Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,653, settled in 1898.
Polson grades D overall, 39th of 41 graded towns in Montana, mostly because of safety and incomes. Its police reported 60 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 96% of U.S. towns. The median household income is $53K, and 18% of residents live below the poverty line. What it does well: it is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns. Polson’s violent crime rate is 10.4 per 1,000 residents, where Montana’s towns sit at 4.1 and U.S. towns at 1.6. Only 1 of the 42 Montana towns we compare have a higher January low than Polson. Polson Feed Mill is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Polson beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
4,488 counted in 2010 and 5,148 in 2020; an estimated 5,653 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 9.6% since 2020, after 14.7% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Montana), ordered by how far Polson is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,132 in 1920, 5,148 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1910 and 2 maps from 1964 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Polson, 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 Polson.
Polson draws workers from Ronan and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it reports violent crime at about twice the Montana rate.
Violent crime runs at 10.4 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Montana rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D−.
The property crime rate in Polson is 24.5 per 1,000 residents. Polson reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 96% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Polson Elementary District. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Polson High School, with 517 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polson Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 477 | C |
| Polson High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 517 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MT on state tests and graduation
3,865 jobs are based in Polson, 2 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
43% of Polson’s working residents work right in town. Polson’s average trip to work is 20 minutes. Jobs based in Polson grew to 3,865 in 2023, 421 more than in 2013.
| Polson | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 43% | 37% | 8% |
| Median household income | $53,000 | $68,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
7.6 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Polson Sports Complex, at 25 acres.
| Polson | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.6 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 11% | 9.1% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Polson Sports Complex | — | 25 |
| 2. O'Malley Park | — | 10 |
| 3. Riverside Park | 0.1 mi | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 9.1 years of the county’s $63K median household income, the typical home (about $574K) costs more against local pay than in 95% of Montana towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living.
The typical Polson home is worth about $574,000, up 1.5% in a year, 23% above the Montana typical home. 55% of Polson households own their home.
| Polson | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $912 a month | $1,004 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 69% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Skq Dam weather station, 5 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 134 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 82% of Montana places with climate records.
Polson has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 20° and about 34 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 6,923 U.S. towns with household incomes like Polson’s, it is healthier than 91%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Polson beats the Montana average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 31% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Polson. Only 4 of the 41 Montana towns we compare have a higher share of adults who had a checkup this year than Polson.
| Polson | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 75% | 72% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Polson | MT |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4.2% | 3.5% |
| More adults with heart disease | 7.7% | 6.6% |
| More adults with arthritis | 32.1% | 28.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
People 65 and older are 25% of residents (20% statewide). Polson has grown 9.6% since 2020, to 5,653 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 30% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 35% across Montana.
| Polson | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 25% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 43 years | 38.8 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 20% | 22% | 22% |
56% women, 44% men
About 80 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.8 points). Across Montana, 49.3% of residents are women.
| Polson | MT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.1% | 10% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.8% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11% | 11.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.3% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.4% | 12.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.4% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 8.5% | 5.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 27.5% | 27.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.2% | 22.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.2% | 9.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 17.4% | 23.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.2% | 12% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
1 within 15 miles of the center of Polson
About 4 of every 100 Polson residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Montana.
Where Polson’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Town in Montana, United States
Polson (Montana Salish: nčmqnétkʷ, Kutenai: kwataqnuk) (, POHL-sən) is a city in Lake County, Montana, United States, on the southern shore of Flathead Lake and within the Flathead Indian Reservation. The population was 5,148 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Lake County. In 1898 the city was named after pioneer rancher David Polson. It was incorporated in 1910.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Polson.
Kerr and Jette aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Polson with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Polson grades D overall, better than 7% of U.S. towns and #39 of 41 in Montana. It grades B for health, D− for safety and B− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. That is 9.1 years of the area's median household income ($63,360 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−.
2 notable people were born here, including Dave McAlpin and Linda Reksten.