Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Jefferson is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B− overall, ranked 65th of 142 in Maine, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its schools outperform 59% of the state's. A typical home there costs about $381K, 5 years of the county’s $77K median household income. Of the 143 Maine towns we compare, none has a higher share of children under 18 than Jefferson. Its National Register listings include Dr. F. W. Jackson House and Jefferson Town House. Among 143 Maine towns, just 7 have a lower share of working residents who work in town than Jefferson.
Where Jefferson beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,205 in 1810, a low of 888 in 1930, 2,551 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 1869 and 4 maps from 1913 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Jefferson is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Jefferson, 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 Jefferson.
Most working residents leave Jefferson for work: only 4% work in town. At 30 minutes, Jefferson’s average trip to work is against 25 minutes in Maine’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. 3.4% of Jefferson residents live below the poverty line.
| Jefferson | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 3.4% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 8.9% | 15% | 11% |
| Median household income | $85,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Jefferson Public Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Village SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 215 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
29 miles of trail in 10 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Hidden Valley Nature Center, 953 acres with 18.3 miles of trail.
| Jefferson | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.5% | 4.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hidden Valley Nature Center | 18.3 mi | 953 |
| 2. West Branch Preserve | 2.5 mi | 208 |
| 3. Stetser Preserve | 1.9 mi | 165 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Children under 18 are 28% of residents (18% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 35% of residents (40% statewide). At 38.1 years, Jefferson’s median age is where Maine’s towns sit at 45 years and U.S. towns at 40.5 years. Jefferson has grown 6.9% since 2020, to 2,728 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Jefferson | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 38.1 years | 45 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 19% | 22% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 28% | 32% | 29% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.1 points. Across Maine, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Jefferson | ME | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.5% | 9.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 14.5% | 8.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.9% | 8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.3% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.6% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.6% | 15.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12% | 13.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.7% | 8.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.1% | 5.2% | 10.4% |
| High school | 36.7% | 30.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.8% | 18.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.8% | 10.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15.2% | 22.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.4% | 13.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,700, single groups can be off by several points
The Newcastle weather station, 9 miles away, records that 79 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 95% of U.S. towns. The Newcastle weather station, 9 miles away, records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 96% of U.S. towns.
Jefferson has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Jefferson’s July high is 78°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Jefferson home is worth about $381,000, up 3% in a year, 8% below the Maine typical home. 84% of households own their home in Jefferson.
| Jefferson | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 84% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,120 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 55% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Jefferson since 2023.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Jefferson beats the Maine average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3.
| Jefferson | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 33% | 36% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 35% | 35% |
| What stands out | Jefferson | ME |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with arthritis | 37.2% | 32% |
| More adults with high blood pressure | 39.2% | 35.7% |
| More adults with high cholesterol | 41% | 37.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Jefferson. Close and well known come first.
23 mi LighthousePemaquid Point Light
22 mi GardenCoastal Maine Botanical Gardens
12 mi National MonumentFrances Perkins National Monument33 mi LandmarkSpirit Pond runestones
21 mi MuseumFarnsworth Art MuseumPemaquid Point Light: WestportWiki, 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 · Farnsworth Art Museum: Panoramio user MementoMori, CC BY 3.0
None within 15 miles of Jefferson; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Jefferson residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maine.
Where Jefferson’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 places in Jefferson on the National Register of Historic Places.
Town in Maine, United States
Jefferson is a town in Lincoln County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,551 at the 2020 census. Damariscotta Lake State Park, a popular Mid Coast swimming, canoeing and picnic area, is located within the town limits.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Jefferson.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson | #65 | B− | B | — | B | B− |
| Nobleboro | — | — | C+ | — | A− | B |
| Windsor | #67 | B− | C+ | — | A− | B− |
| Somerville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Whitefield | — | — | B+ | — | A− | B− |
| Alna | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Waldoboro | #54 | B | B | B+ | C | B+ |
| Newcastle | — | — | D | — | A− | B+ |
Nobleboro, Whitefield and Newcastle have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Jefferson, Nobleboro, Windsor, Whitefield and Newcastle report no FBI crime data of their own. Somerville and Alna aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Jefferson with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Jefferson grades B− overall, better than 51% of U.S. towns and #65 of 142 in Maine. It grades B− for health 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 B.
