Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
2.5 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Oregon town.
The best of Drain’s subject grades is an A+ for civic life; the weakest is a D− for incomes. 35% of residents live below the poverty line in Drain, against 11% in Oregon’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. On incomes, just 3 of Oregon’s 228 towns do worse. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 91% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Only 3 of Oregon’s 161 towns score higher on civic life. Charles D. Drain Jr. House is on the National Register of Historic Places. Drain has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Drain beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Charles D. Drain Jr. HouseIn a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Oregon), ordered by how far Drain is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 188 in 1880, 1,172 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1894 and 2 maps from 1954 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Drain, 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 Drain.
Only 5 of the 143 Oregon towns we compare have a higher FEMA risk score than Drain. Since 1981, 43 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Drain.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by North Douglas SD 22. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Douglas Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 254 | B |
| North Douglas High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 112 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OR on state tests and graduation
The typical Drain home is worth about $302,000, down 0.7% in a year, 39% below the Oregon typical home. At $984 a month, Drain’s median rent is below both the Oregon town median ($1,414 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month).
| Drain | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $984 a month | $1,414 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 65% | 65% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Drain’s median household income is $46,000. Only 8 of the 143 Oregon towns we compare have a higher average trip to work than Drain. The top destinations are Eugene (16%), Roseburg (9%) and Cottage Grove (6%).
| Drain | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $46,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Drain has mild winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 36° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Drain beats the Oregon average on 1 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 28% of Drain adults have been diagnosed with depression.
| Drain | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 72% | 79% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| What stands out | Drain | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.4% | 12.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.5% | 6.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
0.1 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The trail density in Drain is 0.2 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Anna Drain Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Drain; the nearest are
About 0 of every 100 Drain residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Oregon.
Where Drain’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in Oregon, United States
Drain is a city in Douglas County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2020 census, Drain had a population of 1,172. Drain is named after town founder and politician Charles J. Drain, who donated 60 acres (24 ha) of nearby land to the Oregon and California Railroad in 1871.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
2.5 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Oregon town.
That is 4.9 years of the area's median household income ($61,310 across the Roseburg, OR 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.