Old Stone House · National Register of Historic Places
Vale’s story
143 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1907.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
- 1883Vale is settled
ValeOR
Photo: Jo Levine · CC BY 2.0
Population
2,055
2025 Census estimate · +8.3% since 2020
Typical home
$333K
+3.6% in a year
Household income
$50K
median
Median age
37.5
years
Jobs based here
899
Balanced
Is Vale a good place to live?
Vale’s best subject grades are an A+ for walkability and an A for schools; its weakest is a D for incomes. Vale’s July high is 93°F, against 82°F in Oregon’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns. On cost of living, just 11 of Oregon’s 228 towns do better. Vale’s trail density is 3.1 miles per square mile, against 0.8 in Oregon’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. Vale has 5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Old Stone House and Vale Hotel and Grand Opera House. Vale has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Vale stand out
Where Vale beats most towns.
WalkabilityA+
More walkable than 96% of U.S. towns
11.8% of workers walk, bike or ride transit
EPA National Walkability Index; Census ACS.
Vale SD 84 schools
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Vale Elementary School | K–6 | 438 |
| Vale Middle School | 7–8 | 120 |
| Vale High School | 9–12 | 293 |
SchoolsA
On state tests and graduation
NCES · EDFacts.
Old Stone HouseHistory
Settled in 1883
A history going back 143 years.
How Vale grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Oregon), ordered by how far Vale is from typical.
WalkabilityEPA walkability 12.4 of 20; 14.1% of households have no carA+Open →Jobs & income$50K median household income; 899 jobs based hereDOpen →SchoolsAOpen →HealthSaint Alphonsus Medical Center Ontario 13.6 miles awayCOpen →Cost of livingTypical home $333K, 5.3 years of the Ontario area’s $63K median household incomeB+Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 49% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors4 miles of trailsBOpen →History2 notable people born hereB+Open →Civic life4.1 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsBOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
ClimateCold winters, 93° summer afternoons, 15″ of snow–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 37.5; 14% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Vale: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Vale, and how to reach them.
PowerIdaho Power11.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterCity of Vale water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet7 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Vale’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Oregon you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person until 21 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 21 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereMalheur County Clerk, Elections OfficeMalheur County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2023
ZIP code9791897918 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Oct 2, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Vale.
SchoolsA
Vale’s public schools outperform 85% of Oregon districts
Its public schools are run by Vale SD 84. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
85%of OR districts it outscoresASchool Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vale Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 438 | C |
| Vale High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 293 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OR on state tests and graduation
HousingCost of living grade B+
Vale stands out in Oregon and nationally, with the median rent lower than most
Vale’s median rent is $820 a month. The typical Vale home is worth about $333,000, up 3.6% in a year, 32% below the Oregon typical home.
$333KZillow home value
| Vale | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $820 a month | $1,414 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 64% | 65% | 73% |
Typical home value
Vale$333K
Oregon$493K
+3.6%
value change, 1 year
1
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
HealthC
Vale is less healthy than 72% of U.S. towns
Vale beats the Oregon average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 8. 16% of adults report frequent physical distress in Vale.
28%healthier than U.S. townsCHealth Grade
| Vale | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 72% | 72% | 79% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 35% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 20% | 19% |
26 measures vs. Oregon
0 better18 too close to call8 worse
| What stands out | Vale | OR |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 11.2% | 8.5% |
| More adults who get no exercise | 25.6% | 20.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.5% | 6.8% |
Saint Alphonsus Medical Center Ontario
13.6 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
Vale has four seasons and hot summers
Vale has chilly winters and hot summers, with very little rain. The January low in Vale is 22°F.
15″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter23–41°
Spring37–66°
Summer55–89°
Fall36–65°
Sep 29
typical first frost
May 8
typical last frost
+1.6°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D
With 1.3 jobs for every working resident, Vale draws in 703 commuters
About one in 4 of Vale’s working residents works in town. 16% of Vale residents live below the poverty line. Only 6 of the 143 Oregon towns we compare have a lower median household income than Vale.
28%work in town
| Vale | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 28% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $50,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 11% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Vale28%
Ontario21%
Nyssa3%
Fruitland3%
Portland2%
14 mi
median commute distance
899
jobs based in Vale
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
A+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
Inland flooding leads a moderate hazard risk in Vale
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 51% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 7 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Vale.
49risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingWildfireEarthquakes
7
paid flood claims since 1978
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
OutdoorsB
Vale has set aside 0% of its land for conservation
3.7 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves.
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 746 acres
3.7 mi
of trails · 3.1 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Wadleigh City Park | — | 13 |
| 2. Cottonwood City Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Vale
19pages on Vale
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Vale
About 5 of every 100 Vale residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Oregon.
Landmarks
5 places in Vale on the National Register of Historic Places.
About Vale
City in Oregon, United States
Vale is a city in and the county seat of Malheur County, Oregon, United States, approximately 12 miles (19 km) west of the Idaho border. It is at the intersection of U.S. Routes 20 and 26, on the Malheur River at its confluence with Bully Creek. Vale was selected as Malheur's county seat in 1888 in a vote where other candidate communities were Ontario and Jordan Valley. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 1,894. Vale is part of the Ontario, OR–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1889
- Area
- 1.1 sq mi
- Elevation
- 2,244 ft
- ZIP code
- 97918
- Area code
- 541
Questions about Vale
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Vale, OR 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 B+.
What is Vale, OR known for?
2 notable people were born here, including Larry Lewis and John Wilcox.