Westbrook vs Mount Pleasant

Which is the better fit for you?

Westbrook, ME
71
Area Score
Top 12% nationally
Mount Pleasant, WI
69
Area Score
Top 17% nationally

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Westbrook receives the higher standardized Area Score. That reflects AreaProfile's weighting, not a judgment about which place is better to live in.

If you are moving

What the difference in prices, rent, homes and weather comes to, using the published figures for the two places. Add your income to see what it would take to keep pace.

Moving from Westbrook to Mount Pleasant

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Everyday prices
9% lower
Regional price level 95.2 against 104.4 (US = 100)
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Enter your household income to see it.
The median home
24% less
$292,400 in Mount Pleasant against $383,300 in Westbrook.
The weather you would swap
Similar winters
Normal January lows are 16°F in Mount Pleasant against 16°F in Westbrook; July highs are 81°F against 80°F (summers 1°F hotter).

These are differences between published figures, not a forecast of your budget. Income and sales taxes, commuting, schools, insurance and the job you would actually get are not in them, and a price index describes a metropolitan area, so two places in one metro read the same. HUD’s rent is a benchmark for a new lease, not a listing.

29 occupations have a published median wage in both places. Start typing, or choose from the list.

Median wages are the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ metro figures for that occupation, not a job offer, and the price level is the regional index; neither includes taxes, benefits or how senior you are.

Signals

Westbrook
Mount Pleasant
Opportunity: Westbrook is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
77 · Top 13%
vs
69 · Top 25%
Growth: Westbrook is the more favorable of the two.
Growth
89 · Top 1%
vs
75 · Top 9%
Climate: Mount Pleasant is the more favorable of the two.
Climate
56 · Bottom 7%
vs
60 · Bottom 15%
Physical resilience: Mount Pleasant is the more favorable of the two.
Physical resilience
94 · Top 6%
vs
97 · Top 2%
Housing affordability: Mount Pleasant is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
71 · Top 38%
vs
87 · Top 4%
Schools: Westbrook is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
33 · Bottom 29%
vs
15 · Bottom 7%
Access: Mount Pleasant is the more favorable of the two.
Access
52 · Bottom 4%
vs
72 · Bottom 13%
Economic stability: Westbrook is the more favorable of the two.
Economic stability
72 · Top 19%
vs
70 · Top 24%

Measured values

MetricWestbrookMount PleasantSource period
Population20,77527,9532024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income — the two are too close to separate$85,038 ±$6,523$91,616 ±$7,8792024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income — the two are too close to separate$44,851 ±$2,983$48,386 ±$2,7222024 ACS 5-Year
Population density1,209/sq mi825/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$383,300$292,4002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent$1,392$1,127 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Cost of living index104.495.2 — more favorable2023
Homeownership rate61.2%76.8%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate2.5% — more favorable3.8%July 2026
Employment change (year over year)−1.5%+1.1% — more favorableJuly 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher — the two are too close to separate41.3% ±4%37.7% ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate — the two are too close to separate7.7% ±2%5.4% ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)32027512 months ending July 2026
Permits per 1,000 residents15.4 — more favorable9.812 months ending July 2026
Permit change (year over year)+142.4%+239.5%12 months ending July 2026
Average July high80°F81°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low16°F16°F1991-2020 Normals
Annual precipitation48.1"31.8"1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport76 mi51 mi — more favorableNASR current cycle
Average commute20.5 min — more favorable22.5 min2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age37.444.72024 ACS 5-Year
Public schools6122024-25 school year
Students per teacher11.0 — more favorable14.52024-25 school year
Math proficiency26.8%17.8%2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency44.4%23.9%2018-19 school year
Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility66.2%53.6%2024-25 school year

A bolded value is the more favorable of the two where the metric has a clear direction. Metrics like population and density have no inherent better or worse and are shown unweighted.

4 rows above show both figures with a ± margin and neither in bold. Those come from the American Community Survey, which samples rather than counts, and the gap between the two is smaller than the uncertainty on the figures themselves — so the survey did not find a difference to report, and calling either one the winner would be reading a result out of noise.

The number of units permitted is not marked because the larger place always permits more; the per-resident rate is the fair comparison. The year-over-year change is not marked either: a percentage on fewer than 300 units swings on a handful of permits.

Maine and Wisconsin do not give the same test. Each state writes its own assessment and sets its own passing score, so the two proficiency rows above are not directly comparable — the difference between them partly measures which standard is harder. Students per teacher and the school count are unaffected, and each profile ranks its own proficiency within its own state.

Physical risk tradeoff

Westbrook

Elevated or high exposure: ice storm, hurricane, coastal flooding.

Mount Pleasant

No hazard reaches elevated exposure.

Your best match

Weight what matters to you. Your preferences stay in this browser and never change either Area Score.

Westbrook
—
Westbrook: Your Score
71
Area Score
Mount Pleasant
—
Mount Pleasant: Your Score
69
Area Score

Select your priorities to see which of the two fits them better.

Full profiles: Westbrook, ME · Mount Pleasant, WI · How this is calculated: methodology