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Montana›Cascade County

Sun PrairieMT

A town of 1,171.

Is Sun Prairie a good place to live?

The best of Sun Prairie’s subject grades is an A− for cost of living; the weakest is a D− for walkability. 0.6% of working residents work locally in Sun Prairie, below both the Montana town median (39%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). No town in Montana scores lower than Sun Prairie on walkability. On the outdoors, just 1 of Montana’s 95 towns do worse. Sun Prairie has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.

What makes Sun Prairie stand out

Where Sun Prairie beats most towns.

Small town

1,171 people, and everyone knows the way

In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.

Nearby towns
VaughnVaughnSun Prairie

How Sun Prairie grades

Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Montana), ordered by how far Sun Prairie is from typical.

How grading works

Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.

How TownRatings grades towns →

Getting set up

Moving to Sun Prairie: who provides what

Sun Prairie is unincorporated, so Cascade County and regional agencies provide most services.

PowerNorthWestern Energy14.4¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterSun Prairie Village County water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers12% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesCascade CountyCascade County provides services here
SchoolsGreat Falls Elementary School DistrictGreat Falls High School District2 districts serve Sun Prairie; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteIn personMontana has no online registration; you can register in person up to and including Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.gov
Who runs elections hereCascade County Election AdministratorCascade County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Feb 2024
ZIP code5940459404 100%Census 2020

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 Sun Prairie.

Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A

Sun Prairie faces a very low natural-hazard risk, led by cold waves

Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 88% of U.S. communities.

12risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
12Very low riskLowerHigher
Cold wavesInland floodingWinter weather

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

HealthC−

Residents of Sun Prairie are less healthy than 76% of U.S. towns

Sun Prairie sits against 14% in Montana’s towns and 14% across U.S. towns on this measure. Sun Prairie beats the Montana average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 17. 28% of Sun Prairie adults have been diagnosed with depression.

24%healthier than U.S. townsC−Health Grade
Sun PrairieMontana townsU.S. towns
Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES)17%14%14%
Depression (CDC PLACES)28%25%23%
Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES)20%18%17%
Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES)18%14%14%
32 measures vs. Montana
0 better15 too close to call17 worse
What stands outSun PrairieMT
More adults facing food insecurity15.5%11.7%
More adults with COPD9.2%7%
More smokers17.8%13.6%
Benefis Hospitals
10.9 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, mental health

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

Work & commuteJobs & income grade C−

About two in three of Sun Prairie’s working residents commute to Great Falls

Most working residents leave Sun Prairie for work: only 1% work in town. The average trip to work in Sun Prairie is 20 minutes. The top destinations are Great Falls (63%), Billings (3%) and Helena (3%).

1%work in town
Sun PrairieMontana townsU.S. towns
Average trip to work20 minutes17 minutes25 minutes
Median household income$56,000$67,000$80,000

Where working residents work

In Sun Prairie1%
Great Falls63%
Billings3%
Helena3%
Black Eagle2%
11 mi
median commute distance
81
jobs based in Sun Prairie
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
D−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 2% of U.S. towns

Census LEHD 2023 · ACS

Climate

In Sun Prairie, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers

Sun Prairie has cold, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 13° and about 49 inches of snow falls in a winter.

49″snow a winter

Typical low → high °F

Winter14–37°
Spring30–56°
Summer49–81°
Fall32–58°
Sep 24
typical first frost
May 19
typical last frost
+1.3°
vs. the 20th-century average

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

Who lives here

More middle-aged adults than Montana overall

Adults 35 to 64 are 42% of residents (37% statewide). Sun Prairie’s median age is 49 years. 28% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 35% across Montana.

49median age · MT 40.4
Sun PrairieMontana townsU.S. towns
Median age49 years38.9 years40.5 years
Aged 65 or older18%19%18%
Sun PrairieMontanaUnited States

Ages · share of residents

Education · adults 25 and older

No diploma3%
High school35%
Some college19%
Associate’s16%
Bachelor’s18%
Graduate9%

Women and men · all residents

Somewhere between 34% and 60% women

The Census survey reached too few of Sun Prairie’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±12.7 points. Across Montana, 49.3% of residents are women.

Ages and education in Sun Prairie
Sun PrairieMTU.S.
Under 1016.6%11%11.6%
10 to 176%10%10.3%
18 to 2412.5%9%9.1%
25 to 345.6%12.9%13.7%
35 to 448.3%12.9%13.2%
45 to 5413.3%11.1%12.2%
55 to 6420.2%13%12.7%
65 to 7413%12.4%10.2%
75 and older4.6%7.8%7%
No diploma2.8%5.4%10.4%
High school34.7%27.5%26%
Some college19.2%22.4%19.1%
Associate’s15.8%9.6%8.8%
Bachelor’s18.4%23.2%21.6%
Graduate9.2%12%14.1%

U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,200, single groups can be off by several points

Nearby attractions

Great Falls and 2 more within 40 miles

Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Sun Prairie. Close and well known come first.

All 3 attractions →
Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits

Great Falls: Tim1965, Public domain · C. M. Russell Museum Complex: Roger Wollstadt, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art: Montanabw, CC BY-SA 3.0

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Sun Prairie

15pages on Sun Prairie
After high school

Colleges nearby

2 within 15 miles of the center of Sun Prairie

A commuter town

99% of working residents leave Sun Prairie for work

Where Sun Prairie’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.

63% → Great Falls Great Falls 63% 3% → Billings Billings 3% 3% → Helena Helena 3% 2% → Black Eagle Black Eagle 2% 2% → Missoula Missoula 2% 1% → Bozeman Bozeman 1% Sun Prairie · 1% stay
81jobs based in Sun Prairie
1%of working residents work in town
11 mimedian commute distance

Census LEHD 2023

About Sun Prairie

CDP in Montana, United States

Sun Prairie is a census-designated place (CDP) in Cascade County, Montana, United States. As of the 2020 census, Sun Prairie had a population of 1,615. It is part of the Great Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Area
5.4 sq mi
Elevation
3,340 ft

Questions about Sun Prairie

Short answers, built from the data on this page.

Is Sun Prairie, MT expensive?

Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.