years | 45 years | 40.5 years |
53% women, 47% men
About 87 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3 points). Across Maine, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Ellsworth | ME | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.3% | 9.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.1% | 8.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.5% | 8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.2% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.3% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.4% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12% | 15.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.9% | 13.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.2% | 8.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.5% | 5.2% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.2% | 30.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.7% | 18.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.3% | 10.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 25.8% | 22.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 13.5% | 13.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Ellsworth. Close and well known come first.
Big draw12 mi National ParkAcadia National Park4.1M visitors a year
20 mi MountainCadillac Mountain
16 mi LandmarkFort Knox
26 mi LighthouseBass Harbor Head Light
19 mi MuseumAbbe Museum21 mi MuseumUniversity of Maine Museum of ArtAcadia National Park: Plh1234us, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cadillac Mountain: The original uploader was NightThree at English Wikipedia., CC BY 2.0 · Fort Knox: Unknown, Public domain · Bass Harbor Head Light: G. Edward Johnson, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Abbe Museum: AbbeMuseum, CC BY-SA 4.0
None within 15 miles of Ellsworth; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Ellsworth residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maine.
Where Ellsworth’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
14 places in Ellsworth on the National Register of Historic Places.
17 notable people were born in Ellsworth.
City in Maine, United States
Ellsworth is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Maine, United States. The 2020 Census determined it had a population of 8,399. Named after United States Founding Father Oliver Ellsworth, it contains historic buildings and other points of interest, and is close to Acadia National Park.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Ellsworth.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ellsworth | #75 | C+ | C | C | B | A− |
| Surry | — | — | B− | — | C | B+ |
| Trenton | — | — | C+ | — | B+ | B+ |
| Orland | — | — | B− | — | B− | A− |
| Dedham | — | — | C | — | A+ | B+ |
| Otis | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Surry, Trenton, Orland and Dedham have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Surry, Trenton, Orland and Dedham report no FBI crime data of their own. Otis isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Ellsworth with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Ellsworth grades C+ overall, better than 44% of U.S. towns and #75 of 142 in Maine. It grades A− for health, C for safety and B 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.
17 notable people were born here, including Tim Sylvia and John Hay Whitney.
