Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
32% of residents live below the poverty line in Owyhee, above both the Nevada town median (11%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). No town among the 42 in Nevada we compare has a lower going rate for rent than Owyhee. Owyhee’s concentration of trails is 0.5 miles per square mile, against 2.0 in Nevada’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. Owyhee has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Where Owyhee beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 908 in 1990, 1,027 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 2013 and 3 maps from 1939 on.
Owyhee is unincorporated, so Elko 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 Owyhee.
Just over three quarters of Owyhee’s expected losses from natural hazards come from wildfires, followed by inland flooding at 11%. Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 97% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Two of the 3 schools are below, and why each made the list. Its public schools are run by the Elko school district. 3 public schools serve Owyhee, with 293 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owyhee Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 165 | D− |
| Owyhee High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 87 | D− |
NCES · EDFacts
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Only 2 of the 43 Nevada towns we compare have a lower typical journey to work than Owyhee. Roughly one working resident in three has a job in Owyhee itself. Jobs based in Owyhee grew to 215 in 2023, 206 more than in 2013. For half of commuters, work is under 74 miles away.
| Owyhee | Nevada towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 36% | 17% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 15 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Among 43 Nevada towns, just 2 have a higher share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Owyhee. 31% of adults say their health is fair or poor here. Against the Nevada average, Owyhee comes out ahead on 1 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 19.
| Owyhee | Nevada towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 15% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 19% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 16% | 14% |
| What stands out | Owyhee | NV |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.5% | 7.4% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 41% | 11.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Adults 35 to 64 are 43% of residents (39% statewide). The share of residents in Owyhee who are 65 or older: 14%. 24% never finished high school. College graduates make up nearly a fifth of adults 25 and older, against 28% across Nevada.
| Owyhee | Nevada towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 14% | 18% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 19% | 23% | 29% |
| Median age | 39 years | 40.2 years | 40.5 years |
Somewhere between 27% and 81% women
The Census survey reached too few of Owyhee’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±26.8 points. Across Nevada, 49.6% of residents are women.
| Owyhee | NV | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.1% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.6% | 10.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.3% | 8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.1% | 14.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 23.5% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 3.4% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 16.5% | 12.4% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.8% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.6% | 6.7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 24% | 12.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.7% | 27.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.2% | 23.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.3% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 13.3% | 18.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 5.4% | 9.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 600, single groups can be off by several points
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Owyhee; the nearest are
About 9 of every 100 Owyhee residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Nevada.
Census-designated place in Nevada, United States
Owyhee (, Shoshoni: Un Kwahain) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Elko County, Nevada, United States, along the banks of the Owyhee River. As of the 2020 census, Owyhee had a population of 1,027. It is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area. It is the primary town of the federally recognized Shoshone-Paiute tribe's Duck Valley Indian Reservation, which covers portions of northern Nevada and southern Idaho, and the majority of its population is Native American. Owyhee, along with the rest of Nevada except for the city of West Wendover, is legally in the Pacific Time Zone. But, along with other Idaho border towns such as Jackpot, Mountain City and Jarbidge, it unofficially observe…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Owyhee has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.