Compare towns
Cornish vs Orono vs Chesterville
Cost, people, housing, commute and schools, side by side, each benchmarked against Maine.
What stands out worked out from the figures below
Cornish has the highest household income ($69k).
Orono has the most renters (53.4% rent).
Chesterville has the most kids (31.3% under 18).
Orono is a college town. 56.1% of residents are enrolled in college, which pulls its median age, poverty rate and renter figures away from what a year-round family would see.
What matters to you?
Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.
| Measure | Cornish | Orono | Chesterville |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your priorities | |||
| People | |||
| Population | 1,803 |
11,902Highest |
1,397Lowest |
| Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census | +7.5% ME: +2.6% |
+7.9%Highest ME: +2.6% |
-1.8%Lowest ME: +2.6% |
| Median age | 39±8.5Highest 13% below ME |
21.8±0.3Lowest 51% below ME |
37.8±4 16% below ME |
| Cornish and Chesterville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Kids under 18 | 18.2%±3.3 ME: 18.1% |
6.8%±1.5Lowest ME: 18.1% |
31.3%±6.6Highest ME: 18.1% |
| Age 65+ | 17.4%±4.9Highest ME: 22.4% |
11.4%±1.9Lowest ME: 22.4% |
15%±3 ME: 22.4% |
| Cornish and Chesterville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ | 21% ME: 36.2% |
66.8%Highest ME: 36.2% |
20.4%Lowest ME: 36.2% |
| Enrolled in collegeshare of residents | 2.8%±1.4 ME: 5.8% |
56.1%±3.5Highest ME: 5.8% |
2.3%±2Lowest ME: 5.8% |
| Cost of living | |||
| Household incomemedian | $69,038±$4kHighest 8% below ME |
$61,528±$5kLowest 18% below ME |
$61,635±$10k 18% below ME |
| Cornish and Chesterville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Home valuemedian, owner-occupied | $274,200±$84kHighest 8% below ME |
$272,600±$40k 8% below ME |
$214,000±$40kLowest 28% below ME |
| Cornish and Orono are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Rentmedian gross, monthly | $1,196±$148 5% above ME |
$1,255±$112Highest 10% above ME |
$1,088±$73Lowest 4% below ME |
| Orono and Cornish are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Property taxmedian, yearly | $2,309 24% below ME |
$4,830Highest 59% above ME |
$2,194Lowest 28% below ME |
| Renters paying 30%+of income on rent | 48.8%±17.5 ME: 48.4% |
58.1%±10.6Highest ME: 48.4% |
21.8%±30.8Lowest ME: 48.4% |
| Orono and Cornish are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Below poverty line | 6.3%Lowest ME: 10.7% |
24.9%Highest ME: 10.7% |
12% ME: 10.7% |
| Housing | |||
| Homeownersof occupied homes | 82.1% ME: 74.3% |
46.6%Lowest ME: 74.3% |
86.4%Highest ME: 74.3% |
| Typical home builtmedian year | 1976Lowest 1 yr older than ME |
1977 same as ME |
1978Highest 1 yr newer than ME |
| Getting to work | |||
| Average commuteone way | 31 minHighest 27% above ME |
15 minLowest 38% below ME |
25 min about the ME average |
| Work from home | 8.5%±2.4 ME: 15.9% |
11.3%±3.2Highest ME: 15.9% |
7.1%±3.7Lowest ME: 15.9% |
| Orono and Cornish are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher. | |||
| Schools | |||
| Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading | — | #26 of 133 in ME | — |
| School district | — | RSU 26 | — |
| High school in town | — | Orono High School | — |
| Students per teacherat that high school | — | 10.7 |
— |
| On TownTapestry | |||
| Old photos in History | None yet | None yet | None yet |
ME average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.