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Rangely, Colorado

Rangely is a small town of about 2,300 people in Rio Blanco County, Colorado, about 5,300 feet above sea level. Its population has held about steady since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.8 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Salt Lake City, is about 172 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
2,304
up 0.2% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$187,400
Rio Blanco County prices up 15% since 2022
Household income
$66,389
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Colorado
97.5
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Rangely District Hospital
To Salt Lake City
172 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 2.5% below the U.S. average in the parts of Colorado outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood4 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 15.3 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town2 public schools: 1 elementary and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byRangely District Hospital is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big citySalt Lake City is about 172 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 Rangely 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.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$187,400U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 15%Rio Blanco County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$770 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$66,389U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
74%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$863 a yearColorado: $2,602
Homes built before 1940
6%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
3%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
97.5U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Colorado outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 15% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Colorado outside metro areas, not Rangely 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
2,3042020: 2,300
Median age
33.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
12%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
27%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
18%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
10%U.S.: 6%
College students
12%share of all residents

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
Schools, health care and social services (28%); transportation, warehousing and utilities (15%); retail (14%)
Unemployment rate
6%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
10 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
6%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
15%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Rangely District Hospital, Rangely, CO, in town. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

Nearest general hospital: Ashley Regional Medical Center, Vernal, UT, about 47 miles away. Medicare gives it 4 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 Rangely, run by Rangely School District RE4.

Colleges in or next to town: Colorado Northwestern Community College (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Colorado'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
80%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
87%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.

Weather

January average low
3°F
July average high
92°F
Days 90°F or hotter
51 a year
Nights at or below freezing
176 a year
Rain and melted snow
10.9 inches a year
Snow
30 inches a year
Elevation
5,266 feet

Weather station: Rangely 1E (1 mile away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

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: Grand Junction, Salt Lake City.

Rio Blanco County 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

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Dinosaur National Monument14 miles

Campus life. Check Colorado Northwestern Community College's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Rangely's history on Wikipedia.

Know Rangely?

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

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. 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.