Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Lolo grades C+ overall, ranked 24th of 41 in Montana, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. The median household earns $86K and it has 29 miles of trail. On the other side, the typical home is worth about $544K, 7.3 years of the Missoula metro’s $75K median household income. Lolo’s trail density is 3.0 miles per square mile, above both Montana’s towns (0.6) and U.S. towns (0.4). Among 42 Montana towns, just 1 have a higher average trip to work than Lolo. Traveler's Rest and Fort Fizzle Site is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Lolo beats most towns.
3,892 counted in 2010 and 4,399 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Montana), ordered by how far Lolo is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Traveler's Rest is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 2,418 in 1980, 4,399 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 2010 and 3 maps from 1964 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Lolo is unincorporated, so Missoula 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 Lolo.
Lolo has a shorter frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and has added a third more jobs in ten years, but it has property taxes 1.6 times the Montana norm.
29 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Traveler's Rest State Park, at 65 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Traveler's Rest State Park | 0.6 mi | 65 |
| 2. Lolo Peak Fields | 0.1 mi | 10 |
| 3. Capri Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Lolo Elementary District. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lolo ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 293 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MT on state tests and graduation
Jobs based here grew from 593 in 2013 to 789.
Most working residents leave Lolo for work: only 7% work in town. 5.3% of Lolo residents live below the poverty line, below both the Montana town median (11%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Jobs based in Lolo grew to 789 in 2023, 196 more than in 2013.
| Lolo | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 7.2% | 41% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.3% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $86,000 | $66,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 12% | 7.7% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Lolo beats the Montana average on 5 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 23% of Lolo adults binge drink. Among 41 Montana towns, just 3 have a higher share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Lolo.
| Lolo | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 20% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 72% | 79% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 25% | 23% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 36% |
| What stands out | Lolo | MT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 5.7% | 6.6% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 24.7% | 28.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 69% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Missoula Intl Ap weather station, 10 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 130 days, shorter than in 95% of U.S. towns.
Lolo has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 19° and about 43 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
People 65 and older are 12% of residents (20% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 29% of residents (22% statewide). 27% of residents are under 18 in Lolo. Only 4 of the 42 Montana towns we compare have a lower median age than Lolo.
| Lolo | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 32.5 years | 39 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 27% | 21% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 12% | 19% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 41% | 30% | 29% |
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±5.1 points. Across Montana, 49.3% of residents are women.
| Lolo | MT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 18.9% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.2% | 10% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.1% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 17.6% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.1% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.5% | 11.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.4% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.1% | 12.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4.1% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.9% | 5.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.8% | 27.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 29% | 22.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 5.4% | 9.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 26% | 23.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.9% | 12% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,300, single groups can be off by several points
The median property tax bill is $4,305, against $2,693 across Montana, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical Lolo home is worth about $544,000, up 1.5% in a year, 16% above the Montana typical home.
| Lolo | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 71% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,139 a month | $994 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lolo. Close and well known come first.
12 mi LakeLake Missoula18 mi Ski areaMontana Snowbowl64 runs · 2,538 ft vertical
38 mi Park & preserveCSKT Bison Range
9 mi TheatreWilma Theater8 mi MuseumMissoula Art Museum
9 mi MuseumMontana Museum of Art & CultureLake Missoula: USGS, Public domain · CSKT Bison Range: Paul Frederickson, CC BY 2.5 · Wilma Theater: Publichall, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Montana Museum of Art & Culture: DocFreeman24, CC BY-SA 4.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Lolo
About 5 of every 100 Lolo residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Montana.
Where Lolo’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Census-designated place in Montana, United States
Lolo is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Missoula County, Montana, United States. It is part of the Missoula metropolitan area. The population was 4,399 at the 2020 census, an increase from its population of 3,892 in 2010. It is home to Travelers' Rest State Park, a site where Lewis and Clark camped in 1805 and again in 1806.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Lolo grades C+ overall, better than 38% of U.S. towns and #24 of 41 in Montana. It grades B+ for health and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
