Orchard HomesMT
The town has 5,588 residents and lies in Montana.
Is Orchard Homes a good place to live?
A well-rated place to live, with prices to match. Where it does best is walkability: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 94% of U.S. towns. It is strong on health as well: residents are healthier than 85% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. The catch is cost of living (C−): the typical home is worth about $554K, 7.4 years of the Missoula metro’s $75K median household income. Put together, the subjects come to an A− overall, better than just over three quarters of U.S. towns. In the ranking it comes 2nd of 41 in Montana. Orchard Homes’ trail density is 2.9 miles per square mile, against 0.6 in Montana’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. Target Range Elementary School and Maclay Bridge is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · OpenStreetMap · National Register of Historic Places.
What makes Orchard Homes stand out
Where Orchard Homes beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Orchard Homes | MT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.8% | 12.3% |
17 miles of trails in Orchard Homes
19.1% of the town is conserved land, across 6 parks and preserves.
How Orchard Homes grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Montana), ordered by how far Orchard Homes is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Orchard Homes: who provides what
Orchard Homes 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Orchard Homes.
Orchard Homes has a shorter frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and is one of Montana’s best towns for the outdoors, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Montana.
19.1% of the land in Orchard Homes is protected from building
Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #3 of 42 in Montana.
Count the trails in 6 parks and preserves and they come to 17 miles. Big Sky Park, at 122 acres with 2.4 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Big Sky Park | 2.4 mi | 122 |
| 2. Rosecrest Park | 0.6 mi | 8 |
| 3. Spurgin Park | 0.4 mi | 9 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Public schools in Orchard Homes beat 82% of Montana districts
One of its 4 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. The public schools here belong to the Target Range Elementary District. The 2 public schools in Orchard Homes teach 544 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Target Range SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 410 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MT on state tests and graduation
A smaller share of adults in Orchard Homes sleep under 7 hours than in the typical Montana or U.S. town
In Orchard Homes, 27% of adults have obesity, and 21% binge drink. Among adults in the town, 29% feel lonely.
| Orchard Homes | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 32% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 32% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 20% | 16% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 21% | 25% |
| What stands out | Orchard Homes | MT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.8% | 12.3% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.9% | 11.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
About two in three of Orchard Homes’ working residents commute to Missoula
Jobs based here grew from 789 in 2013 to 1,210.
Orchard Homes had 1,210 jobs in 2023, up 421 from 2013. Most working residents leave Orchard Homes for work: only 4% work in town. The average commute for Orchard Homes comes to 16 minutes. The top destinations are Missoula (69%), Bozeman (2%) and Helena (2%).
| Orchard Homes | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.9% | 41% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $65,000 | $68,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 8.7% | 11% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expect snowy winters and pleasant summers in Orchard Homes
The Missoula Intl Ap weather station, 5 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 130 days, shorter than in 95% of U.S. towns.
Summer afternoons peak near 86° in July, and January nights bottom out around 18°; snowfall runs to about 43 inches a winter. Expect chilly, snowy winters and warm summers in Orchard Homes, with very little rain.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazards: low risk in Orchard Homes, mostly earthquakes
Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 67% of U.S. communities. Orchard Homes has had 42 paid flood insurance claims since 1996. Expected losses in Orchard Homes break down as 37% from earthquakes and 27% from inland flooding.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
No age group stands out in Orchard Homes against Montana
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Montana average. For adults 25 and older in Orchard Homes, the share who hold a bachelor’s degree or more is 44%. Orchard Homes’ age of the median resident stands at 40.1 years.
| Orchard Homes | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 44% | 30% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 23% | 19% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 19% | 22% | 22% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3 points. Across Montana, 49.3% of residents are women.
| Orchard Homes | MT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.8% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.2% | 10% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10.9% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 16.4% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.4% | 11.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.8% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.2% | 12.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.2% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2.8% | 5.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.9% | 27.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 27.4% | 22.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 4.6% | 9.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 32.1% | 23.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.3% | 12% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
A home in Orchard Homes sells for about $699K at the median
At 7.4 years of the Missoula metro’s $75K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 77% of Montana towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $4,279, against $2,693 across Montana, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Orchard Homes: 67% of households own their home. The typical rent in the town is $1,000 a month.
| Orchard Homes | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,000 a month | $998 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Lake Missoula and 5 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Orchard Homes. Close and well known come first.
7 mi LakeLake Missoula12 mi Ski areaMontana Snowbowl64 runs · 2,538 ft vertical
33 mi Park & preserveCSKT Bison Range
4 mi TheatreWilma Theater3 mi MuseumMissoula Art Museum
4 mi MuseumMontana Museum of Art & CulturePhoto credits
Lake 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
Everything we know about Orchard Homes
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Orchard Homes
About 2 of every 100 Orchard Homes residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Montana.
96% of working residents leave Orchard Homes for work
Where Orchard Homes’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Orchard Homes
Census-designated place in Montana, United States
Orchard Homes is a census-designated place (CDP) in Missoula County, Montana, United States. It is part of the Missoula metropolitan area. The population was 5,377 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 5.9 sq mi
- Elevation
- 3,153 ft
- Area code
- 406
Orchard Homes’s neighbors
One town shares a border with Orchard Homes.
| Town | MT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orchard Homes | #2 | A− | C− | — | A− | A− |
| Missoula | #21 | C+ | D | D | A− | A− |
Orchard Homes reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Orchard Homes with a neighbor →
Questions about Orchard Homes
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Orchard Homes, MT a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Orchard Homes grades A− overall, better than 76% of U.S. towns and #2 of 41 in Montana. It grades A− for health and A− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Is Orchard Homes, MT expensive?
Yes. The typical home is worth about $554,000, 18% above 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−.