Some of you might be asking yourself, at this very moment, is Maine a good place?
The answer is unequivocally yes… if you know where to locate the best counties to live in Maine.
Lucky for you, we’re here to help you identify the best counties to live in the Pine Tree State based on the most recently available data from the Census. And this isn’t our first rodeo — we’ve been using Saturday Night Science to rank places for years.
The question becomes if you wanted to relocate to the best part of Maine, where would you go? To answer that, we looked at crime, cost of living, and demographic data for all 16 counties in the state.
Cumberland County is the county to be when it comes to living the good life in Maine. And you should avoid Washington County if you can — at least according to the data.
$95,677 median income · 3.1% unemployment
$88,333 median income · 3.4% unemployment
$76,875 median income · 2.9% unemployment
$87,806 median income · 4.6% unemployment
$74,096 median income · 3.9% unemployment
$69,077 median income · 3.9% unemployment
$72,744 median income · 4.6% unemployment
$66,356 median income · 3.6% unemployment
$72,782 median income · 3.7% unemployment
$67,873 median income · 4.3% unemployment
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Maine’s statewide median.
Maine statewide median: $74,733
Maine statewide median: $407,566
Maine statewide median: 3.8%
On the map
Where Maine’s best counties are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How do you determine which Maine county is the best?
To give you the best county in Maine, we have to look at a handful of metrics that signal the quality of a place. To do that, we made assumptions about what’s in a “best county” and what isn’t. For reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, Saturday Night Science.
With that in mind, we went to two of the best data sources on the internet. Namely, the American Community Survey data and FBI Crime data for the most recent period.
We paid particular attention to:
- Violent Crime Rates
- Property Crime Rates
- Median Home Values
- Median Income
- Unemployment Rates
- Adult Education Levels
- Health Insurance Coverage
- Poverty Rates
We then ranked each county in Maine across each of the criteria from one to 16, with one being the best.
Taking the average rank across all criteria, we created a quality of life score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Best County To Live In Maine.”
The result is some of the safest, quietest, and best counties to raise a family in the Pine Tree State.
We updated this article for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the best counties to live in Maine.
Read on to see why Cumberland County is the best county, while Washington County is probably in contention for being the worst county in Maine.
The full plate
Detailed List Of The Best Counties In Maine
Click any column to sort. Search by county name.
| Rank | County | Population | Median Income | Median Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cumberland County | 308,827 | $95,677 | $553,855 |
| 2 | York County | 216,731 | $88,333 | $521,708 |
| 3 | Lincoln County | 36,099 | $76,875 | $432,604 |
| 4 | Sagadahoc County | 37,285 | $87,806 | $425,847 |
| 5 | Knox County | 41,003 | $74,096 | $433,826 |
| 6 | Kennebec County | 126,808 | $69,077 | $311,145 |
| 7 | Hancock County | 56,460 | $72,744 | $404,470 |
| 8 | Penobscot County | 154,710 | $66,356 | $272,566 |
| 8 | Waldo County | 40,192 | $72,782 | $332,938 |
| 10 | Androscoggin County | 113,423 | $67,873 | $325,850 |
| 11 | Somerset County | 50,959 | $58,179 | $229,116 |
| 12 | Oxford County | 59,255 | $60,173 | $317,812 |
| 13 | Franklin County | 30,413 | $58,675 | $283,608 |
| 14 | Piscataquis County | 17,263 | $61,345 | $222,491 |
| 15 | Aroostook County | 67,058 | $56,700 | $158,139 |
| 16 | Washington County | 31,331 | $56,024 | $192,414 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS + FBI crime data via Saturday Night Science. All 16 Maine counties.
Summary
Summary: The Best Counties In Maine To Call Home For 2026
Living in Maine can vary from one part of the state to the next — who woulda thought?
The best counties in Maine are Cumberland County, York County, Lincoln County, Sagadahoc County, Knox County, Kennebec County, Hancock County, Penobscot County, Waldo County, and Androscoggin County.
But now you know the outstanding parts and the parts to avoid, and that’s why you came here to learn at the end of the day.
You are welcome. Not sold on Maine? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Counties In Maine FAQs
What is the best county to live in Maine?
Cumberland County is the best county to live in Maine for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. York County and Lincoln County are next.
What are the best counties in Maine?
The best counties to live in Maine are Cumberland County, York County, Lincoln County, Sagadahoc County, Knox County, Kennebec County, Hancock County, Penobscot County, Waldo County, and Androscoggin County. We ranked all 16 Maine counties.
How do you rank the best counties?
Counties are scored on crime, home values, income, unemployment, education, insurance coverage, and poverty, using Census American Community Survey and FBI data. The county with the best average across all seven, Cumberland County, wins.
How expensive is it to live in Cumberland County?
The median household income in Cumberland County is $95,677 and the median home costs $553,855. Statewide, the typical Maine home runs $407,566.
Which county in Maine should you think twice about?
Washington County lands at the bottom of the quality-of-life ranking for Maine. People make good lives there anyway; the numbers just say it is the toughest of the 16 counties.
