Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
5.7 times the library visits per person than the typical Maine town.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Rockport grades A− overall, 26th of 142 graded towns in Maine. Its schools outperform 93% of the state's and it reports less crime per resident than 83% of U.S. towns. The trade-off is money: the typical home is worth about $588K, 7.9 years of the county’s $74K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 99% of U.S. towns, with 9 places on the National Register. Rockport’s average trip to work is 11 minutes, where Maine’s towns sit at 25 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Only 27 of Maine’s 285 towns score higher on health. Rockport's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 100% of U.S. towns.
Where Rockport beats most towns.
Conway House
Census counts: 2,314 in 1900, a low of 1,526 in 1940, 3,644 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1850 and 5 maps from 1904 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Rockport is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rockport, 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 Rockport.
Rockport has schools in the top 5% of Maine, draws workers from Rockland and beyond and is safe by national standards but not by Maine’s.
3,084 jobs are based in Rockport, 2.3 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 11.3 minutes, against 24.6 across Maine.
About one in 4 of Rockport’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Rockport has added 681 jobs, to 3,084 in 2023. 5.3% of Rockport residents live below the poverty line.
| Rockport | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 24% | 12% | 8% |
| Work from home | 17% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.3% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $87,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its A ranks #6 of the 142 Maine towns we grade for schools. Its A for schools comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $589K.
Its public schools are run by Five Town CSD. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Camden Hills Regional H S, with 757 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camden-Rockport Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 340 | B |
| Camden Hills Regional H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 757 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
29 miles of trail in 17 parks and preserves. Grassy Pond Conservation Easement, at 721 acres with 2.1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. The trail density in Rockport is 0.9 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mirror Lake Conservation Easement | 5.7 mi | 654 |
| 2. Ragged Mountain Preserve | 4.5 mi | 516 |
| 3. Grassy Pond Conservation Easement | 2.1 mi | 721 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 7.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 70% of Maine’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025, 0.3 per 1,000 residents.
Rockport’s property crime rate is 2.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Rockport | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.7 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.3 per 1,000 residents | 0.6 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
At 7.9 years of the county’s $74K median household income, the typical home (about $589K) costs more against local pay than in 94% of Maine towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living. Values fell 3.2% in the past year while the Maine typical home rose 1.6%.
The typical Rockport home is worth about $589,000, 43% above the Maine typical home. 85% of households own their home in Rockport.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its widest gap with Maine is tooth loss: 7.7% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.8% statewide.
Rockport beats the Maine average on 9 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. Only 8 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a lower share of adults who report frequent mental distress than Rockport.
| Rockport | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 33% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 18% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 33% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 33% |
| What stands out | Rockport | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.7% | 14.8% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.7% | 10.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.4% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 80% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The W Rockport 1 Nnw weather station records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 96% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 75°, cooler than in 98% of U.S. towns; January nights average 13.5°. The W Rockport 1 Nnw weather station records that 69 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 85% of Maine places with climate records.
Rockport has cold, snowy winters and cool summers, with plenty of rain. Only 5 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a lower July high than Rockport.
| Rockport | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 75°F | 79°F | 85°F |
| January low | 14°F | 10°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Rockport. Close and well known come first.
Big draw23 mi National ParkAcadia National Park4.1M visitors a year
31 mi LandmarkFort Knox
5 mi MuseumFarnsworth Art Museum
31 mi LighthousePemaquid Point Light4 mi Ski areaCamden Snow Bowl31 runs · 836 ft vertical
38 mi LighthouseBass Harbor Head LightAcadia 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 · Bass Harbor Head Light: G. Edward Johnson, CC BY-SA 3.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Rockport
About 5 of every 100 Rockport residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maine.
Where Rockport’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
9 places in Rockport on the National Register of Historic Places.
Town in Maine, United States
Rockport is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States. It is 35 miles (56.3 km) southeast of Augusta. The population was 3,644 at the 2020 census. Rockport is a popular tourist destination and art colony.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Rockport.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Camden (A−) comes closest. Warren next door grades lower for schools (C to Rockport’s A) and higher for cost of living (C+ to D).
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rockport | #26 | A− | D | A− | A | A− |
| Camden | #28 | A− | D− | A | A | A− |
| Rockland | #94 | C | C− | B− | C | B+ |
| North Haven | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Warren | #81 | C+ | C+ | — | C | B |
Warren reports no FBI crime data of its own. North Haven isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Rockport with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Rockport grades A− overall, better than 78% of U.S. towns and #26 of 142 in Maine. It grades A− for health, A− for safety and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
