Living in Ketchum, Idaho: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 8.1% below the U.S. average in the parts of Idaho outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 8.9 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood7 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.9 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 8.3 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Wood River High School, about 12 miles away.
A hospital close bySt. Luke's Wood River Medical Center in Ketchum, about 3 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big citySalt Lake City is about 237 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 Ketchum 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

Tourist town. About 43% of homes are vacation or seasonal homes, a sign of a visitor economy. More restaurants, shops and weekend events than locals alone could support, with the small-town basics intact.

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 home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $824,000U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 16%Blaine County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,186 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $93,046U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 73%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $3,659 a yearIdaho: $2,038
Homes built before 1940: 1%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 6%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 43%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 91.9U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Idaho 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 16% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Idaho outside metro areas, not Ketchum 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: 3,6432020: 3,553
Median age: 58.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 27%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 4%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 63%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 6%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: Arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (19%); construction (19%); professional and business services (15%)
Unemployment rate: 0%U.S.: 5%
Work from home: 19%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 5%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: St. Luke's Wood River Medical Center, Ketchum, ID, about 3 miles away. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare gives it 4 of 5 stars.

Nearest general hospital: St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Center, Twin Falls, ID, about 76 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

1 public school in Ketchum, run by Blaine County District. The nearest public high school is Wood River High School, about 12 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Idaho'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: 86%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 95%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: 8°F
July average high: 80°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 4 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 228 a year
Rain and melted snow: 17.3 inches a year
Snow: 102 inches a year
Elevation: 5,818 feet

Weather station: Ketchum Rs (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

St. Luke's Wood River Medical CenterEmergency room3

Twin Falls, IDCity of 56,00078

Salt Lake City, UTMetro of 1.3 million237

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: St. Luke's Wood River Medical Center, Twin Falls, Salt Lake City.

Blaine County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, not next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 7, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Ketchum Ranger District Administrative Site.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Craters of the Moon National Preserve34 miles
Craters of the Moon National Monument40 miles

Read about Ketchum's history on Wikipedia.

Know Ketchum?

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

Sun Valley, ID1,800 people, 2 miles
Hailey, ID10,100 people, 13 miles
Bellevue, ID2,600 people, 16 miles
Shoshone, ID1,800 people, 52 miles
Gooding, ID3,900 people, 55 miles
Wendell, ID3,100 people, 65 miles

Sources

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.