Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Fryeburg grades C overall, ranked 98th of 142 in Maine, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It also does better than most on safety: crime is low: it reports less per resident than 73% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $350K for a typical one and 5.8 times the county’s $60K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 94% of U.S. towns, with 13 places on the National Register. On hazard risk, just 27 of Maine’s 285 towns do worse. 12% of the land in Fryeburg is conserved, above both the Maine town median (4.7%) and the median of U.S. towns (4.3%). Its National Register listings include Marion Parsons House and Barrows-Steadman Homestead.
Where Fryeburg beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,004 in 1810, 3,369 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1772 and 5 maps from 1909 on.
13 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Fryeburg is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Fryeburg, 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 Fryeburg.
Fryeburg is a second-home town, sends many workers across the state line to Bartlett and is safe by national standards but not by Maine’s.
34 miles of trail in 20 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Major Gregory Sanborn Wildlife Management Area, at 2,458 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mount Tom Preserve | 3.9 mi | 629 |
| 2. Pleasant Pond Floodplain Forest | 2.6 mi | 521 |
| 3. Fryeburg Town Forest | 0.9 mi | 97 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by RSU 72/MSAD 72. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Molly Ockett SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 520 | C |
| Fryeburg Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 654 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
At 10.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 56% of Maine’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 7,749 U.S. towns with household incomes like Fryeburg’s, it is healthier than 55%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
Fryeburg beats the Maine average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 16. 17% of Fryeburg adults report frequent physical distress, against 14% in Maine’s towns and 14% across U.S. towns. 18% of Fryeburg adults smoke cigarettes.
| Fryeburg | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 15% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 11% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Fryeburg | ME |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 21.3% | 14.8% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 14% | 10.7% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 9.3% | 7.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The N Conway weather station, 10 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 150 days, shorter than in 95% of U.S. towns. The N Conway weather station, 10 miles away, records that 84 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 95% of U.S. towns.
Fryeburg has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Fryeburg’s July high is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
54% of working residents cross a state line to work, Bartlett among the top destinations.
About one in 4 of Fryeburg’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Fryeburg is 20 minutes. The top destinations are Conway (28%), Portland (4%) and Bridgton (3%).
| Fryeburg | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 24% | 12% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $56,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 9% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The typical Fryeburg home is worth about $350,000, up 2.7% in a year, 15% below the Maine typical home.
| Fryeburg | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $893 a month | $1,108 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 83% | 81% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 51 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Fryeburg.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Fryeburg. Close and well known come first.
Big draw24 mi MountainMount Washington
36 mi LakeLake Winnipesaukee
10 mi Scenic railwayConway Scenic Railroad
13 mi Theme parkStory Land
24 mi National forestWhite Mountain National Forest15 mi Ski areaAttitash Mountain Resort85 runs · 1,662 ft verticalMount Washington: wwoods, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lake Winnipesaukee: No machine-readable author provided. JohnJHenderson~commonswiki assumed (based o, Public domain · Conway Scenic Railroad: Pi.1415926535, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Story Land: AnotherMaker, CC BY-SA 4.0 · White Mountain National Forest: Ken Gallager at English Wikipedia, Public domain
None within 15 miles of Fryeburg; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Fryeburg residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
13 places in Fryeburg on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Fryeburg.
Town in Maine, United States
Fryeburg is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,369 at the 2020 census. It contains the census-designated place of the same name. Fryeburg is home to Fryeburg Academy, a semi-private preparatory school, and the International Musical Arts Institute. The town is also site of the Fryeburg Fair, which each October attracts approximately 300,000 visitors.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Fryeburg.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fryeburg | #98 | C | C | B+ | C+ | C |
| Bridgton | #116 | C− | B− | — | C− | B− |
| Denmark | — | — | C | — | C+ | C+ |
| Brownfield | — | — | D | — | C+ | C+ |
| Stow | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sweden | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Denmark and Brownfield have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Bridgton, Denmark and Brownfield report no FBI crime data of their own. Stow and Sweden aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Fryeburg with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Fryeburg grades C overall, better than 27% of U.S. towns and #98 of 142 in Maine. It grades C for health, B+ for safety 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.
9 notable people were born here, including John W. Dana and Charles S. Benton.
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