Bristol, ME

The affordability dashboard for Bristol, ME aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 1,168 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of B (71/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $96,111, median home value of $346,900, median rent of $1,093 per month, and 41.8% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher. These four metrics alone explain most of the variance between city dashboards.

Cross-agency feeds widen the picture beyond Census demographics. HUD publishes a Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom in this county at $1,403 per month (studio $1,222, 1BR $1,280, 3BR $1,936, 4BR $1,943). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $11,007 per year, consuming 11% of the local median household income.

Reading the overall grade requires reading all seven dimensions together. The score weights Income 20%, Safety 20%, Housing 15%, Rent 15%, Education 10%, Commute 10%, and Childcare 10%, with each sub-score benchmarked against national percentiles rather than state averages — so the grade is genuinely comparable across any city in the country. Strengths visible in the raw data for Bristol, ME include income, education, rent. Unemployment currently reads 13.1% and poverty 8.7% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.