IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Living in Country around Plains, MT
Country around Plains is a rural area of about 4,360 people in Sanders County, Montana, named for the post office its ZIP code uses. It's about 57 miles from Missoula, MT and 352 miles from Seattle, WA, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 84°F and winter highs 32°F, with about 40 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $429k and rent runs about $865 a month.
4,360people
$429kTypical home
$865/moRent
84° / 32°Summer / winter
40"Snow
175Sunny days
130Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Rural — about 4,360 people spread over the area
- A standalone small town, not a suburb
- About 6 people per sq mi
- 352 mi to Seattle, WA
- 57 mi to Missoula, MT
- 53 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $429k (≈$2,707/mo)
- Median rent $865/mo
- Median household income $65k
- Property tax about 0.5% of value
- 10.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 84°F
- Winter highs around 32°F
- Dry summers (dew point 45°F)
- 175 sunny days a year (67 totally clear)
- 190 cloudy days a year
- 67 of 90 winter days are gray
- 130 days a year with rain or snow
- 40" of snow a year
- 15 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- 2 days a year over 100°F
- 13 nights a year below 10°F
- Usually calm
Safety
- Low violent crime (211 per 100k), county-wide
- Very low property crime (331 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 55
- 18% of households have kids
- 35% are 65 or older
- 21% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 3% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 21 min
- 11% walk or take transit to work
- 53 mi to MSO airport
- 128 mi to GEG (major hub)
- 77 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 77% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1995
- 88% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Mountain country
- Elevation 3,586 ft
- 345 mi to the ocean
- 31 mi to a big lake
- 15 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 40 mi to the nearest ski area
- 2 mi to the nearest campground
- 1 golf course within 25 mi
Things to do
- 8 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- 3 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 2 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 53 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the top 38% of Montana districts (reading)
- 6 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 1 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 59 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 9 mi to the nearest vet
- 21 mi to the nearest dog park
- 6 congregations per 10k people
- 57 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Sanders County: R+55 in 2024
- Montana: R+20 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- Very low tornado risk
- Low wildfire risk
- High earthquake risk
- Very low flood risk
- Moderate drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk