City · Penobscot County, Maine

Brewer, Maine

Brewer is a city in Penobscot County, Maine, part of the Bangor, ME metro area. It has 9,652 residents. Brewer, Maine has a quality-of-life score of 57 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,659 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Maine it ranks #62 of 104 cities and towns. It ranks best on high school diploma or higher (high), fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (low) and mental health providers (high). It ranks worst on depression (high), comfortable days (low) and distance to an airport (high).

57Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,659 of 15,651 cities and towns
Maine: #62 of 104 in ME
Population: 9,652 (2020-2024)
Land area: 15 mi²
Density: 633.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 2306925

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety69#4,795/15,637
Economy41#9,236/15,631
Housing33#10,079/14,977
Health15#13,262/15,609
Healthcare71#4,461/15,650
Environment83#2,611/15,453
Education88#1,927/15,649
Infrastructure51#7,625/15,650
Community45#8,613/15,651
Leisure & amenities45#8,537/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Brewer, Maine ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Penobscot County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

High school diploma or higher · high95.4%
99/100Maine 94.8%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low4.5 µg/m³
98/100Maine 4.9 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPenobscot County value
Mental health providers · high696 /100k
96/100Maine 586 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePenobscot County value
Primary care physicians · high126 /100k
95/100Maine 107 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePenobscot County value
Average commute time · low16.9 min
94/100Maine 24.6 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Violent crime rate · low74 /100k
92/100Maine 93 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationPenobscot County value

Weaknesses

Depression · high30.6%
3/100Maine 28.4%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Comfortable days · low22.0%
3/100Maine 21.2%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationPenobscot County value
Distance to an airport · high117 mi
6/100Maine 62 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPenobscot County value
Drug overdose deaths · high33.5 /100k
6/100Maine 24.7 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataPenobscot County value
Frequent mental distress · high21.3%
9/100Maine 20.4%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Distance to an Amtrak station · high92 mi
11/100Maine 46 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPenobscot County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
9,090 (2015-2019) → 9,652 (2020-2024)
+6.2%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
46.5% (2015-2019) → 55.7% (2020-2024)
+9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
83.8% (2015-2019) → 91.7% (2020-2024)
+7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
14.3% (2015-2019) → 6.6% (2020-2024)
−7.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
29.4% (2015-2019) → 35.0% (2020-2024)
+5.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$52,174 (2015-2019) → $66,613 (2020-2024)
+28%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Brewer, Maine improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Household income+28%$52,174 → $66,613
Broadband+7.9 points83.8% → 91.7%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Brewer, Maine between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.2 min2015-2019	16.9 min2020-2024	−0.3 min	Within the margin of error	52%
Bachelor's degree or higher	29.4%2015-2019	35.0%2020-2024	+5.6 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Broadband subscriptions	83.8%2015-2019	91.7%2020-2024	+7.9 points	Improved	49%
Effective property tax rate	1.53%2015-2019	1.20%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	78%
High school diploma or higher	92.4%2015-2019	95.4%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Home price to income ratio	3.1×2015-2019	3.7×2020-2024	+0.6×	Within the margin of error	43%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4212015-2019	0.4722020-2024	+0.051	Within the margin of error	16%
Median household income	$52,1742015-2019	$66,6132020-2024	+28%	Improved	50%
Poverty rate	12.5%2015-2019	12.5%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	44%
Rent as share of income	29.2%2015-2019	31.4%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	38%
Rent-burdened households	46.5%2015-2019	55.7%2020-2024	+9.2 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	8.9%2015-2019	7.0%2020-2024	−1.9 points	Within the margin of error	68%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Brewer, Maine five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Brewer, Maine in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Brewer, Maine itself moved −4.6 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

9,652 residents (±33)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

4,250 households (±317)

Brewer, Maine
Maine share

Under $25k18%775
$25k–50k22%949
$50k–75k14%596

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

4,250 households (±317)

Brewer, Maine
Maine share

Own60%2,536
Rent40%1,714

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

4,382 workers (±436)

Brewer, Maine
Maine share

Drive alone80%3,523
Carpool11%†486
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Bangor, ME

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Penobscot County, the county holding most of Brewer's residents.

Penobscot County has 4,222 employer establishments, 269 for every 10,000 residents (1.08× the US rate of 248; 0.87× Maine's), with 60,749 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,184. The Census Bureau also counts 11,013 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,222; 11,013 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 269; US 248 · Maine 309
Paid employees: 60,749
Average annual pay: $52,184; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Penobscot County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	341	21.7	1.40×More than typical	2,767	$73,292	1,052
Ambulatory health care services	317	20.2	0.97×About typical	4,861	$68,052	553
Restaurants and other eating places	252	16.1	0.87×About typical	4,622	$23,766	25
Lessors of real estate	190	12.1	0.98×About typical	584	$45,209	1,189
Construction of buildings	152	9.7	1.28×More than typical	645	$53,626	418
Building equipment contractors	139	8.9	1.47×More than typical	1,258	$62,637	233
Services to buildings and dwellings	128	8.2	1.21×About typical	1,129	$32,130	665
Truck transportation	114	7.3	1.44×More than typical	1,512	$57,037	143
Full-service restaurants	113	7.2	0.94×About typical	2,484	$25,242	9
Offices of other health practitioners	107	6.8	1.12×About typical	658	$61,223	306
Automotive repair and maintenance	105	6.7	1.33×More than typical	488	$48,797	164
Limited-service restaurants	89	5.7	0.71×Fewer than typical	1,567	$22,041	12

Rank places for an industry Open Penobscot County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 156,839 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $26.9K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Brewer, Maine: $2.78 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $26.9K; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $2.78; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of the Army$26.9K100%

Top recipients

JEFF'S CATERING & BAKE SHOP, INC.$26.9K100%
COMPOTECH INC$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.5MFY2017
1.8MFY2018
129.2KFY2019
33.5KFY2020
289.1KFY2021
-4.1KFY2022
2.3MFY2023
26.2MFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Special food services · 7223$26.9K100%

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Brewer, Maine

EXTENDABLE - PANELIZED AND COLLAPSIBLE SHELTER (E-PACS) DESIGN REFINEMENT, FABRICATION OF ADDITIONAL UNITS, TRAINING AND SUPPORT$9.3M
COMPOTECH INC· Penobscot County, ME· Research & development· Jan 17, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026· W911QY25CA002
EXPEDITIONARY SHELTER PROTECTION SYSTEM PRODUCTION UNITS$8.9M
COMPOTECH INC· Penobscot County, ME· Other equipment & supplies· Sep 25, 2025 – Feb 19, 2026· W911QY25FA134
CONTRACTOR MUST PROVIDE TIMELY, HIGH-QUALITY MEALS COOKED UNDER COMMERCIAL STANDARDS AND HIGH-QUALITY CUSTOMER SERVICE FOR THE RECRUIT SUSTAINMENT PROGRAM IN SUPPORT OF PERSONNEL IN ATTENDANCE OF VARIOUS MISSIONS$26.9K
JEFF'S CATERING & BAKE SHOP, INC.· Penobscot County, ME· Facilities & utilities· Dec 11, 2025 – May 18, 2026· W912JD26PA002

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Brewer, Maine, so they do not add up across cities.

Brewer, Maine's figures are part of those of Penobscot County, ME ($24.2M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.1% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Brewer is mostly in Penobscot County.

See federal money in Penobscot County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Brewer, Maine is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Jared F. GoldenD-ME-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 70%Missed 2.8%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Penobscot County67100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Bangor, ME59

Other cities and towns in Penobscot County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/2306925

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends