Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Umatilla earns a D, 103rd of 142 graded towns in Oregon, mostly because of schools and incomes. Its public schools trail 89% of Oregon towns on state tests and graduation. The median household income is $69K, and 17% of residents live below the poverty line. One bright spot: natural-hazard risk is low. Only 1 of Oregon’s 161 towns score lower on civic life.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Oregon), ordered by how far Umatilla is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 150 in 1870, a low of 118 in 1890, 7,363 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1906 and 3 maps from 1970 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Umatilla, 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 Umatilla.
Umatilla fares better on crime within Oregon than nationally and trades workers with Hermiston and other neighbors.
Its public schools are run by Umatilla SD 6R. One of its 3 schools is below, with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Umatilla High School, with 466 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| McNary Heights Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 642 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OR on state tests and graduation
The typical Umatilla home is worth about $295,000, up 2.6% in a year, 40% below the Oregon typical home. Umatilla’s median rent is $1,159 a month, below Oregon’s towns ($1,415 a month) and close to U.S. towns ($1,185 a month).
| Umatilla | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,159 a month | $1,415 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 70% | 65% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
19% of Umatilla adults binge drink, where Oregon’s towns sit at 15% and U.S. towns at 16%. 26% of adults get no exercise outside work in Umatilla. Umatilla beats the Oregon average on 6 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 10.
| Umatilla | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 68% | 73% | 79% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 8.4% | 8.1% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 27% | 23% |
| What stands out | Umatilla | OR |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.4% | 8.9% |
| Fewer adults with depression | 21.6% | 27.1% |
| More uninsured adults | 17.9% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Umatilla has mild winters and warm summers, with very little rain. The July high in Umatilla is 91°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Umatilla has about as many jobs (2,293) as working residents, but only 288 people both live and work here. Jobs based here grew from 1,167 in 2013 to 2,293.
Most working residents leave Umatilla for work: only 11% work in town. Jobs based in Umatilla grew to 2,293 in 2023, 1,126 more than in 2013. The top destinations are Hermiston (23%), Boardman (6%) and Pendleton (4%).
| Umatilla | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $69,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 9.5% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 62% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
0.6 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves. Umatilla’s trail density is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Umatilla | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.4% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Umatilla Marina Park | — | 14 |
| 2. Nugent Park | — | 7 |
| 3. Hash Park | — | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 18.7 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 79% of Oregon’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 135 to 76 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
None within 15 miles of Umatilla; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Umatilla residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Oregon.
City in Oregon, United States
Umatilla (, YOO-mə-TIL-ə) is a city in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2020 census, Umatilla had a population of 7,363. The city's population includes approximately 2,000 inmates incarcerated at Two Rivers Correctional Institution. Umatilla is part of the Pendleton-Hermiston micropolitan area, but has the highest poverty rate (24%) and lowest Median Household Income ($38,796) of all communities in the area, trailing neighboring Hermiston in household income by nearly 23%. The city is on the south side of the Columbia River along U.S. Route 730 and I-82. The Umatilla Chemical Depot, is 6 miles (10 km) southwest of the city, northwest of the intersection of I-84 and I-82.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Umatilla grades D overall, better than 13% of U.S. towns and #103 of 142 in Oregon. It grades C for health, B− for safety and D for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 4.3 years of the area's median household income ($68,427 across the Hermiston-Pendleton, 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 B−.
2 notable people were born here, including Robert N. Stanfield and Ryan Bounds.