Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Gardiner is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C+ overall, 82nd of 142 graded towns in Maine, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is safety: crime is low: it reports less per resident than 62% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in incomes: the median household income is $72K, and 10% of residents live below the poverty line. A typical home there costs about $285K, 4.1 years of the Augusta area’s $69K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 96% of U.S. towns, with 6 places on the National Register. Gardiner’s trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile, where Maine’s towns sit at 0.7 and U.S. towns at 0.4. On history, just 21 of Maine’s 285 towns do better. Gardiner is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns.
Where Gardiner beats most towns.
Edward Arlington Robinson House
John R. Swanton
Edward Arlington Robinson House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,029 in 1810, 5,961 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1810 and 5 maps from 1892 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Gardiner is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Gardiner, 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 Gardiner.
Gardiner trades workers with Augusta and other neighbors, has home values falling while Maine’s rise and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Maine.
For Gardiner, that is against 4.8% in Maine’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. 19 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Harrison Avenue Nature Trail | 0.3 mi | 5 |
| 2. Cobbossee Stream Conservation Area | 0.1 mi | 13 |
| 3. Gardiner Common | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by RSU 11/MSAD 11. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Gardiner Area High School, with 565 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gardiner Regional Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 425 | B |
| Gardiner Area High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 565 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
Values fell 4.4% in the past year while the Maine typical home rose 1.6%.
The typical Gardiner home is worth about $285,000, 31% below the Maine typical home. 68% of households own their home in Gardiner.
| Gardiner | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 68% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,113 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The Gardiner weather station records that 69 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 81% of Maine places with climate records. The Gardiner weather station records that about 5 days a year reach 90°: fewer than most of the country, but more than 79% of Maine places with climate records.
Gardiner has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Gardiner’s July high is 79°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Gardiner has about as many jobs (2,941) as working residents, but only 344 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Gardiner for work: only 14% work in town. The average trip to work in Gardiner is 30 minutes. The top destinations are Augusta (25%), Bath (6%) and Auburn (4%).
| Gardiner | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 12% | 8% |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 14% | 15% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Maine has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Gardiner sits closer to the middle.
| Gardiner | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 11.6 per 1,000 residents | 7.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.1 per 1,000 residents | 0.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Gardiner beats the Maine average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 29% of Gardiner adults have been diagnosed with depression.
| Gardiner | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 27% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Gardiner | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 8.9% | 9.9% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.7% | 14.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Adults 18 to 34 are 25% of residents (20% statewide). Gardiner has grown 4.1% since 2020, to 6,206 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 30% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across Maine.
| Gardiner | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 17% | 18% | 22% |
| Median age | 42 years | 45 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 22% | 18% |
47% women, 53% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.7 points. Across Maine, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Gardiner | ME | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.5% | 9.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 5.1% | 8.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.3% | 8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.5% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.4% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.9% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.6% | 15.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.2% | 13.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.5% | 8.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.9% | 5.2% | 10.4% |
| High school | 35% | 30.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.1% | 18.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.2% | 10.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 22.3% | 22.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.5% | 13.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 60% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 66 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Gardiner.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Gardiner. Close and well known come first.
29 mi LighthousePemaquid Point Light
8 mi MuseumMaine State Museum31 mi LandmarkSpirit Pond runestones
23 mi GardenCoastal Maine Botanical Gardens
18 mi National MonumentFrances Perkins National MonumentPemaquid Point Light: WestportWiki, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Maine State Museum: Stilfehler, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens: CMBG editor, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Frances Perkins National Monument: Robert Reed, NPS employee (per the same source), Public domain
1 within 15 miles of the center of Gardiner
About 4 of every 100 Gardiner residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
6 places in Gardiner on the National Register of Historic Places.
20 notable people were born in Gardiner.
City in Maine, United States
Gardiner is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,961 at the 2020 census. Gardiner is a nationally accredited Main Street America community. It is included in the Augusta, Maine micropolitan New England City and Town Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Gardiner.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardiner | #82 | C+ | C+ | B | B− | C+ |
| West Gardiner | #71 | B− | C+ | — | B− | B− |
| Pittston | #92 | C | B− | — | B− | B− |
| Farmingdale | #93 | C | B− | — | B | C+ |
| Litchfield | #91 | C | B− | — | C− | B− |
| Randolph | — | — | B− | — | B− | B− |
Randolph has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. West Gardiner, Pittston, Farmingdale, Litchfield and Randolph report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Gardiner with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Gardiner grades C+ overall, better than 38% of U.S. towns and #82 of 142 in Maine. It grades C+ for health, B for safety and B− for schools.
Yes, by national standards. Maine has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Gardiner sits nearer the middle.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
20 notable people were born here, including John R. Swanton and Horace Hildreth.
