Town · Sanders County, Montana

Plains, Montana

Plains is a town in Sanders County, Montana. It has 1,195 residents. Plains, Montana has a quality-of-life score of 41 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #9,222 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Montana it ranks #75 of 94 cities and towns. It ranks best on grocery stores (high), median Air Quality Index (low) and drug overdose deaths (low). It ranks worst on flu vaccinations (low), median household income (low) and unemployment rate (high).

41Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #9,222 of 15,651 cities and towns
Montana: #75 of 94 in MT
Population: 1,195 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 1,944.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 3058150

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety55#7,106/15,637
Economy7#14,506/15,631
Housing48#7,756/14,977
Health38#9,652/15,609
Healthcare16#13,116/15,650
Environment35#9,994/15,453
Education51#7,701/15,649
Infrastructure52#7,479/15,650
Community70#4,670/15,651
Leisure & amenities90#1,553/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Grocery stores · high5.0 /10k
99/100Montana 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSanders County value
Median Air Quality Index · low16
99/100Montana 332025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySanders County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Montana 14.5 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionSanders County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,309 /100k
98/100Montana 1,824 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanders County value
High school diploma or higher · high92.6%
98/100Montana 94.6%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Average commute time · low15.0 min
97/100Montana 19.1 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013High uncertainty

Weaknesses

Flu vaccinations · low17.0%
0/100Montana 39.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanders County value
Median household income · low$25,491
1/100Montana $75,520United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Unemployment rate · high19.1%
1/100Montana 3.3%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Injury deaths · high160 /100k
2/100Montana 105 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanders County value
Distance to an emergency room · high19.2 mi
3/100Montana 12.2 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSanders County value
Child care cost burden · high43.2%
3/100Montana 40.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanders County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,049 (2015-2019) → 1,195 (2020-2024)
+14%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Home price to income ratioWorsening
4.1× (2015-2019) → 9.7× (2020-2024)
+136%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Child poverty rateWorsening
13.8% (2015-2019) → 40.2% (2020-2024)
+26 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
56.1% (2015-2019) → 81.9% (2020-2024)
+26 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Unemployment rateWorsening
1.8% (2015-2019) → 19.2% (2020-2024)
+17 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
17.8% (2015-2019) → 31.2% (2020-2024)
+13 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, Plains, Montana improved on 0 of 10 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Plains, Montana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.2%2015-2019	13.4%2020-2024	−4.8 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Broadband subscriptions	56.1%2015-2019	81.9%2020-2024	+26 points	Within the margin of error	96%
Effective property tax rate	0.81%2015-2019	0.54%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	70%
High school diploma or higher	85.5%2015-2019	92.6%2020-2024	+7.1 points	Within the margin of error	90%
Home price to income ratio	4.1×2015-2019	9.7×2020-2024	+5.6×	Within the margin of error	0%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4712015-2019	0.6342020-2024	+0.163	Within the margin of error	1%
Median household income	$33,1552015-2019	$25,4912020-2024	−23%	Within the margin of error	1%
Poverty rate	17.8%2015-2019	31.2%2020-2024	+13 points	Within the margin of error	2%
Rent as share of income	38.1%2015-2019	46.3%2020-2024	+8.2 points	Within the margin of error	13%
Rent-burdened households	71.7%2015-2019	77.3%2020-2024	+5.6 points	Within the margin of error	36%

“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 Plains, Montana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Plains, 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, Plains, Montana itself moved −2.4 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

1,195 residents (±290)

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: 20–29 women (+10.5 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 B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,195 residents (±290)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

White83%988
Black1.8%†21
Hispanic or Latino7.1%†85

Education

827 residents (±195)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

No high school diploma7.4%†61
High school or GED49%†404
Some college23%†

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

631 households (±158)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Under $25k49%†310
$25k–50k15%†94
$50k–75k13%†79
$75k–100k8.4%†53
$100k–150k8.7%†55
$150k–200k2.2%†14
$200k or more4.1%†26

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−18.2 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 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

631 households (±158)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Own53%†335
Rent47%†296

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

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

Table view

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

Rent paid

286 households (±130)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Under $75029%†82
$750–1,00053%†153
$1,000–1,50018%†51

Home values

335 homes (±104)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Under $150k33%†110
$150k–250k17%†58
$250k–400k32%†107

Age of homes

707 homes (±164)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

2010 or later8.6%†61
2000–20097.2%†51
1980–199931%†217

Size of homes

707 homes (±164)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom15%†105
2 bedrooms24%†173

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

504 workers (±169)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Drive alone52%†261
Carpool16%†80
Public transit1.4%†7
Walk15%†76
Bike0.0%0
Work from home16%†80
Other0.0%0

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

† 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

424 workers (±167)

Plains, Montana
Montana share

Under 15 min76%†321
15–29 min7.1%†30
30–44 min5.9%†25

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

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 Sanders County, the county holding most of Plains's residents.

Sanders County has 394 employer establishments, 287 for every 10,000 residents (1.16× the US rate of 248; 0.76× Montana's), with 2,585 paid employees at an average annual pay of $38,561. The Census Bureau also counts 1,378 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 394; 1,378 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 287; US 248 · Montana 376
Paid employees: 2,585
Average annual pay: $38,561; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	35	25.5	1.65×More than typical	78	$48,731	197
Construction of buildings	30	21.9	2.89×More than typical	65	$42,985	113
Restaurants and other eating places	21	15.3	0.83×About typical	142	$16,796	11
Ambulatory health care services	20	14.6	0.70×Fewer than typical	158	$40,405	42
Lessors of real estate	17	12.4	1.01×About typical	75	$21,333	121
Other specialty trade contractors	16	11.7	4.65×More than typical	27	$47,852	71
Building equipment contractors	12	8.8	1.45×More than typical	30	$49,900	27
Full-service restaurants	12	8.8	1.14×About typical	103	$17,854	3
Grocery and convenience stores	10	7.3	2.46×More than typical	165	$23,206	—
Management, scientific and technical consulting	10	7.3	1.09×About typical	8	$84,750	34
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	9	6.6	2.47×Too few to compare	26	$41,923	6
Building material and supplies dealers (hardware, home centers)	9	6.6	3.98×Too few to compare	86	$25,942	—

Rank places for an industry Open Sanders County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 13,713 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Sanders 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.

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

House

Ryan K. ZinkeR-MT-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 3.0%

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.

Sanders County43100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Sanders 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
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/3058150