Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Wells grades A− overall, 32nd of 142 graded towns in Maine, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Its schools rank ahead of 89% of Maine towns. It also does better than most on safety: it reports less crime per resident than 72% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: the typical home is worth about $589K, 6.4 years of the Portland metro’s $92K median household income. 31% of residents are 65 or older in Wells, above both Maine’s towns (21%) and U.S. towns (18%). Its National Register listings include Austin-Hennessey Homestead and Dorfield Farm.
Where Wells beats most towns.
Austin-Hennessey Homestead| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Wells Elementary School | K–4 | 563 |
| Wells Junior High School | 5–8 | 455 |
| Wells High School | 9–12 | 422 |
Its 20 National Register listings are more than in 95% of Maine towns with a listing.
Census counts: 3,070 in 1790, a low of 1,908 in 1910, 11,314 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1810 and 4 maps from 1891 on.
Wells takes its name from Wells in Somerset, England, 3,120 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionWells, settled in 1643, takes its name from Wells, a town in Somerset, England.
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maine), ordered by how far Wells is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Wells. Close and well known come first.
40 mi LakeLake Winnipesaukee
30 mi LighthousePortland Head Light
10 mi LighthouseCape Neddick Light
32 mi LandmarkFort Gorges
10 mi MuseumSeashore Trolley Museum
17 mi MuseumStrawbery BankeLake Winnipesaukee: No machine-readable author provided. JohnJHenderson~commonswiki assumed (based o, Public domain · Portland Head Light: Aniarku, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cape Neddick Light: Stefan Hillebrand, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Gorges: Dirk Ingo Franke, CC BY 3.0 · Seashore Trolley Museum: Rene Schwietzke from Jena, Germany, CC BY 2.0 · Strawbery Banke: Ken Gallager (Ken Gallager from en.wikipedia), Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Wells, 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 Wells.
Wells is safe by national standards but not by Maine’s and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Maine; it also has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Maine.
Its public schools are run by Wells-Ogunquit CSD. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Wells High School, with 422 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–4 | Grades K–4 | 563 | B+ |
| Wells High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 422 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
At 6.4 years of the Portland metro’s $92K median household income, the typical home (about $589K) costs more against local pay than in 85% of Maine towns; that ratio is one input to its C for cost of living.
90% of Wells households own their home. The typical Wells home is worth about $589,000, up 2.9% in a year, 43% above the Maine typical home. The median rent in Wells is $1,350 a month.
| Wells | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 90% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,350 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Most working residents leave Wells for work: only 18% work in town. Since 2013, Wells has added 647 jobs, to 3,481 in 2023. Wells’ average trip to work is 28 minutes.
| Wells | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 6.8% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $88,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
35 miles of trail in 17 parks and preserves. Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, at 1,597 acres with 1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Wells | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 14% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Wells Reserve at Laudholm | 5.7 mi | 434 |
| 2. Wells Barrens Preserve | 3 mi | 328 |
| 3. Tatnic Hills Preserve | 1.8 mi | 201 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 10.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 53% of Maine’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Wells beats the Maine average on 10 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 30% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Wells. Only 9 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Wells.
| Wells | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 33% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 33% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 81% | 79% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 18% | 17% |
| What stands out | Wells | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.1% | 10.7% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 5.7% | 7.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.4% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
People 65 and older are 31% of residents (22% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 13% of residents (20% statewide). Wells has grown 6.8% since 2020, to 12,094 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 43% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across Maine.
| Wells | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 53.6 years | 44.9 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 43% | 32% | 29% |
53% women, 47% men
About 88 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.6 points). Across Maine, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Wells | ME | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.9% | 9.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.1% | 8.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6% | 8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.2% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.1% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.8% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 17% | 15.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 17.9% | 13.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 13.1% | 8.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.3% | 5.2% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24.3% | 30.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 14.2% | 18.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.9% | 10.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27.5% | 22.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.9% | 13.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The Cape Neddick weather station, 6 miles away, records that 70 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 78% of Maine places with climate records. July afternoons average 81°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 97% of Maine places with climate records; January nights average 14.2°.
Wells has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain.
| Wells | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 81°F | 79°F | 85°F |
| January low | 14°F | 10°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
468 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 41 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 54% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 468 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Wells.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
2 within 15 miles of the center of Wells
About 5 of every 100 Wells residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maine.
Coastal flooding makes up 33% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
43.2% 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
20 places in Wells on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Wells.
Town in Maine, United States
Wells is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Founded in 1643, it is the third-oldest town in Maine. The population was 11,314 at the 2020 census. Wells Beach is a popular summer destination.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Wells.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells | #32 | A− | C | B+ | A | B+ |
| Kennebunk | #10 | A | C− | A− | A | A− |
| Ogunquit | — | — | C | B | A | A |
| North Berwick | #38 | B+ | C+ | A | B− | B+ |
| South Berwick | #20 | A− | D | A | A− | A |
Ogunquit has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Compare Wells with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Wells grades A− overall, better than 75% of U.S. towns and #32 of 142 in Maine. It grades B+ for health, B+ for safety and A 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 C.
7 notable people were born here, including Daniel W. Gooch and John Fairfield Scamman.
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