Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 8,056 people live in this town, in Montana.
Helena Valley West Central’s strongest is health (A−) — CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 75% of the country. With a B overall, Helena Valley West Central is better than 58% of U.S. towns and ranks 10th of 41 in Montana. The trade-off is walkability. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 67% of U.S. towns. Homes run about $367K for a typical one, 4.7 times the Helena metro’s $79K median household income. Bureau of Land Mgmt, at 3,311 acres with 27.3 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. 4% of working residents work locally in the town, against 41% in Montana’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. Among 42 Montana towns, just 3 have a higher share of households owning their home than Helena Valley West Central.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · OpenStreetMap · Census LEHD, 2023.
Where Helena Valley West Central beats most towns.
7,883 counted in 2010 and 8,670 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Montana), ordered by how far Helena Valley West Central is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 3 maps from 1899 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Helena Valley West Central is unincorporated, so Lewis and Clark County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Helena Valley West Central.
Helena Valley West Central has more than doubled its jobs in ten years and has a shorter frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Montana.
Trails run 36 miles in 5 parks and preserves. Helena Valley West Central’s density of trails comes in at 1.4 miles per square mile.
| Helena Valley West Central | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 22% | 9.1% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.4 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bureau of Land Mgmt | 27.3 mi | 3,311 |
| 2. Sierra Park | 0.5 mi | 19 |
| 3. Lewis & Clark County | — | 20 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Public schools: the Helena Elementary District. Its one school is below. Enrollment at Helena Valley West Central’s public school: 369 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rossiter SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 369 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MT on state tests and graduation
Among adults in Helena Valley West Central, 31% have high blood pressure. 18% of adults in Helena Valley West Central get no exercise outside work; 29% feel lonely.
| Helena Valley West Central | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 21% | 25% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 31% | 33% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 75% | 72% | 79% |
| What stands out | Helena Valley West Central | MT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 9.9% | 12.3% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.7% | 11.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here grew from 366 in 2013 to 1,481.
Employers in Helena Valley West Central added 1,115 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 1,481. Only 3 of the 42 Montana towns we compare have a lower share of working residents who work in town than Helena Valley West Central. In Helena Valley West Central, the mean commuting time is 20 minutes. The top destinations are Helena (58%), Helena West Side (5%) and Bozeman (4%).
| Helena Valley West Central | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 4% | 41% | 8% |
| Work from home | 15% | 7.7% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $90,000 | $66,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Helena Rgnl Ap weather station, 6 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 142 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 96% of Montana places with climate records.
The range runs from 15° on a January night to 85° on a July afternoon, with about 37 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Adults 18 to 34 are 16% of residents (22% statewide); children under 18 are 25% of residents (21% statewide). In Helena Valley West Central, 41% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. The town’s midpoint age stands at 39.3 years.
| Helena Valley West Central | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 41% | 30% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 25% | 21% | 22% |
46% women, 54% men
About 116 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3 points). Across Montana, 49.3% of residents are women.
| Helena Valley West Central | MT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.1% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.9% | 10% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.4% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.3% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.5% | 11.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.1% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 13.5% | 12.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.2% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.6% | 5.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 22.5% | 27.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.4% | 22.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.4% | 9.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27% | 23.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.1% | 12% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Helena Valley West Central has had 43 paid flood insurance claims since 1981. FEMA expects less storm and flood damage in the town than in 51% of U.S. communities.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
For households in Helena Valley West Central, the share who own their home is 85%. The going rate for rent in the town is $1,327 a month. On the market in the town: a median 57 days to sell.
| Helena Valley West Central | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 85% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,327 a month | $994 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
2 within 15 miles of the center of Helena Valley West Central
About 6 of every 100 Helena Valley West Central residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Montana.
Where Helena Valley West Central’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
2 places in Helena Valley West Central on the National Register of Historic Places.
Census-designated place in Montana, United States
Helena Valley West Central is a census-designated place (CDP) in Lewis and Clark County, Montana, United States. As of the 2020 census, Helena Valley West Central had a population of 8,670. It is part of the Helena Micropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Helena Valley West Central.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Helena (B−) comes closest.
| Town | MT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helena Valley West Central | #10 | B | C+ | — | B+ | A− |
| Helena | #12 | B− | C | D | B+ | A− |
| Helena West Side | — | — | C− | — | B+ | A |
| Helena Valley Northwest | #18 | C+ | C− | — | B+ | A |
| Helena Valley Northeast | #20 | C+ | C− | — | B+ | B |
Helena West Side has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Helena Valley West Central, Helena West Side, Helena Valley Northwest and Helena Valley Northeast report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Helena Valley West Central with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Helena Valley West Central grades B overall, better than 58% of U.S. towns and #10 of 41 in Montana. It grades A− for health and B+ for schools.
The typical home is worth about $367,000, 21% below the Montana typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
