Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Harpswell grades B+ overall, 34th of 142 graded towns in Maine, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It is healthier than 85% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $96K. It also does better than most on schools: its public schools beat 78% of Maine towns on state tests and graduation. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $719K for a typical one and 7.8 times the Portland metro’s $92K median household income. 39% of residents are 65 or older in Harpswell, above both Maine’s towns (21%) and U.S. towns (18%). Its National Register listings include Harpswell Meetinghouse and Eagle Island. Only 3 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a lower share of children under 18 than Harpswell.
Where Harpswell beats most towns.
Harpswell Meetinghouse| Widest gap | Harpswell | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.5% | 14.8% |
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Harpswell Community School | K–5 | 132 |
Harpswell Meetinghouse is one of 2 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,071 in 1790, 5,031 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1757.
18 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Harpswell is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Harpswell. Close and well known come first.
14 mi LighthousePortland Head Light9 mi Ancient sitePopham Colony
13 mi LandmarkFort Gorges8 mi LandmarkSpirit Pond runestones
15 mi MuseumMaine Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum
16 mi MuseumPortland Museum of ArtPortland Head Light: Aniarku, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Gorges: Dirk Ingo Franke, CC BY 3.0 · Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum: No machine-readable author provided. Gwernol assumed (based on copyright claims), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Portland Museum of Art: John Phelan, CC BY 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Harpswell, 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 Harpswell.
Harpswell gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and has less tooth loss than most of Maine, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Maine.
At 7.8 years of the Portland metro’s $92K median household income, the typical home (about $719K) costs more against local pay than in 94% of Maine towns; that ratio is one input to its C for cost of living.
25% of Harpswell renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent. The typical Harpswell home is worth about $719,000, up 2.9% in a year, 74% above the Maine typical home. Harpswell’s median rent is $1,348 a month.
| Harpswell | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 25% | 48% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 83% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,348 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by RSU 75/MSAD 75. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harpswell Community SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 132 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Maine is tooth loss: 8.5% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.8% statewide.
26% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Harpswell. Only 5 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a lower share of adults who smoke cigarettes than Harpswell. 14% of adults binge drink in Harpswell.
| Harpswell | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 33% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 18% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 33% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.9% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Harpswell | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.5% | 14.8% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.3% | 10.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 13.4% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here grew from 326 in 2013 to 545.
Most working residents leave Harpswell for work: only 12% work in town. The average trip to work in Harpswell is 30 minutes. Jobs based in Harpswell grew to 545 in 2023, 219 more than in 2013.
| Harpswell | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 5.6% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $96,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 12% | 12% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 69% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 20 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Harpswell.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Gray weather station, 18 miles away, records that 84 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 95% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 77.7°, cooler than in 96% of U.S. towns; January nights average 14.5°.
Harpswell has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain.
| Harpswell | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 78°F | 79°F | 85°F |
| January low | 15°F | 10°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
25 miles of trail in 36 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Austin Cary Tree Farm, at 224 acres.
| Harpswell | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.4% | 4.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cliff Trail | 2 mi | 186 |
| 2. Mitchell Field | 2 mi | 105 |
| 3. Devil's Back Trail Area | 1.9 mi | 38 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
2 within 15 miles of the center of Harpswell
About 2 of every 100 Harpswell residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
Coastal flooding makes up 41% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
33.5% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, so the town is fuller in summer than its census count suggests.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
18 places in Harpswell on the National Register of Historic Places.
Town in Maine, United States
Harpswell is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States, on Casco Bay in the Gulf of Maine. The population was 5,031 at the 2020 census. Harpswell is composed of a peninsula contiguous with the rest of Cumberland County, called Harpswell Neck, as well as three large islands connected by bridges: Sebascodegan Island (locally known as Great Island), Orr's Island, and Bailey Island. Ninety-five smaller islands are within Harpswell's municipal borders. About 40% of Harpswell jobs were linked directly to maritime occupations or indirectly through recreation and tourism, according to a 2014 study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. As of 2022, Harpswell had the highest …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Harpswell.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harpswell | #34 | B+ | C | — | A− | A |
| Brunswick | #24 | A− | C− | B | A− | A |
| Freeport | #9 | A | C− | B+ | A | A |
| West Bath | — | — | B | — | B+ | B+ |
| Phippsburg | — | — | A− | — | B+ | A− |
| Chebeague Island | — | — | — | — | — | — |
West Bath and Phippsburg have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Harpswell, West Bath and Phippsburg report no FBI crime data of their own. Chebeague Island isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Harpswell with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Harpswell grades B+ overall, better than 74% of U.S. towns and #34 of 142 in Maine. It grades A for health and A− for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a C−.
