Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Kelso earns a D, 261st of 285 graded towns in Washington. What it does well: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 84% of U.S. towns. On health, just 31 of Washington’s 397 towns do worse. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 82% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Only 12 of Washington’s 397 towns score higher on history.
Where Kelso beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Nat Smith HouseEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far Kelso is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1847, comes before those of 97% of the Washington towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 354 in 1890, 12,720 in 2020. The archive holds 13 old photos and papers going back to 1885 and 4 maps from 1921 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Kelso, 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 Kelso.
Kelso fares better on crime within Washington than nationally and trades workers with Longview and other neighbors.
Since 1980, 38 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Kelso.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Kelso School District. Two of its 10 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Kelso High School, with 1,390 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huntington Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 559 | – |
| Kelso High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,390 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
The typical Kelso home is worth about $386,000, about the same as a year ago, 34% below the Washington typical home. 56% of Kelso households own their home, against 71% in Washington’s towns and 73% across U.S. towns. Kelso’s median rent is $1,220 a month.
| Kelso | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 56% | 71% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,220 a month | $1,740 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 31.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 58% of Washington’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 472 to 206 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Kelso sits where Washington’s towns sit at 4% and U.S. towns at 4.3% on this measure. 6.2 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Tam O'Shanter Park, at 42 acres.
| Kelso | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.6% | 4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Tam O'Shanter Park | 0.5 mi | 42 |
| 2. Rotary Park | 0.1 mi | 3 |
| 3. Manasco Fields | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
43% of Kelso adults have obesity. Kelso beats the Washington average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 22. 29% of Kelso adults have been diagnosed with depression.
| Kelso | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 17% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 33% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 69% | 71% | 79% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 26% | 23% |
| What stands out | Kelso | WA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 8.1% | 5.1% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 15.8% | 10.2% |
| More smokers | 15.4% | 10.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Kelso has mild winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Kelso is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Kelso has about as many jobs (5,581) as working residents, but only 733 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Kelso for work: only 12% work in town. 5.6% of workers work from home in Kelso. Jobs based in Kelso grew to 5,581 in 2023, 512 more than in 2013.
| Kelso | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 5.6% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $67,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 12% | 4.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
1 within 15 miles of the center of Kelso
About 5 of every 100 Kelso residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Washington.
3 places in Kelso on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in Washington, United States
Kelso is a city in and the county seat of Cowlitz County, Washington, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,720. Kelso is part of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan statistical area, which has a population of 110,730. Kelso shares its long western border with Longview. It is near Mount St. Helens.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Kelso.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Kelso grades D overall, better than 9% of U.S. towns and #261 of 285 in Washington. It grades C for health, C for safety and C+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. That is 5 years of the area's median household income ($76,531 across the Longview-Kelso, WA metro 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−.
2 notable people were born here, including Tommy Lloyd and Jim Deming.
