Scores by category

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

Safety21#12,276/15,637
Economy71#4,522/15,631
Housing85#2,205/14,977
Health69#4,893/15,609
Healthcare78#3,380/15,650
Environment84#2,407/15,453
Education85#2,401/15,649
Infrastructure56#6,907/15,650
Community96#588/15,651
Leisure & amenities93#1,065/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Helena, Montana ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Lewis and Clark 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

Average commute time · low13.7 min
99/100Montana 19.1 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
High school diploma or higher · high95.1%
99/100Montana 94.6%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Social associations · high19.1 /10k
97/100Montana 13.8 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLewis and Clark County value
New business applications · high26.4 /1k
96/100Montana 26.1 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauLewis and Clark County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high11.1 /10k
96/100Montana 13.7 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLewis and Clark County value
Loneliness · low30.3%
96/100Montana 31.7%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Weaknesses

Suicide rate · high32.0 /100k
2/100Montana 30.3 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataLewis and Clark County value
Comfortable days · low22.4%
5/100Montana 22.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationLewis and Clark County value
Firearm deaths · high25.3 /100k
6/100Montana 23.6 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataLewis and Clark County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high129 mi
6/100Montana 117 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauLewis and Clark County value
Distance to an emergency room · high13.1 mi
10/100Montana 12.2 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLewis and Clark County value
Home price to income ratio · high5.4×
15/100Montana 5.2×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077

Trends

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

PopulationRising
32,024 (2015-2019) → 33,639 (2020-2024)
+5%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
6.6 /1k (2021) → 14.7 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+124%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateImproving
20.2% (2015-2019) → 6.5% (2020-2024)
−14 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
4.0× (2015-2019) → 5.5× (2020-2024)
+37%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
82.9% (2015-2019) → 88.4% (2020-2024)
+5.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateImproving
13.7% (2015-2019) → 8.8% (2020-2024)
−4.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Helena, Montana improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 8 moved within the margin of error and 1 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.

Improved4

Child poverty−14 points20.2% → 6.5%
Poverty−4.9 points13.7% → 8.8%
Broadband+5.5 points82.9% → 88.4%
Household income+16%$61,324 → $71,036

Declined1

Price / income+1.5×4.0× → 5.5×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Helena, Montana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	12.7 min2015-2019	13.7 min2020-2024	+1.0 min	Within the margin of error	36%
Bachelor's degree or higher	47.9%2015-2019	50.6%2020-2024	+2.7 points	Within the margin of error	49%
Broadband subscriptions	82.9%2015-2019	88.4%2020-2024	+5.5 points	Improved	35%
Child poverty rate	20.2%2015-2019	6.5%2020-2024	−14 points	Improved	88%
Effective property tax rate	1.05%2015-2019	0.88%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Little change	51%
High school diploma or higher	96.1%2015-2019	95.1%2020-2024	−1 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Home price to income ratio	4.0×2015-2019	5.5×2020-2024	+1.5×	Declined	10%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4502015-2019	0.4562020-2024	+0.006	Within the margin of error	46%
Median household income	$61,3242015-2019	$71,0362020-2024	+16%	Improved	25%
Poverty rate	13.7%2015-2019	8.8%2020-2024	−4.9 points	Improved	80%
Rent as share of income	25.6%2015-2019	26.1%2020-2024	+0.5 points	Within the margin of error	51%
Rent-burdened households	38.9%2015-2019	39.9%2020-2024	+1 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Unemployment rate	3.1%2015-2019	2.9%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	5.5%2015-2019	5.7%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	45%

“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 Helena, Montana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Helena, Montana 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, Helena, Montana itself moved −5.7 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

33,639 residents (±59)

Men
Women

80 and over
70–79
60–69
50–59
40–49
30–39
20–29
10–19
Under 10

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 70–79 women (+2.0 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

33,639 residents (±59)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

White86%29,071
Black0.8%†270
Hispanic or Latino4.7%1,571
Asian0.5%†183
American Indian and Alaska Native2.0%†657
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races5.6%1,887

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: White (−4.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

24,006 residents (±468)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

No high school diploma4.9%1,167
High school or GED20%4,712
Some college16%3,947
Associate degree8.5%2,033
Bachelor's degree32%7,705
Graduate degree19%4,442

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Bachelor's degree (+3.6 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B15003View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

15,774 households (±310)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Under $25k13%1,983
$25k–50k22%3,471
$50k–75k19%2,935
$75k–100k13%2,074
$100k–150k16%2,478
$150k–200k8.6%1,352
$200k or more9.4%1,481

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Under $25k (−6.6 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

15,774 households (±310)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Own53%8,303
Rent47%7,471

