Living in Plains, Montana: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 8.4% below the U.S. average in the parts of Montana outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 9.7 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood1 violent crime was reported in 2025, about 0.8 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 4.7 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
A hospital close byClark Fork Valley Hospital is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big citySeattle is about 348 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 Plains 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

Boom town. The population is up 13% since 2020. Growing fast, with rising home values. Watch for chain stores and big apartment complexes: the small-town feel may not last.

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: $248,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 19%Sanders County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $843 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $25,491U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 53%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $1,188 a yearMontana: $2,693
Homes built before 1940: 16%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 9%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 91.6U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Montana 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 19% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Montana outside metro areas, not Plains 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: 1,2612020: 1,115
Median age: 43.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 22%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 11%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 13%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 10%U.S.: 6%
College students: 8%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 (24%)
Work from home: 16%U.S.: 15%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Clark Fork Valley Hospital, Plains, MT, 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: Community Medical Center, Missoula, MT, about 58 miles away. Medicare gives it 3 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

3 public schools in Plains, run by Plains K-12.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Montana'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: 52%U.S.: 76%

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: 22°F
July average high: 86°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 29 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 191 a year
Rain and melted snow: 22.1 inches a year
Snow: 15 inches a year
Elevation: 2,471 feet

Weather stations: Saint Regis 1 NE (15 miles away) and Thompson Falls Ph (24 miles away, rain and snow). 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

Missoula, MTCity of 79,00057

Seattle, WAMetro of 4.2 million348

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: Missoula, Seattle.

Sanders County is outside any metro area, with fewer than 5,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 8, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

Read about Plains's history on Wikipedia.

Know Plains?

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

Thompson Falls, MT1,500 people, 23 miles
Ronan, MT2,200 people, 37 miles
Polson, MT5,700 people, 38 miles
Osburn, ID1,700 people, 52 miles
Orchard Homes, MT5,600 people, 57 miles
Bigfork, MT5,600 people, 58 miles

Smaller places

Weeksville, MT (unincorporated)147 people, 8 miles
Hot Springs, MT630 people, 14 miles
St. Regis, MT (unincorporated)406 people, 15 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.