Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,976, founded in 1891. 23% more nonprofits per person than the typical Montana town.
Cut Bank grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns, mostly because of safety and health. Its police reported 18 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 97% of U.S. towns. Residents are less healthy than 89% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. In its favor, it is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns. Cut Bank’s property crime rate is 52.2 per 1,000 residents, above both Montana’s towns (14.1) and U.S. towns (9.9). Cut Bank's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 100% of U.S. towns. Only 1 of the 30 Montana towns we compare have a lower typical home value than Cut Bank.
Where Cut Bank beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Montana), ordered by how far Cut Bank is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 43 in 1900, a peak of 4,539 in 1960, 3,056 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1932 and 4 maps from 1909 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Cut Bank, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Cut Bank.
Cut Bank has a shorter frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and has home values falling while Montana’s rise, but it is a long drive from an emergency room.
Values fell 2.1% in the past year while the Montana typical home rose 2%. Home values rose 41% in five years, to about $167K, against 23% across Montana.
The typical Cut Bank home is worth about $167,000, 64% below the Montana typical home. Typical home values fell 2.1% in the year to September 2026.
| Cut Bank | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $988 a month | $1,004 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Cut Bank Elementary District. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| H C Davis ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–3 | Grades PK–3 | 209 | C+ |
| Cut Bank High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 183 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MT on state tests and graduation
Property crime runs at 52.2 per 1,000 residents, 4 times the Montana rate, most of it theft.
The violent crime rate in Cut Bank is 6.1 per 1,000 residents. Cut Bank reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 97% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The nearest emergency room, Logan Health - Shelby, is 23.6 miles away in a straight line. Against the 5,584 U.S. towns with household incomes like Cut Bank’s, it is less healthy than 72%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
23% of adults smoke cigarettes in Cut Bank. Among 41 Montana towns, just 1 have a higher share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Cut Bank. 18% of adults binge drink in Cut Bank.
| Cut Bank | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 18% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Cut Bank | MT |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing food insecurity | 23.9% | 11.7% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 13.1% | 6.5% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 14.7% | 7.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1.0 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. Cut Bank’s trail density is 0.8 miles per square mile.
| Cut Bank | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.3% | 9.3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Main Street City Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The average commute for its 1,357 working residents takes 10.5 minutes, against 19.1 across Montana.
About one in 3 of Cut Bank’s working residents works in town. 19% of Cut Bank residents live below the poverty line. Since 2013, Cut Bank has lost 206 jobs, to 970 in 2023.
| Cut Bank | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 11 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 19% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 37% | 41% | 8% |
| Median household income | $49,000 | $68,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Shelby weather station, 23 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 115 days, shorter than in 98% of U.S. towns.
Cut Bank has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. Only 4 of the 42 Montana towns we compare have a lower July high than Cut Bank.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 67% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Cut Bank; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Cut Bank residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Montana.
City in Montana, United States
Cut Bank is a city in and the county seat of Glacier County, Montana, United States, located just east of the "cut bank" (gorge) along Cut Bank Creek. The population was 3,056 at the 2020 census. The town was founded in 1891 with the arrival of the Great Northern Railway.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Cut Bank.
| Town | MT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cut Bank | #41 | D− | C− | D− | C− | D |
| Little Browning | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Little Browning isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Cut Bank with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Cut Bank grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns. It grades D for health, D− for safety and C− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. That is 3.6 years of the area's median household income ($46,875 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−.