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Compare towns

Laurel vs Hardin

57 miles apart. The biggest differences: home values (+60% in Laurel) and work in town (+28.7 pts in Hardin).

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Laurel, MTAn outdoors townMontana · 7,215 people
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Hardin, MTHomes around $226KMontana · 3,742 people
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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.

LaurelAn outdoors town
Outdoors#7 most walkable in MT0.9 miles of trails across 9 parks and preserves SchoolsBetter than 32%of MT districts Housing$378K typical home20% below the MT typical home All about Laurel →
HardinHomes around $226K
Housing$226K typical home52% below the MT typical home HistorySettled in 191114 places on the National Register Health70% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates All about Hardin →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

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

Home values+60%
Homes cost more in Laurel
Laurel $235,100Hardin $147,100
Work in town+28.7 pts
More of Hardin’s workers stay in town
Hardin 46.3%Laurel 17.6%
Work from home+11 pts
More people work from home in Laurel
Laurel 12.1%Hardin 1.1%
Trails2.3×
Laurel has more miles of trail
Laurel 0.9 miHardin 0.4 mi
Street grid+86%
Laurel has the more walkable street grid
Laurel 123Hardin 65.9
Jobs per worker+65%
Hardin is more of a job hub
Hardin 1.14Laurel 0.69
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $850 more a month in Laurel

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.

Laurel$2,240/mo
Typical home $378K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.82% · or rent about $974/mo · Housing →
Hardin$1,390/mo
Typical home $226K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.10% · or rent about $771/mo · Housing →

The difference: $850 a month, about $10,200 a year, between Laurel and Hardin.

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

Laurel places higher on 13 of 21 MT lists

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

Safety
DLaurelSafer than 10% of U.S. towns CHardinSafer than 29% of U.S. towns
Schools
CLaurelBetter than 32% of districts in the state DHardinBetter than 7% of districts in the state
Health
BLaurelHealthier than 64% of U.S. towns CHardinHealthier than 30% of U.S. towns
13Laurel
8Hardin

Lists won, of 21 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Most remote workersWork · 42 towns #13#41 Lowest depressionHealth · 42 towns #36#8 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 42 towns #10#37 Highest graduation rateSchools · 36 towns #8#29 Most walkableOutdoors · 43 towns #7#24 Most activeHealth · 42 towns #17#33 HealthiestHealth · 42 towns #23#38 Cheapest rentCost of living · 42 towns #20#6

Left end = #1 in Montana. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Laurel’s rankings →

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
LaurelHardin
Snow a year48″28″
January low15°F11°F
July high89°F91°F
Growing season (days)149d135d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)24th36th
Outdoors & history
LaurelHardin
Trails1 mi0 mi
Conserved land6.6%2.5%
Settled—1911
National Register places414
Archive photos—18
Famous people born here—7
Community
LaurelHardin
Library hours a week46 hrs44 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

57 miles apart

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

LaurelMTHardinMT
Laurel ↔ Hardin57 miles apart
Who commutes between them
12 Hardin residents work in Laurel (0.8% of its workers)
Work & commute in Hardin →
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.

LaurelHardin
People
Population 7,215Highest 3,742Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +7.5%Lowest MT: +9.6% +8.9%Highest MT: +9.6%
Median age 37.1±3.4 8% below MT 37.1±7.7 8% below MT
Kids under 18 23.4%±5Highest MT: 21% 23.1%±5.8Lowest MT: 21%
Laurel and Hardin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 14.5%±3Highest MT: 20.1% 13.7%±3.5Lowest MT: 20.1%
Laurel and Hardin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 20.8%Highest MT: 35.2% 20.5%Lowest MT: 35.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 1.9%±1.4Lowest MT: 5.2% 3.5%±1.8Highest MT: 5.2%
Hardin and Laurel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $68,474±$6kHighest 6% below MT $60,423±$4kLowest 17% below MT
Laurel and Hardin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $235,100±$26kHighest 37% below MT $147,100±$16kLowest 61% below MT
Rentmedian gross, monthly $974±$209Highest 10% below MT $771±$224Lowest 29% below MT
Laurel and Hardin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,939Highest 28% below MT $1,623Lowest 40% below MT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 29.7%±12.3Highest MT: 44.8% 23.3%±16.4Lowest MT: 44.8%
Laurel and Hardin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 10%Highest MT: 11.5% 7.2%Lowest MT: 11.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 58.7%Highest MT: 69.2% 54.1%Lowest MT: 69.2%
Typical home builtmedian year 1975Highest 6 yrs older than MT 1970Lowest 11 yrs older than MT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 19 minHighest about the MT average 18 minLowest 6% below MT
Work from home 12.1%±7Highest MT: 12.5% 1.1%±1.5Lowest MT: 12.5%
Work in townworking residents 17.6%Lowest 46.3%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 12.3 miHighest 11.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.69Lowest 1.14Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Billings (48%)Billings (13%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Hardin1% work in Laurel
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 6.6%Highest 2.5%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 0.9 miHighest 0.4 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.3 miHighest 0.1 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 9Highest 4Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 123Highest 65.9Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #33 of 40 in MT#40 of 40 in MT
School district Laurel Elem · Laurel H SHardin Elem · Hardin H S
High school in town Laurel High SchoolHardin High School
Students per teacherat that high school 16.2Highest 14.8Lowest
Montana 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.

Laurel neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Laurel’s Town Square.

Hardin neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Hardin’s Town Square.

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Towns like Laurel

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Columbia Falls5,615 people · $384K homes

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.

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