Augusta-Waterville, ME
Micro Area Profile
126,808 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Augusta-Waterville, ME micropolitan area.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 8 sourcesUnemployment is 3.1% and median household income $69,077, putting employment conditions in the middle range of metro and micro areas measured.
517 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 7% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.
Rent takes 30% of renter income here, at the 30% threshold conventionally called cost-burdened, and the median home is 2.8 times what its owners earn.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 3.1%, lower than in 89% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.
Employment fell 2.2% over the past year, to 60,372 employed residents.
32% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 73% of measured US metro and micro areas.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income ±$2,6032024 ACS 5-Year | $69,077 | Top 43%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$1,0652024 ACS 5-Year | $38,597 | Top 34%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 11.5% | Top 37%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±0.7 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 26.5 min | Bottom 25%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 31.9% | Top 27%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 73.7% | 26th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 60,372 | Top 38%of 835 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | −2.3% | Bottom 24%of 835 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | −2.2% | Bottom 21%of 835 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 62,283 | 61st percentileof 835 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 77.0% | Top 46%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.2% | 33rd percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | +0.1% | Bottom 30%of 835 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 3.1% | Top 11%of 835 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 15.3% | 90th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
33% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 54% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 12.1 students for every full-time teacher across 50 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Messalonskee High School | RSU 18 | 695 | 14.2 | 37% | 62% |
| Cony | Augusta Public Schools | 662 | 17.9 | 27% | 47% |
| Winslow Elementary School | Winslow Schools | 581 | 12.1 | 30% | 55% |
| Benton Elementary School | RSU 49/MSAD 49 | 575 | 12.5 | 37% | 48% |
| Gardiner Area High School | RSU 11/MSAD 11 | 565 | 12.0 | 32% | 52% |
| George J Mitchell School | Waterville Public Schools | 532 | 12.7 | 47% | 57% |
| Waterville Senior High School | Waterville Public Schools | 529 | 12.9 | 22% | 47% |
| Hall-Dale Middle and High School | RSU 02 | 496 | 11.8 | 28% | 61% |
| Messalonskee Middle School | RSU 18 | 495 | 13.0 | 34% | 59% |
| Gardiner Regional Middle School | RSU 11/MSAD 11 | 425 | 11.5 | 35% | 53% |
| Vassalboro Community School | Vassalboro Public Schools | 423 | 10.8 | 33% | 54% |
| Maranacook Community High Sch | RSU 38 | 385 | 11.7 | 47% | 67% |
45.4% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Maine’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $2,605 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.09% of the median home value.
The typical renter household here spends 30% of its income on rent, at the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $992 a month.
A median home at $238,200 costs 2.8 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $83,629, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.
The figures above are measured against Augusta-Waterville’s median household income of $69,077, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home price to income ±0.12024 ACS 5-Year | 2.8 | Bottom 39%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 73.7% | 74th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±592024 ACS 5-Year | 63,521 | 67th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median gross rent ±$432024 ACS 5-Year | $992 | Bottom 47%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$5,2392024 ACS 5-Year | $238,200 | 60th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$522024 ACS 5-Year | $2,605 | 69th percentileof 933 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$3,5562024 ACS 5-Year | $83,629 | Top 45%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.03%2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.09% | 68th percentileof 932 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 29.6% | Bottom 40%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±4452024 ACS 5-Year | 6,070 | 85th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 9.6% | 85th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 4.9% | 17th percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±6672024 ACS 5-Year | 9,209 | 73rd percentileof 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has grown 3% since 2020, reaching 128,461 in 2024.
Population is still rising but the pace is easing: 128,461 residents in 2024, up 0.4% over the year, a smaller gain than the year before.
New construction is predominantly single-family: of 517 units permitted over the past twelve months, only 18% are in buildings of five or more homes.
At 4.1 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metro and micro areas.
Population, annual estimates
Weather & climate
5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 80°F and January a low of 12°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 41.8 inches.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 41.8" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 12°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 80°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 5 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 50°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and ice storm, with inland flooding alone responsible for 57% of it. Inland flooding is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Overall hazard risk is lower than 81% of measured US metro and micro areas.
Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, inland flooding, hail, strong wind, coastal flooding, cold wave, wildfire, tornado, avalanche, tsunami, volcanic activity.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Reported crime
- Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
- Cost of living
- Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
- Death-certificate rates
- The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
- Air quality
- The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
1 major airport lies within 100 miles, the nearest Bangor Intl at 53 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 91.1% | Top 23%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 53 mi | Bottom 34%of 835 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 1 | Bottom 4%of 835 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 7.1% | Top 33%of 935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bangor Intl | BGR | 53 mi | 11,440 ft |
| Manchester Boston Rgnl | MHT | 132 mi | 9,250 ft |
| General Edward Lawrence Logan Intl | BOS | 155 mi | 10,083 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyData & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.