BowWA
A town of 585.
Is Bow a good place to live?
Bow has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Bow lives by the ocean
Coastal flooding makes up 21% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
Moving to Bow: who provides what
Bow is unincorporated, so Skagit County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Bow.
The typical home in Bow is valued at about $839K
90% of households are owner-occupiers in Bow, above both the Washington town median (71%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%). Over the 12 months to September 2026, the typical home gained 2.8% in value.
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The biggest natural risk in Bow is inland flooding, at a very high overall level
FEMA expects more storm and flood damage in Bow than in 80% of U.S. communities. Households locally have drawn federal disaster aid in 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2025. Of the losses FEMA expects locally, 41% come from inland flooding and 23% from earthquakes.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
With 0.3 jobs for every working resident, most of Bow’s workers commute out
The top destinations are Mount Vernon (15%), Bellingham (14%) and Seattle (11%). Bow’s median household income is $67,000, against $98,000 in Washington’s towns and $80,000 across U.S. towns.
| Bow | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 15 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $67,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
In Bow, expect four seasons and pleasant summers
For Bow, the typical July afternoon high is 72°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
How healthy Bow is
Two figures for adults in Bow: 30% sleep under 7 hours, 73% had a checkup this year. CDC measures, 31 in all: Bow beats Washington on 10 and trails on 6. For adults locally, the share who report frequent mental distress is 14%.
| Bow | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 33% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 71% | 79% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 18% | 25% |
| What stands out | Bow | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 4.6% | 9% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.6% | 10.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.3% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Mount Baker and 20 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bow. Close and well known come first.
Big draw31 mi MountainMount Baker
38 mi National ParkNorth Cascades National Park47K visitors a year
34 mi LandmarkPeace Arch
33 mi LandmarkFort Worden
30 mi LandmarkFort Casey40 mi Ski areaMt Baker47 runs · 1,475 ft verticalPhoto credits
Mount Baker: Walter Siegmund (talk), CC BY 2.5 · North Cascades National Park: Daniel Hershman, CC BY 2.0 · Peace Arch: Arnold C (User:Buchanan-Hermit), Attribution · Fort Worden: Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Casey: mikelehen, CC BY 2.0
Everything we know about Bow
Colleges nearby
3 within 15 miles of the center of Bow
About 0 of every 100 Bow residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Washington.
585 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
About Bow
Unincorporated community in Washington, US
Bow is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Skagit County, Washington. It is located near the towns of Bay View, Edison, Burlington, and Mount Vernon. Bow is included in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bow overlooks Samish Bay. The population of Bow is 203 in the 2020 census. The 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge Bow Hill Railroad, complete with a working steam locomotive, is located in the Bow area. It can be found on the private property of Diz Schimke, who allows the public to ride the train during Christmastime in exchange for donations to the Alger food bank.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Elevation
- 16 ft
- ZIP code
- 98232
- Area code
- 360
Questions about Bow
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Bow, WA a good place to live?
Bow has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.