Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. York grades A overall, 7th of 142 graded towns in Maine. Its public schools beat 90% of Maine towns on state tests and graduation. It reports less crime per resident than 85% of U.S. towns and residents are healthier than 84% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $760K, 8.2 years of the Portland metro’s $92K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 18 places on the National Register. 31% of working residents work locally in York, where Maine’s towns sit at 12% and U.S. towns at 8%. Its National Register listings include Old York Gaol and McIntire Garrison House. Only 4 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a higher typical home value than York.
Where York beats most towns.
McIntire Garrison House| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Ridge Elementary | 2–4 | 332 |
| Village Elementary School-York | PK–1 | 226 |
| Brixham Montessori Friends School | PK–3 | 57 |
McIntire Garrison House is one of 2 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 2,900 in 1790, 13,723 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1670 and 6 maps from 1893 on.
18 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
York takes its name from York in North Yorkshire, England, 3,130 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionYork, settled in 1652, takes its name from York, a city in North Yorkshire, England.
1 more U.S. town is named after York:York, ND14
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 York is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around York. Close and well known come first.
in town LighthouseCape Neddick Light
37 mi LighthousePortland Head Light
in town LighthouseBoon Island Light
38 mi Ancient siteAmerica's Stonehenge
10 mi MuseumStrawbery Banke
39 mi LandmarkFort GorgesCape Neddick Light: Stefan Hillebrand, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Portland Head Light: Aniarku, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Boon Island Light: Originally uploaded by Dk69, Public domain · America's Stonehenge: User:Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Strawbery Banke: Ken Gallager (Ken Gallager from en.wikipedia), Public domain · Fort Gorges: Dirk Ingo Franke, CC BY 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in York, 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 York.
York sends many workers across the state line to Portsmouth 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.
At 8.2 years of the Portland metro’s $92K median household income, the typical home (about $760K) costs more against local pay than in 96% of Maine towns; that ratio is one input to that grade. The median property tax bill is $4,658, against $3,036 across Maine, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
York’s midpoint rent stands at $1,490 a month. A typical home here is worth about $760,000, up 2.1% in a year, 84% above the Maine typical home. The share of households in York who own their home: 82%.
| York | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,490 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 82% | 81% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
That grade comes with a C− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $760K.
Of its 5 schools, three are listed below, each with the reason. The public schools here belong to the York Public Schools. The largest public high school is York High School, with 498 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| York Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 482 | A |
| York High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 498 | A− |
| Coastal Ridge ElementaryTop results in townGrades 2–4 | Grades 2–4 | 332 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ME on state tests and graduation
York’s density of trails is 0.9 miles per square mile. Count the trails in 22 parks and preserves and they come to 112 miles. The biggest place to walk is Kittery Water District Lands, 2,862 acres with 25.3 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kittery Water District Lands | 25.3 mi | 2,862 |
| 2. Mount Agamenticus Conservation Region | 19.7 mi | 2,334 |
| 3. York Water District Lands | 10.8 mi | 1,853 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The property offense rate for York comes to 4.3 per 1,000 residents. The level of violent crime for York comes to 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
| York | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.3 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its widest gap with Maine is food insecurity: 6.5% of its 6,573 adults worry about having enough food, against 10.7% statewide. Against the 5,578 U.S. towns with household incomes like York’s, it is healthier than 64%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
Among 143 Maine towns, just 8 have a lower share of adults who report frequent mental distress than York. For adults here, the share who say their health is fair or poor is 16%. The town does better than the Maine average on 19 of 32 CDC measures and worse on 1.
| York | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 33% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 32% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 18% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | York | ME |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.5% | 10.7% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 4.9% | 7.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.6% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
350 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 32 properties have flooded more than once.
For York, the FEMA risk score is 30 of 100. 350 flood insurance claims have been paid here since 1978. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 47% come from inland flooding and 26% from hurricanes. Federal aid has come to York households in 3 declared disasters; the latest was in 2024.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Eliot weather station, 10 miles away, records that 56 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 95% of Maine places with climate records. July afternoons average 79.7°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 85% of Maine places with climate records; January nights average 16°.
The January low is 16°F.
| York | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 80°F | 79°F | 85°F |
| January low | 16°F | 10°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
23% of working residents cross a state line to work, Portsmouth among the top destinations. 26% of workers work from home, against 15.9% across Maine.
Roughly one working resident in three has a job in York itself. Employers in York added 771 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 5,000. Also worth knowing: among workers here, 26% do their job from home. Only 5 of the 143 Maine towns we compare have a higher typical household income than York.
| York | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 26% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $121,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 5.8% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
2 within 15 miles of the center of York
About 3 of every 100 York residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
18 places in York on the National Register of Historic Places.
15 notable people were born in York.
Town in Maine, United States
York is a town in York County, Maine, United States, near the southern tip of the state. The population in the 2020 census was 13,723. Situated beside the Atlantic Ocean on the Gulf of Maine, York is a well-known summer resort town. It is home to three 18-hole golf clubs, four sandy beaches, and Mount Agamenticus. From south to north, it is divided into the villages of Bald Head, York Village, York Harbor, York Beach and Cape Neddick. York is part of the Portland metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with York.
At #7 in ME, it grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Eliot (A) comes closest.
| Town | ME rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| York | #7 | A | C− | A | A | A− |
| Kittery | #43 | B+ | D | B+ | B | A− |
| Ogunquit | — | — | C | B | A | A |
| Eliot | #11 | A | D | A+ | A− | A− |
| 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 York with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. York grades A overall, better than 91% of U.S. towns and #7 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 C−.
Yes, by national standards. York reports less crime per resident than 85% of U.S. towns, an A Safety Grade: 8 violent and 62 property crimes in 2025.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
15 notable people were born here, including Margaret E. Knight and Duncan Robinson.
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