Ester is #1 in Alaska for affordability
Ester is ranked on 29 lists against the 41 Alaska towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 9 and the top quarter on 9.
Ester is on Alaska’s podium 5 times
Each list ranks every AK town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Ester marked.
1 spot from the top 3 for health insurance
Lists where Ester sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Ester lands in the top half on 12 of 17 lists
Each dot is Ester’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in AK, the right end is last. Areas where Ester does best come first.
Shorter growing season than 92% of Alaska
Not better or worse, just Ester’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Ester out-ranks 2 of its 3 ranked neighbors
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Where Ester lands in every AK ranking
33 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Health
Healthiest#1 Chena Ridge · 91 / 100
#2
Lowest obesity#1 Kodiak · 30%
#14
Fewest smokers#1 Chena Ridge · 12%
#1
J
Most active#1 Juneau city and · 17%
#2
Fewest uninsured#1 Chena Ridge · 7%
#4
Lowest depression#1 Unalaska · 14%
#8 People
Most educated#1 Goldstream · 68.6%
#2
Youngest#1 Eielson AFB · 22.3
#25
Oldest#1 Sterling · 46.8
#17
Most residents 65+#1 Sterling · 27.7%
#20
Most kids#1 Eielson AFB · 37.2%
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Ester · 2.8 yrs
#1
Cheapest rent#1 Goldstream · $847/mo
#11
Lowest property tax#1 Kotzebue · $199/yr
#17 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Petersburg · 84%
#7
Most trails#1 College · 5.2 mi / sq mi
#5
Most walkable#1 Palmer · 59.5 / sq mi
#37 Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Kotzebue · 6.1 min
#22 
Climate
Snowiest#1 Valdez · 325 in
#22
K
Least snow#1 Ketchikan · 35 in
#14
S
Mildest winters#1 Sitka city and · 32.4°
#36
Hottest summers#1 Goldstream · 73.0°
#5
Coolest summers#1 Utqiaġvik · 47.7°
#37
S
Longest growing season#1 Sitka city and · 201 days
#36
K
Wettest#1 Ketchikan · 150 in
#27 
Safety
Safest#1 Unalaska · 7.0
The number on the right is Ester’s spot. All of Alaska’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every AK list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.