Guest, Sign inJoin
Compare towns

Downs vs Bucklin Township

144 miles apart. The biggest differences: trails (162× in Bucklin Township) and street grid (57.9× in Downs).

×
Downs, KSHomes around $101KKansas · 749 people
×
Bucklin Township, KSKnown for its schoolsFord County · 845 people
Swap order
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

DownsHomes around $101K
Housing$101K typical home59% below the KS typical home All about Downs →
Bucklin TownshipKnown for its schools
SchoolsBetter than 25%of KS districts All about Bucklin Township →
The biggest differences

Where they differ most

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Trails162×
Bucklin Township has more miles of trail
Bucklin Township 16.2 miDowns 0.1 mi
Street grid57.9×
Downs has the more walkable street grid
Downs 104Bucklin Township 1.8
Rent+33%
Rent runs higher in Bucklin Township
Bucklin Township $775Downs $582
Age 65++13.7 pts
Downs has more people 65 and up
Downs 36.4%Bucklin Township 22.7%
Property tax bill+39%
Tax bills are bigger in Bucklin Township
Bucklin Township $2,227Downs $1,606
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Downs$660/mo
Typical home $101K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.56% · or rent about $582/mo · Housing →
Bucklin Township$650/mo
Typical home $88K (Census) · tax rate 2.52% · or rent about $775/mo · Housing →

Within $50 a month of each other.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Kansas ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Schools
–DownsNot graded CBucklin TownshipBetter than 25% of districts in the state
Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
DownsBucklin Township
Snow a year18″18″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)69th47th
Outdoors & history
DownsBucklin Township
Trails0 mi16 mi
Conserved land0.9%0%
National Register places2—
Archive photos—3
Famous people born here—1
Community
DownsBucklin Township
Library hours a week30 hrs28 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

144 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

DownsKSBucklin TownshipFord County
Downs ↔ Bucklin Township144 miles apart
Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

DownsBucklin Township
People
Population 749Lowest 845Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census -11.1%Lowest KS: +3% -7.2%Highest KS: +3%
Median age 50.9±10Highest 36% above KS 50±13.4Lowest 34% above KS
Downs and Bucklin Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 17.5%±4.9Lowest KS: 23.8% 23%±8.2Highest KS: 23.8%
Bucklin Township and Downs are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 36.4%±4.1Highest KS: 17% 22.7%±3.9Lowest KS: 17%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 27.8%Lowest KS: 35.6% 35.2%Highest KS: 35.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 0.8%±1.7Lowest KS: 6.6% 7.7%±8.8Highest KS: 6.6%
Bucklin Township and Downs are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $62,333±$8kHighest 16% below KS $61,120±$11kLowest 18% below KS
Downs and Bucklin Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $102,700±$11kHighest 53% below KS $88,200±$27kLowest 59% below KS
Downs and Bucklin Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $582±$28Lowest 45% below KS $775±$156Highest 27% below KS
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,606Lowest 43% below KS $2,227Highest 20% below KS
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 39.1%±20Highest KS: 43.5% 0%±23.4Lowest KS: 43.5%
Downs and Bucklin Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 5.8%Highest KS: 11.3% 5.5%Lowest KS: 11.3%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 76.9%Highest KS: 67.2% 74.3%Lowest KS: 67.2%
Typical home builtmedian year 1955Highest 21 yrs older than KS 1952Lowest 24 yrs older than KS
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 13 minLowest 32% below KS 17 minHighest 14% below KS
Work from home 2%±2.5Lowest KS: 11.8% 10.9%±11Highest KS: 11.8%
Bucklin Township and Downs are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 13.4%Highest 12.5%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 23.3 miLowest 26.3 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.90Highest 0.81Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Osborne (24%)Dodge City (19%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Bucklin TownshipFew work in Downs
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0.9%Highest 0%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 0.1 miLowest 16.2 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.1 mi 0.1 mi
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1Highest 0Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 104Highest 1.8Lowest
Schools
School district —Bucklin
High school in town —Bucklin High
Students per teacherat that high school — 6.5
Kansas average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Downs neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Downs’s Town Square.

Bucklin Township neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Bucklin Township’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Downs and Bucklin Township

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Towns like Downs

R
+ Compare
Ross Township777 people · $100K homes
+ Compare
Bucklin652 people · $85K homes
A
+ Compare
Ashland738 people · $70K homes
+ Compare
Sharon Springs Township900 people · $102K homes
Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks Kansas towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Post to Downs

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in