The book's checklist
- Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 3.8% below the U.S. average in the parts of Alaska outside metro areas.
- More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Hooper Bay to say.
- A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Hooper Bay itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
- Schools in town2 public schools: 1 middle, 1 K-12 and 1 other.
- A hospital close byYukon Kuskokwim Delta Reg Hospital in Bethel, about 152 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
- Within reach of a big citySeattle is about 1,947 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.
A check means Hooper Bay meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.
What kind of town
Hooper Bay has lost about 6% of its people since 2020. A shrinking town can mean bargains, but visit Main Street on a weekday and ask what's closed lately.
The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.
For a lifetime
Homes and money
- Typical rent, with utilities
- $725 a monthU.S.: $1,413
- Typical household income
- $49,688U.S.: $80,734
- Homes owned by the people living in them
- 66%U.S.: 65%
- Homes built before 1940
- 0%U.S.: 12%
- Homes built since 2010
- 14%U.S.: 11%
- Vacation and seasonal homes
- 5%U.S.: 3%
- Everyday prices
- 96.2U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Alaska outside metro areas)
Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Alaska outside metro areas, not Hooper Bay alone. Check current listings before you budget.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
The people
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,2972020: 1,374
- Median age
- 27.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
- Age 65 and older
- 7%U.S.: 17%
- Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
- 3%U.S.: 36%
- Moved here from another county or state in the past year
- 1%U.S.: 6%
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Work
- Biggest lines of work
- Retail (19%)
- Unemployment rate
- 14%U.S.: 5%
- Below the poverty line
- 23%U.S.: 12%
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Health care
Nearest emergency room: Yukon Kuskokwim Delta Reg Hospital, Bethel, AK, about 152 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 5 of 5 stars.
Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.
Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.
Schools
2 public schools in Hooper Bay, run by Lower Yukon School District.
See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Alaska's school report card.
Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.
Internet
- Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
- 13%U.S.: 76%
- Homes with any internet subscription
- 88%U.S.: 91%
Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Getting around
Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Yukon Kuskokwim Delta Reg Hospital, Anchorage, Seattle.
Kusilvak Census Area is outside any metro area, with fewer than 5,000 people in its towns, not next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 9, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).
For a day
Read about Hooper Bay's history on Wikipedia.
Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.
Nearby
Straight-line miles.
Small towns
- Bethel, AK6,600 people, 152 miles
- Nome, AK3,700 people, 208 miles
- Dillingham, AK2,100 people, 310 miles
- Kotzebue, AK2,900 people, 387 miles
- Nikiski, AK4,800 people, 499 miles
- Kenai, AK7,900 people, 502 miles
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
- Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
- National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
- National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
- U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
- National Park Service, park unit boundaries
- USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas
Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.