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

7,238 households (±467)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Under $75020%1,433
$750–1,00022%1,608
$1,000–1,50035%2,500

Home values

8,303 homes (±426)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Under $150k4.9%†406
$150k–250k10%846
$250k–400k39%3,198

Age of homes

16,591 homes (±297)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

2010 or later15%2,504
2000–20099.0%1,494
1980–199918%2,918

Size of homes

16,591 homes (±297)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Studio4.6%768
1 bedroom14%2,381
2 bedrooms34%5,571

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

16,732 workers (±635)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Drive alone64%10,779
Carpool9.2%1,540
Public transit0.3%†53
Walk7.3%1,214
Bike1.6%†270
Work from home16%2,704
Other1.0%†172

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+10.7 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

14,028 workers (±744)

Helena, Montana
Montana share

Under 15 min62%8,750
15–29 min30%4,165
30–44 min4.8%†669

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Helena, MT

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 Lewis and Clark County, the county holding most of Helena's residents.

Lewis and Clark County has 2,603 employer establishments, 348 for every 10,000 residents (1.40× the US rate of 248; 0.92× Montana's), with 27,265 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,571. The Census Bureau also counts 6,580 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,603; 6,580 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 348; US 248 · Montana 376
Paid employees: 27,265
Average annual pay: $52,571; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	225	30.1	1.44×More than typical	1,737	$64,853	311
Specialty trade contractors	212	28.3	1.83×More than typical	1,129	$65,143	488
Lessors of real estate	151	20.2	1.64×More than typical	290	$41,283	877
Restaurants and other eating places	135	18.1	0.98×About typical	2,564	$22,582	17
Construction of buildings	124	16.6	2.19×More than typical	953	$81,829	233
Offices of other health practitioners	102	13.6	2.24×More than typical	350	$49,720	213
Building equipment contractors	83	11.1	1.84×More than typical	567	$67,654	50
Real estate agents and brokers	79	10.6	2.17×More than typical	100	$51,620	145
Services to buildings and dwellings	77	10.3	1.53×More than typical	397	$35,461	314
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	67	9	3.37×More than typical	755	$20,277	77
Full-service restaurants	66	8.8	1.15×About typical	1,336	$25,125	9
Management, scientific and technical consulting	64	8.6	1.28×More than typical	184	$78,505	250

Rank places for an industry Open Lewis and Clark County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 74,783 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 $2.4M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Helena, Montana: $70.50 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $2.4M; +22% vs FY2025
Per resident: $70.50; US $1,994
Sole-source: 6.8%; US 30%
Single offer: 9.2%; 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

Forest Service$1.8M75%
Indian Health Service$174.8K7.4%
Federal Highway Administration$156.5K6.6%
Federal Aviation Administration$129.9K5.5%
Defense Logistics Agency$35.1K1.5%
National Park Service$30.7K1.3%
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission$27.2K1.1%
Department of the Army$26.2K1.1%

Top recipients

HELICOPTER TRANSPORT SERVICES, LLC$1.4M58%
ROBERT PECCIA & ASSOCIATES, INC.$198.1K8.4%
HELENA INDIAN ALLIANCE$174.8K7.4%
HELICOPTER EXPRESS LLC$136.8K5.8%
AIRFIELD WESTERN LLC$128.4K5.4%

Spending by fiscal year

614.5KFY2017
512.8KFY2018
783.4KFY2019
733.4KFY2020
1.2MFY2021
1.4MFY2022
1.7MFY2023
853.6K

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonscheduled air transportation · 4812$1.5M64%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$324.2K14%
Outpatient care centers · 6214$174.8K7.4%
Utility system construction · 2371$129.2K5.4%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$59.1K2.5%
Other specialty trade contractors · 2389

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Helena, Montana

LAW ENFORCEMENT PATROL SERVICE - MONTANA AREA OFFICE, CANYON FERRY, HELENA, MONTANA (LEWIS&CLARK COUNTY). BASE YEAR 12/1/2016-11/30/2017; PLUS FOUR ADDITIONAL 1-YEAR OPTION PERIODS.$602.3K
COUNTY OF LEWIS & CLARK· Lewis and Clark County, MT· Facilities & utilities· Nov 17, 2016 – Jul 16, 2026· INR17PC00010

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 Helena, Montana, so they do not add up across cities.

Helena, Montana's figures are part of those of Lewis and Clark County, MT ($75.9M in FY2026), never added to them: 3.1% of that total.

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

See federal money in Lewis and Clark 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.

Helena, Montana is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Troy DowningR-MT-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 0.6%

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.

Lewis and Clark County92100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Helena, MT93

Other cities and towns in Lewis and Clark 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/3035600

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends