Bobolink, 2015
Hope’s story
Hope in pictures
Census counts: 787 in 1810, a low of 424 in 1920, 1,698 in 2020. The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 2015 and 4 maps from 1915 on.
Explore the history →HopeME
A town of 1,737. Public schools that outperform most of Maine.
Population
1,737
2025 Census estimate · +1.9% since 2020
Typical home
$393K
−0.6% in a year
Household income
$87K
median
Median age
44.6
years
Jobs based here
207
A commuter town
Is Hope a good place to live?
Hope’s best subject grade is an A for schools; its weakest is a C− for cost of living. Hope’s July high is 77°F, against 79°F in Maine’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns. Only 3 of Maine’s 285 towns score lower on history. The biggest park or preserve is Bald Mountain Preserve, at 137 acres. Hope has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Hope stand out
Where Hope beats most towns.
A growing town
Hope has grown 13% since 2010
1,536 counted in 2010 and 1,698 in 2020; an estimated 1,737 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How Hope grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Hope is from typical.
SchoolsAOpen →Cost of livingC−Open →HealthMainehealth Pen Bay Hospital 8.5 miles awayB+Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 34% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.7 of 20; 1.3% of households have no car; 2.7% of workers walk, bike or ride transitB−Open →Jobs & income$87K median household income; 207 jobs based hereB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors3 miles of trailsCOpen →HistoryC−Open →Civic life0.2 library visits per resident; 7.4 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsB+Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
ClimateSnowy winters, 77° summer afternoons, 69″ of snow–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 44.6; 47% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Hope: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hope, and how to reach them.
PowerCentral Maine Power27.4¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
Internet6 providers97% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Hope’s trash rules yet
SchoolsFive Town Community School DistrictHope2 districts serve Hope; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn Maine you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (received 21 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereHope Registrar of VotersThe town itself; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Oct 2026
ZIP code0484704847 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Hope.
SchoolsA
On state tests, Hope’s schools beat 89% of Maine districts
Its public schools are run by the Hope Public Schools. Its one school is below.
89%of ME districts it outscoresASchool Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hope Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 140 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B−
Hope has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Hope for work: only 6% work in town. Hope’s average trip to work is 20 minutes, where Maine’s towns sit at 25 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. 5.3% of residents live below the poverty line in Hope.
6%work in town
| Hope | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 5.3% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.7% | 12% | 8% |
| Median household income | $87,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Hope6%
Rockland12%
Rockport11%
Camden10%
Belfast6%
12 mi
median commute distance
207
jobs based in Hope
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
B−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 45% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthB+
Residents of Hope are healthier than 74% of U.S. towns
Hope beats the Maine average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 31% of Hope adults sleep under 7 hours.
74%healthier than U.S. townsB+Health Grade
| Hope | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 33% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 33% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 18% | 17% |
32 measures vs. Maine
1 better31 too close to call0 worse
| What stands out | Hope | ME |
|---|---|---|
| More adults seeing a dentist | 68.1% | 63.8% |
Mainehealth Pen Bay Hospital
8.5 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
Hope has snowy winters and pleasant summers
Hope has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. The January low in Hope is 12°F.
69″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter15–32°
Spring32–51°
Summer56–75°
Fall40–57°
Oct 19
typical first frost
Apr 27
typical last frost
+1.6°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B+
Inland flooding leads a low hazard risk in Hope
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 66% of U.S. communities.
34risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingHurricanesIce storms
10
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
OutdoorsC
Hope has set aside 4% of its land for conservation
3.0 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves. Hope’s trail density is 0.1 miles per square mile.
4%conserved
| Hope | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
4%
conserved · 610 of 15,178 acres
3.0 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hatchet Mountain Preserve | 0.6 mi | 32 |
| 2. Bald Mountain Preserve | — | 137 |
| 3. Mirror Lake Conservation Easement | 0.2 mi | 109 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
HousingCost of living grade C−
The typical home in Hope is valued at about $393K
The typical Hope home is worth about $393,000, down 0.6% in a year, close to the Maine typical home.
$393KZillow home value
| Hope | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 93% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,219 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Hope$393K
Maine$412K
−0.6%
value change, 1 year
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Nearby attractions
All 28 attractions →Acadia National Park and 15 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Hope. Close and well known come first.
Big draw30 mi National ParkAcadia National Park4.1M visitors a year
30 mi LandmarkFort Knox
10 mi MuseumFarnsworth Art Museum
32 mi LighthousePemaquid Point Light3 mi Ski areaCamden Snow Bowl31 runs · 836 ft vertical
35 mi GardenCoastal Maine Botanical GardensSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Acadia National Park: Plh1234us, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Knox: Unknown, Public domain · Farnsworth Art Museum: Panoramio user MementoMori, CC BY 3.0 · Pemaquid Point Light: WestportWiki, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens: CMBG editor, CC BY-SA 4.0
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Hope
18pages on Hope
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Hope
About 2 of every 100 Hope residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
A commuter town
94% of working residents leave Hope for work
Where Hope’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
207jobs based in Hope
6%of working residents work in town
12 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Hope
Town in Maine, United States
Hope is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,698 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 24 sq mi
- Elevation
- 469 ft
- ZIP code
- 04847
- Area code
- 207
Hope’s neighbors
4 towns share a border with Hope.
AppletonLincolnvilleUnionCamdenHope
How the neighbors grade
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hope | — | — | C− | — | A | B+ |
| Appleton | — | — | C | — | A | B |
| Lincolnville | — | — | C+ | — | A+ | B+ |
| Union | — | — | C+ | — | C | B |
| Camden | #28 | A− | D− | A | A | A− |
Hope, Appleton, Lincolnville and Union have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Hope, Appleton, Lincolnville and Union report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Hope with a neighbor →
Questions about Hope
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Hope, ME a good place to live?
Public schools that outperform most of Maine.
Is Hope, ME expensive?
Yes. That is 5.3 years of the area's median household income ($74,096 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.