The unfortunate fact of the matter is that some places in the Treasure State have a larger percent of their population that never graduated from high school.
While the emphasis on going to college might be overblown, the fact is that not graduating from high school puts you at a significant disadvantage on average. Educational attainment might not be the best way to measure one person’s intelligence, but it does shine a light on the state.
We will use Saturday Night Science to determine what places in Montana have the highest percentage of adults without a high school degree.
A recent study we published found that Montana is the 7th smartest state in the United States, with an average IQ of 103.
But that doesn’t mean that a few cities in Montana are a bit slower than others due to a lack of basic education.
#1 dumbest in Montana
#2 dumbest in Montana
#3 dumbest in Montana
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#4 dumbest in Montana
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#5 dumbest in Montana
#6 dumbest in Montana
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#7 dumbest in Montana
#8 dumbest in Montana
#9 dumbest in Montana
Located in
Fergus County, Montana
Lewistown is a city in and the county seat of Fergus County, Montana, United States. The population was 5,901 at the 2010 census. Lewistown is located in central Montana, the geographic center of the state, southeast of Great Falls. First planned in 1882, it was the site of an 1880s gold rush.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#10 dumbest in Montana
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Montana’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Montana’s dumbest cities are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the dumbest cities in the Treasure State
We realize that formal education is only part of it when it comes to being intelligent, but on the other hand, knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there is always going to make you look pretty stupid.
So, we used Saturday Night Science to narrow down our criteria to focus on a city’s educational opportunities and what percentage of the population takes advantage of those opportunities.
In short, we came up with these criteria to determine the dumbest cities in Montana:
- % of the city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
- % of city’s population with a college degree (Age 25+)
We got the data from the U.S. Census 2020-2024 American Community Survey.
Then, our algorithm generates a rank for each place in these categories. After crunching all the numbers, a ranking of the cities in Montana from dumbest to brightest.
For this ranking, we used every Montana city with at least 2,000 residents. We updated this article for 2026, and it’s our eleventh time ranking the dumbest cities in Montana.
The full plate
Dumbest Cities In Montana For 2026
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | % Adult High School Dropout | % Highly Educated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roundup | 2,003 | 11.0% | 14.0% |
| 2 | Wolf Point | 2,602 | 9.0% | 11.0% |
| 3 | Shelby | 3,216 | 12.0% | 20.0% |
| 4 | Hardin | 3,742 | 11.0% | 20.0% |
| 5 | Libby | 3,042 | 10.0% | 19.0% |
| 6 | Cut Bank | 3,028 | 8.0% | 17.0% |
| 7 | Conrad | 2,618 | 10.0% | 22.0% |
| 8 | Ronan | 2,001 | 8.0% | 20.0% |
| 9 | Lewistown | 6,087 | 6.0% | 17.0% |
| 10 | Glendive | 4,810 | 8.0% | 24.0% |
| 11 | Polson | 5,428 | 9.0% | 29.0% |
| 12 | Sidney | 6,171 | 6.0% | 22.0% |
| 13 | Columbus | 2,003 | 6.0% | 24.0% |
| 14 | Hamilton | 5,101 | 8.0% | 31.0% |
| 15 | Havre | 9,258 | 7.0% | 28.0% |
| 16 | Columbia Falls | 5,615 | 8.0% | 33.0% |
| 17 | Stevensville | 2,130 | 6.0% | 26.0% |
| 18 | Laurel | 7,215 | 4.0% | 21.0% |
| 19 | Great Falls | 60,329 | 5.0% | 28.0% |
| 20 | Dillon | 4,085 | 8.0% | 37.0% |
| 21 | Deer Lodge | 3,021 | 4.0% | 24.0% |
| 22 | Colstrip | 2,101 | 4.0% | 26.0% |
| 23 | Malta | 2,100 | 5.0% | 31.0% |
| 24 | Glasgow | 3,190 | 3.0% | 26.0% |
| 25 | Belgrade | 11,872 | 5.0% | 37.0% |
| 26 | Billings | 119,434 | 5.0% | 37.0% |
| 27 | Helena | 33,639 | 6.0% | 50.0% |
| 28 | Red Lodge | 2,502 | 5.0% | 46.0% |
| 29 | Kalispell | 28,504 | 3.0% | 35.0% |
| 30 | Manhattan | 2,288 | 1.0% | 33.0% |
| 31 | Bozeman | 56,114 | 4.0% | 65.0% |
| 32 | Livingston | 8,780 | 2.0% | 39.0% |
| 33 | Missoula | 76,514 | 3.0% | 53.0% |
| 34 | Whitefish | 8,749 | 2.0% | 57.0% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. 34 cities with more than 2,000 residents.
Summary
There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep
If you’re measuring the locations in Montana where there are a high number of dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate ranking.
The dumbest cities in Montana are Roundup, Wolf Point, Shelby, Hardin, Libby, Cut Bank, Conrad, Ronan, Lewistown, and Glendive. Not sold on Montana? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
