Jay ranks #8 in Maine for cheap rent
Jay is ranked on 37 lists against the 144 Maine towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 1 and the top quarter on 4.
The lists Jay does best on
Each list ranks every ME town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Jay marked.
Jay lands in the top half on 9 of 24 lists
Each dot is Jay’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in ME, the right end is last. Areas where Jay does best come first.
More snow than 94% of Maine
Not better or worse, just Jay’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
3 spots from the top 25 for kids’ library use
Lists where Jay sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Jay out-ranks every neighbor it can be compared with
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.
Every ME list, and where Jay lands
41 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Millinocket · 1.4 yrs
#20
Cheapest rent#1 Waldoboro · $348/mo
#8
C
Lowest property tax#1 Corinth · $1,381/yr
#33
Rent easiest to afford#1 Biddeford · 37.2%
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Houlton · 10.4 min
#32 Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Camden · 37.4 per resident
#64
Most library borrowing#1 Camden · 20.5 per resident
#38
Best libraries for kids#1 Camden · 39.3 per child
#28 Health
Healthiest#1 Cape Elizabeth · 98 / 100
#78
Lowest obesity#1 Falmouth · 24%
#78
Fewest smokers#1 Cape Elizabeth · 7%
#60
Most active#1 Cape Elizabeth · 14%
#83
Fewest uninsured#1 Cape Elizabeth · 4%
#61
Lowest depression#1 Cape Elizabeth · 23%
#51
Closest to a top hospital#1 Augusta · 1.3 mi
#115 People
Most educated#1 Cape Elizabeth · 74.1%
#84
Youngest#1 Orono · 21.8
#16
Oldest#1 Harpswell · 62.0
#129
Most residents 65+#1 Bristol · 42.8%
#94
Most kids#1 Jefferson · 28%
#82 
Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Milford · 54%
#107
Most trails#1 Falmouth · 2.9 mi / sq mi
#79
Most walkable#1 South Portland · 70.0 / sq mi
#109 
The number on the right is Jay’s spot. All of Maine’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 ME 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.