ShepherdMT
Home to 353 people, the town was settled in 1915.
Is Shepherd a good place to live?
2.9% of working residents work locally in Shepherd, below both Montana’s towns (39%) and U.S. towns (8%). No town among the 43 in Montana we compare has a higher share of homes lived in by their owners than Shepherd. Shepherd has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
353 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Shepherd: who provides what
Shepherd is unincorporated, so Yellowstone 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 Shepherd.
More middle-aged adults than Montana overall
Shepherd’s midpoint age is 47.5 years. Adults 35 to 64 are 53% of residents (37% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 9% of residents (22% statewide). 31% of adults 25 and older hold at least a bachelor’s degree, against 35% across Montana.
| Shepherd | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 47.5 years | 38.9 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 31% | 30% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
Somewhere between 41% and 68% women
The Census survey reached too few of Shepherd’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±13.5 points. Across Montana, 49.3% of residents are women.
| Shepherd | MT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.2% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.9% | 10% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 0% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8.5% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 9.6% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 25.5% | 11.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 17.6% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.3% | 12.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.4% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2.6% | 5.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 22.8% | 27.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 30.6% | 22.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.4% | 9.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 30.6% | 23.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 0% | 12% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 400, single groups can be off by several points
The schools Shepherd’s kids attend
Two of its 3 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed. The public schools here belong to the Shepherd Elementary District.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shepherd ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 342 | B |
| Shepherd High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 225 | C |
NCES · EDFacts
Compared with most of Montana and the rest of the country, the average trip to work in Shepherd is longer
Employers in Shepherd shed 44 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 161. Only 2 of the 43 Montana towns we compare have a lower share of residents below the poverty line than Shepherd. Also worth knowing: just 3% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. The top destinations are Billings (59%), Lockwood (5%) and Helena (2%).
| Shepherd | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 4.8% | 10% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Shepherd has a low natural-hazard risk, chiefly from inland flooding
Expected damage from storms and floods is lower here than in just over two thirds of U.S. communities. Of the losses FEMA expects in Shepherd, 44% come from inland flooding and 30% from cold waves. One declared disaster, in 2022, has brought federal aid to Shepherd households.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Four seasons and hot summers in Shepherd
Summer afternoons peak near 89° in July, and January nights bottom out around 14°; snowfall runs to about 34 inches a winter. Shepherd has cold, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
77% of adults in Shepherd had a checkup this year, against 72% in Montana’s towns and 79% across U.S. towns
Shepherd: 16% of adults smoke cigarettes. Among 42 Montana towns, just 2 have a higher share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Shepherd.
| Shepherd | Montana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 25% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 77% | 72% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 20% | 16% |
| What stands out | Shepherd | MT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 17.5% | 20.3% |
| More adults getting a yearly checkup | 76.7% | 72.4% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 20.1% | 12.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Homes in Shepherd are worth about $474K, by Zillow’s estimate
In the year to September 2026, typical home values climbed 2.9%.
Typical home value
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
0% of Shepherd is conserved land
1.4 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. Parks and preserves in Shepherd: one, of 3 acres. The concentration of trails for Shepherd comes to 0.6 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lions Club Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail and 4 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Shepherd. Close and well known come first.
17 mi Park & preserveLewis and Clark National Historic Trail
17 mi Park & preservePompeys Pillar National Monument
20 mi Zoo & aquariumZooMontana
14 mi MuseumYellowstone Art Museum
14 mi MuseumWestern Heritage CenterPhoto credits
Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail: United States Army Center of Military History, Public domain · Pompeys Pillar National Monument: BLM photo, Public domain · ZooMontana: Montanabw, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Yellowstone Art Museum: Clyde Charles Brown, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Western Heritage Center: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain
Everything we know about Shepherd
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Shepherd
About 0 of every 100 Shepherd residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Montana.
97% of working residents leave Shepherd for work
Where Shepherd’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Shepherd
CDP in Montana, United States
Shepherd is a census-designated place (CDP) in Yellowstone County, Montana, United States. As of the 2020 census, Shepherd had a population of 507. Shepherd is a Billings suburb located to the northeast. The unincorporated town was named after R.E. Shepherd, a prominent early settler and owner of the Billings Land and Irrigation Company and the Merchants National Bank. The post office opened in 1915. The farming community is near the Yellowstone River.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.2 sq mi
- Elevation
- 3,107 ft
- ZIP code
- 59079
Questions about Shepherd
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Shepherd, MT a good place to live?
Shepherd has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.