Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 17,088, settled in 1884.
Aberdeen grades D− overall, 282nd of 285 graded towns in Washington, mostly because of incomes and schools. The median household income is $52K, and 24% of residents live below the poverty line. Its schools rank behind 88% of the state's. What it does well: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 93% of U.S. towns. Aberdeen’s July high is 68°F, where Washington’s towns sit at 77°F and U.S. towns at 85°F. On hazard risk, just 5 of Washington’s 397 towns do worse. Aberdeen is home to Grays Harbor College.
Where Aberdeen beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Coastal flooding makes up 34% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far Aberdeen is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 93% of comparable towns) to D− for hazard risk (better than 1%), so the D− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,638 in 1890, 17,013 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1890 and 2 maps from 1957 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Aberdeen, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Aberdeen.
Aberdeen has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and trades workers with Hoquiam and other neighbors.
240 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 14 properties have flooded more than once.
Aberdeen’s FEMA risk score is 98 of 100. Since 1978, 240 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Aberdeen.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Aberdeen School District. Two of its 13 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miller Junior HighLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 656 | – |
| J M Weatherwax High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 919 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
The typical value, about $268K, is 9% below its July 2022 peak. The median property tax bill is $2,045, against $4,556 across Washington, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical Aberdeen home is worth about $268,000, down 3.8% in a year, 54% below the Washington typical home. The median rent in Aberdeen is $1,049 a month.
| Aberdeen | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 57% | 71% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,049 a month | $1,740 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Reported crimes fell from 637 to 438 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 6,528 U.S. towns with household incomes like Aberdeen’s, it is less healthy than 58%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
40% of Aberdeen adults sleep under 7 hours. Only 3 of the 285 Washington towns we compare have a higher share of adults who smoke cigarettes than Aberdeen. 26% of Aberdeen adults get no exercise outside work.
| Aberdeen | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 68% | 71% | 79% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 17% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 33% | 36% |
| What stands out | Aberdeen | WA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15.9% | 9% |
| More smokers | 17.1% | 10.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.6% | 5.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Aberdeen weather station records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 96% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 68°, cooler than in 99% of U.S. towns; January nights average 37°.
Aberdeen has mild winters and cool summers, with plenty of rain. Only 2 of the 285 Washington towns we compare have a higher January low than Aberdeen. Snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
6.0 miles of trail in 17 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is James Stewart Memorial Park, at 55 acres.
| Aberdeen | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 6.8% | 4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. James Stewart Memorial Park | 0.9 mi | 55 |
| 2. Bishop Athletic Complex | 0.5 mi | 52 |
| 3. Pioneer Park | 0.4 mi | 30 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Aberdeen has about as many jobs (7,003) as working residents, but only 1,785 people both live and work here.
About one in 4 of Aberdeen’s working residents works in town. 5.7% of workers work from home in Aberdeen. Among 285 Washington towns, just 7 have a lower median household income than Aberdeen.
| Aberdeen | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 26% | 4.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $52,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 5.7% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
1 within 15 miles of the center of Aberdeen
About 3 of every 100 Aberdeen residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Washington.
3 places in Aberdeen on the National Register of Historic Places.
31 notable people were born in Aberdeen.
City in Washington, United States
Aberdeen ( AB-ər-deen) is a city in Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. The population was 17,013 at the 2020 census. The city is the most populous in Grays Harbor County and the region's economic center, bordering the cities of Hoquiam and Cosmopolis. Aberdeen is occasionally referred to as the "Gateway to the Olympic Peninsula".
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Aberdeen.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | #282 | D− | C | D | D | C− |
| Cosmopolis | — | — | C+ | — | B+ | C+ |
| Hoquiam | #276 | D− | C | — | C− | C− |
Cosmopolis has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Cosmopolis and Hoquiam report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Aberdeen with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Aberdeen grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns and #282 of 285 in Washington. It grades C− for health, D for safety and D for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 4.2 years of the area's median household income ($64,414 across the Aberdeen, WA 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.
31 notable people were born here, including Kurt Cobain and Douglas Osheroff.
