Gardiner Jail · National Register of Historic Places
Gardiner’s story
146 years in pictures
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
- 1880Gardiner is settled
GardinerMT
A town of 647, settled in 1880.
North Entrance Road Historic District · Photo: Yellowstone National Park · Public domain
Population
647
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$793K
+6.9% in a year
Household income
$61K
median
Median age
48.7
years
Jobs based here
489
Balanced
Is Gardiner a good place to live?
Only 2 of the 31 Montana towns we compare have a higher typical home value than Gardiner. 66% of the land in Gardiner is conserved, where Montana’s towns sit at 9.2% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Gardiner has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them North Entrance Road Historic District and Gardiner Jail. Gardiner has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Small town
647 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby attractions
All 20 attractions →Yellowstone National Park and 12 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Gardiner. Close and well known come first.
Big drawin town National ParkYellowstone National Park4.8M visitors a year
2 mi LandmarkRoosevelt Arch
35 mi LakeQuake Lake37 mi Ski areaBig Sky Resort455 runs · 4,346 ft vertical
26 mi Canyon & gorgeGrand Canyon of the Yellowstone
26 mi WaterfallYellowstone FallsSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Yellowstone National Park: James St. John from Newark, Ohio, CC BY 2.0 · Roosevelt Arch: Yellowstone National Park, Public domain · Quake Lake: Staplegunther at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone: Brocken Inaglory, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Yellowstone Falls: Unknown, Public domain
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Getting set up
Moving to Gardiner: who provides what
Gardiner is unincorporated, so Park County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerNorthWestern Energy14.4¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterGardiner Park Co Water DistNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers79% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesPark CountyPark County provides services here
SchoolsGardiner Elementary School DistrictGardiner High School District2 districts serve Gardiner; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteIn personMontana has no online registration; you can register in person up to and including Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.govWho runs elections herePark County Election AdministratorPark County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Apr 2025
ZIP code5903059030 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Gardiner.
Outdoors
Gardiner has set aside nearly a third of its land for conservation
5.1 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. At 0.9 miles per square mile, Gardiner’s trail density is against 0.6 in Montana’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns.
66%conserved
66%
conserved · 2,472 of 3,744 acres
5.1 mi
of trails · 0.9 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Arch Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Schools
The schools Gardiner’s kids attend
Its public schools are run by the Gardiner Elementary District. Its three schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gardiner SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 70 | A |
| Gardiner High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 55 | A− |
| Gardiner 7-8Top results in townGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 26 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts
Housing
The typical home in Gardiner is valued at about $793K
The typical Gardiner home is worth about $793,000, up 6.9% in a year, 70% above the Montana typical home. 55% of Gardiner households own their home.
$793KZillow home value
| Gardiner | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $769 a month | $1,000 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Gardiner$793K
Montana$467K
+6.9%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Natural hazards
Compared with most of Montana and the rest of the country, the FEMA risk score in Gardiner is higher
Gardiner’s FEMA risk score is 90 of 100.
90risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
AvalanchesInland floodingWildfire
1
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
In Gardiner, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers
Gardiner has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. The July high in Gardiner is 82°F.
72″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter12–32°
Spring26–52°
Summer43–78°
Fall28–55°
Sep 14
typical first frost
Jun 3
typical last frost
+1.2°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commute
Gardiner has 1.3 jobs for every working resident, and 361 people commute in
About one in 3 of Gardiner’s working residents works in town. 22% of residents live below the poverty line in Gardiner. Jobs based in Gardiner grew to 489 in 2023, 105 more than in 2013.
34%work in town
| Gardiner | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 22% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 34% | 39% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $67,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Gardiner34%
Corwin Springs8%
Livingston5%
Cooke City5%
Bozeman4%
10 mi
median commute distance
489
jobs based in Gardiner
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Health
How healthy Gardiner is
Gardiner beats the Montana average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. Among 42 Montana towns, just 4 have a lower share of adults who feel lonely than Gardiner.
| Gardiner | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 31% | 33% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 72% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
32 measures vs. Montana
1 better31 too close to call0 worse
| What stands out | Gardiner | MT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.7% | 12.3% |
Bozeman Health Big Sky Medical Center
36.2 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Gardiner
17pages on Gardiner
The big questions
Out and about
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Gardiner; the nearest are
Montana State UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Bozeman45 mi$8,460 in-state tuitionHighlands College of Montana TechCommunity college · Public · Butte105.4 mi$4,130 in-state tuition
About 1 of every 100 Gardiner residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Montana.
Questions about Gardiner
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Gardiner, MT a good place to live?
Gardiner has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.