Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 4,181, settled in 1860.
Montesano's standout: it has 27 miles of trail and 78% conserved land. Overall it grades B−, 117th among Washington's 285 graded towns. Its schools rank ahead of 79% of Washington towns and it is healthier than 77% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 92% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. 78% of the land in Montesano is conserved, against 4% in Washington’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. Montesano is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 94% of U.S. towns. US Post Office-Montesano Main is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Montesano beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
77.9% of the town is conserved land, across 5 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far Montesano is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,632 in 1890, 4,138 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1909 and 3 maps from 1940 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Montesano, 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 Montesano.
Montesano fares better on crime within Washington than nationally, keeps more of its land conserved than most of Washington and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
Its 5,480 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in any other Washington town. Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #2 of 285 in Washington.
27 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. At 2.5 miles per square mile, Montesano’s trail density is where Washington’s towns sit at 0.8 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Lake Sylvia State Park, at 251 acres with 2.4 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lake Sylvia State Park | 2.4 mi | 251 |
| 2. Ferbrache Wildlife Area | — | 10 |
| 3. John W. Vessey Memorial Ball Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Montesano School District. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Montesano Jr-Sr High, with 698 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simpson Avenue ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–6 | Grades 3–6 | 402 | – |
| Montesano Jr-Sr HighLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 698 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
Since 1994, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Montesano.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 10,283 U.S. towns with household incomes like Montesano’s, it is healthier than 94%, so its A− isn’t only a matter of income.
71% of adults had a checkup this year in Montesano. Montesano beats the Washington average on 4 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 38% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Montesano.
| Montesano | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 71% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 33% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 18% | 25% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 26% | 23% |
| What stands out | Montesano | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.6% | 8.4% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.6% | 10.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.1% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Montesano home is worth about $383,000, about the same as a year ago, 35% below the Washington typical home. 61% of Montesano households own their home.
| Montesano | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 61% | 71% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,195 a month | $1,740 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
July afternoons average 73.9°, cooler than in 99% of U.S. towns; January nights average 34.7°.
Montesano has mild winters and cool summers, with plenty of rain. Montesano’s July high is 74°F. About 2 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Montesano | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 74°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 35°F | 35°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Montesano has about as many jobs (1,801) as working residents, but only 294 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Montesano for work: only 15% work in town. The average trip to work in Montesano is 22 minutes. The top destinations are Aberdeen (13%), Olympia (8%) and Seattle (6%).
| Montesano | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 4.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $68,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 4.9% | 7.9% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 16.1 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 78% of Washington’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 2 reported in 2025, 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
1 within 15 miles of the center of Montesano
About 1 of every 100 Montesano residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Washington.
7 notable people were born in Montesano.
City in Washington, United States
Montesano is a city in and the county seat of Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. The population was 4,138 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Montesano.
Brady isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Montesano with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Montesano grades B− overall, better than 53% of U.S. towns and #117 of 285 in Washington. It grades A− for health, B for safety and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. That is 5.9 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 D.
7 notable people were born here, including Helen Margaret Gilkey and Reuben H. Fleet.