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Place dossier plate
SheetME-BREWER-ME · Brewer, ME 9,654 pop · income 22nd pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Brewer
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Brewer on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Sunbury · lowest
48,509
Sunbury · lowest
48,509 median HH income
35.2% of the leader · rank #1
Bethel · near
51,489
Bethel · near
51,489 median HH income
37.4% of the leader · rank #2
Brewer · this city
51,490
Brewer · this city
51,490 median HH income
37.4% of the leader · rank #3
Kansas · near
51,492
Kansas · near
51,492 median HH income
37.4% of the leader · rank #4
Seymour · near
51,497
Seymour · near
51,497 median HH income
37.4% of the leader · rank #5
McNary · near
51,500
McNary · near
51,500 median HH income
37.4% of the leader · rank #6
Flossmoor · highest
137,768
Flossmoor · highest
137,768 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Brewer on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 9,654.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Brewer - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Brewer places in the 22nd percentile for household income and the 36th percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
22nd
percentile, household income
48th
percentile, home value
69th
percentile, median rent
36th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Brewer, ME
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 9,654 residents in Brewer, a small town within Maine. Households in Brewer report a median income of $51,490 per year, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 9.1%. Home values in Brewer run a median of $218,100, and the median resident age is 40.6 years. About 30.5% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 57.1% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 0 residential building permits were authorized in Brewer (No Permits), per Census BPS data. Crime here tracks close to the national norm: FBI UCR reporting places total crime at 1836.3 incidents per 100,000 residents, near the national average (voluntary agency reporting, reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Maine tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: the state registers 97.1 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Near Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,448 per month statewide. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Maine run around $273, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 56.7 out of 100 (Moderate).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Brewer's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from housing and income to population change to work and mobility to reported crime to comparison shortlist to schools and households; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Brewer, city-specific coverage includes matched public-school count, annual population history, local building permits, FBI reported-crime rates, commute-mode shares.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
Question 1
How far does income reach against housing in Brewer?
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 4.2 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 9.1%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median. That flags a question for comparison, not a verdict: tenure, household composition, financing costs, and the age of the ACS estimate can all change what a resident actually pays.
The recent population line is broadly flat. That makes the composition of change more important than the headline count: housing turnover, household size, and age structure can shift even when the total barely moves.
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -34 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -0.4% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 0 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
What does the journey to work look like in Brewer?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 81.3%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Which cities make useful reference points for Brewer?
Within Maine, the closest population matches are Old Orchard Beach (9,150 residents, $65,842 income); Bath (8,801 residents, $65,565 income); Presque Isle (8,736 residents, $57,396 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Hillsborough, NC (9,656 residents); Canal Winchester, OH (9,659 residents); Picture Rocks, AZ (9,665 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Reported crime
What can the FBI record say about safety in Brewer?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 1836.3 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 19% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Property rate
1794.8
Violent rate
41.5
Total reported rate
1836.3
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
The NCES join finds 2 public schools within the city match. 30.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
Matched public schools
2
Bachelor's degree+
30.5%
Poverty estimate
9.1%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Violent crime A
42 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Bachelor's+ share C
30.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Cost of living C-
97.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Poverty rate D
9.1%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income F
$51,490
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Brewer profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Violent crime: 86/100 (A) · 42 /100k
Bachelor's+ share: 59/100 (C) · 30.5%
Cost of living: 53/100 (C-) · 97.1 index
Poverty rate: 43/100 (D) · 9.1%
Household income: 22/100 (F) · $51,490
Where Brewer sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Brewer's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Brewer highlighted among 10 peers.Read the chart values
Brewer, ME (this city): home $218,100, crime 1,836/100k
Hillsborough, NC : home $430,100, crime 4,904/100k
Sunbury, PA : home $98,000, crime 295/100k
Flossmoor, IL : home $309,100, crime 2,818/100k
Burlington, WA : home $432,900, crime 6,142/100k
Old Orchard Beach, ME : home $317,800, crime 1,147/100k
Bath, ME : home $285,400, crime 789/100k
Presque Isle, ME : home $142,400, crime 2,395/100k
Orono, ME : home $219,200, crime 150/100k
Ellsworth, ME : home $214,500, crime 2,553/100k
How does Brewer compare to other US cities?
Brewer measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income22% higher than other cities
Home value48% pricier than other cities
Median rent69% pricier than other cities
Safety36% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to Maine alone, Brewer ranks #56 of 73 Maine cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Brewer against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Maine only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Maine-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Brewer near the bottom of Maine's cities
Among the 154 Maine cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Brewer ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Brewer only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#97 of 145
33rd percentile in Maine
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 154
0th percentile in Maine
Median Home Value
#71 of 151
53rd percentile in Maine
Poverty Rate
#64 of 154
58th percentile in Maine
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#67 of 154
56th percentile in Maine
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Maine only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
22nd percentile nationally for median household income · 36th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Brewer's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Brewer's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Brewer's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$218,100Among the most affordablemore affordable than 52% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Brewer's home-value-to-income ratio: 4.2×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#11,343 of 15,516
More affordable than 27% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#8,776 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 4.2×, Brewer sits in the moderate band:
national rank #11,343 of 15,516 and #8,776 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$51,490Brewer, ME median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Brewer, ME median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Brewer, ME.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)30.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)9.1%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)57.1%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
9,654
Median Income
$51,490
Median Home Value
$218,100
Median Age
40.6
Poverty Rate
9.1%
Labor force participation
57.1%
Bachelor's Degree+
30.5%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
1836.3
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
41.5
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
1794.8
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
2
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Brewer's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
9,670 residents
2021
9,667 residents
2022
9,674 residents
2023
9,692 residents
2024
9,644 residents
2025
9,636 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
Total Permits (2024)
0
housing units authorized
Single-Family
0
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
0
0
0
-
2020
0
0
0
-
2021
0
0
0
-
2022
0
0
0
-
2023
0
0
0
-
2024
0
0
0
-
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
81.3%
Carpool
9.9%
Public Transit
0.2%
Walk
1.6%
Work from Home
6.3%
Other
0.7%
Based on 4,538 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Maine statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $273
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Maine at $273 (electricity about $130 , water and sewer about $48 ).
These are Maine statewide averages, not a meter reading for Brewer. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Maine's BEA cost-of-living index is 97.1 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Brewer is $1,448/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Maine statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 56.7 / 100 (Moderate).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Maine statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Brewer sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Brewer compares to similar-size Maine cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.