PonderayID
A town of 1,534. A regional job hub with 2,036 jobs.
What makes Ponderay stand out
The 3 things Ponderay does most differently from other towns.
Ponderay has grown 13.4% since 2010
1,137 people in 2010; 1,534 today.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 · ACS
Ponderay’s report card
Now in Ponderay
Be the first to start the conversation.
Lake Pend Oreille and 2 more within 40 miles
The big draws around Ponderay: national parks, ski areas and well-known sights. Close and well known come first.
13 mi🛶 LakeLake Pend Oreille⛷7 mi⛷ Ski areaSchweitzer Mountain Resort104 runs · 2,388 ft vertical⛷37 mi⛷ Ski areaMt. Spokane61 runs · 1,974 ft verticalPhoto credits
Lake Pend Oreille: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, photographer not specified or unknown, Public domain
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Ponderay. Another town gets a different order.
About one in six working residents works right in Ponderay
Most working residents leave Ponderay for work: only 16% work in town. The top destinations are Sandpoint (36%), Coeur d'Alene (5%) and Post Falls (3%). Half commute less than 3 miles.
Where working residents work
Ponderay’s public schools outperform 72% of Idaho districts
The public schools Ponderay’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, outperform 72% of Idaho’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the top.
| School | Grades | Students | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandpoint Christian School Private | PK–8 | 150 |
Fewer children than Idaho overall, and fewer college graduates
Children under 18 are 18% of residents (24% statewide); people 65 and older are 22% of residents (17% statewide). 11% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across Idaho.
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
| Ponderay | ID | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 6.5% | 12.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11% | 11.6% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.1% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.7% | 13.1% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.1% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 16.9% | 11.7% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.1% | 10.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.6% | 6.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.1% | 8.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 44.4% | 26.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.8% | 24.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.5% | 9.7% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 8% | 21.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 3.3% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
Healthier than 69% of U.S. towns
Ponderay tracks Idaho closely on all 32 CDC measures.
Snowy winters, pleasant summers
Ponderay has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. A typical July afternoon reaches 83°, a January night drops to 23°, and about 62 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
Typical low → high °F
Crime reported in Ponderay
Ponderay's reported crime rate is well below Idaho's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025.
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
Property crime per 1,000 residents
Moderate risk, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities.
0.3% of Ponderay is conserved land
2.3 miles of trails across 1 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. McNearney Park | 0.2 mi | 4 |
Homes in Ponderay sell for about $404K
Every workday, about 1,949 people come to Ponderay for work
Where Ponderay’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Ponderay
City in Idaho, United States
Ponderay ( POND-ə-RAY) is a city in Bonner County, Idaho. As of the 2020 census, Ponderay had a population of 1,289. Ponderay's city motto is "Little City with the Big Future". Its name is an English phonetic spelling of the French words “Pend d'Oreille”, the name of a local indigenous people that live in the region. The name of the lake the city sits on, Lake Pend Oreille, is also a corruption of the Pend d'Orielles.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Population
- 1,289
- Area
- 3.4 sq mi
- Elevation
- 2,126 ft
- ZIP code
- 83852
- Area code
- 208
Ponderay’s neighbors
2 towns share a border with Ponderay.