Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Dallas earns a D, 96th of 142 graded towns in Oregon, mostly because of incomes. The median household income is $72K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line. One bright spot: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 89% of U.S. towns. On history, just 12 of Oregon’s 228 towns do better. 23% of residents are 65 or older in Dallas, where Oregon’s towns sit at 18% and U.S. towns at 18%. The biggest place to walk is Dallas City Park, 54 acres with 1.9 miles of trail.
Where Dallas beats most towns.
14,583 counted in 2010 and 16,854 in 2020; an estimated 17,890 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 5.9% since 2020, after 15.6% 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 Oregon), ordered by how far Dallas is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1845, comes before those of 93% of the Oregon towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 670 in 1880, 16,854 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1887 and 4 maps from 1942 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Dallas. Close and well known come first.
25 mi Stadium & arenaReser Stadium
21 mi MuseumEvergreen Aviation & Space Museum
16 mi Theme parkEnchanted Forest
35 mi State parkSilver Falls State Park
19 mi MuseumOregon Electric Railway Museum14 mi MuseumHallie Ford Museum of Art30K visitors a yearReser Stadium: Zapper258, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum: Notkeel at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Enchanted Forest: Trashbag (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Silver Falls State Park: Kelvin Kay -- Kkmd at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Oregon Electric Railway Museum: Steve Morgan, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Dallas, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Oct 2, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Dallas.
Dallas fares better on crime within Oregon than nationally and has added a third more jobs in ten years.
Jobs based here grew from 3,316 in 2013 to 4,633.
Most working residents leave Dallas for work: only 15% work in town. Since 2013, Dallas has added 1,317 jobs, to 4,633 in 2023. Dallas’ average trip to work is 27 minutes.
| Dallas | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 9.5% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 11% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by Dallas SD 2. Two of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Dallas High School, with 948 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| LaCreole Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 569 | – |
| Dallas High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 948 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OR on state tests and graduation
At 27.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 52% of Oregon’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 415 to 267 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Dallas has mild winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 36° and about 10 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
| Dallas | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.7% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Dallas City Park | 1.9 mi | 54 |
| 2. Kingsborough Park | 0.4 mi | 9 |
| 3. Roger Jordan Community Park | — | 13 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 61% of U.S. communities. Since 1996, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Dallas.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical Dallas home is worth about $473,000, up 1.2% in a year, close to the Oregon typical home.
| Dallas | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 68% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,209 a month | $1,415 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Dallas beats the Oregon average on 1 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 13% of adults binge drink in Dallas.
| Dallas | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 74% | 72% | 79% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Dallas | OR |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 75.5% | 71.4% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.9% | 6.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
2 within 15 miles of the center of Dallas
About 5 of every 100 Dallas residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Oregon.
Where Dallas’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
4 places in Dallas on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Dallas.
City in Oregon, United States
Dallas is a city in and the county seat of Polk County, Oregon, United States. The population was 16,854 at the 2020 census. Dallas is along Rickreall Creek, about 15 miles (24 km) west of Salem, at an elevation of 325 feet (99 m) above sea level. It is part of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Dallas grades D overall, better than 14% of U.S. towns and #96 of 142 in Oregon. It grades B− for health, C for safety and C+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. That is 6 years of the area's median household income ($78,900 across the Salem, OR metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
8 notable people were born here, including Johnnie Ray and Mark Hatfield.
