The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In Montana For 2024


The fastest-growing cities in Montana are Belgrade and Bozeman for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Is being in an area of Montana that’s growing quickly a good thing or a bad thing?

Depends on who you ask.

Some want bigger, more exciting cities like Billings and Missoula, while others want peace and quiet like in Polson and Columbia Falls, thank you very much.

But today, we’re going to put opinions aside and look at the cold, hard facts — since 2010, which cities in Montana have grown the fastest.

After getting knee-deep in the Census’s American Community Survey using Saturday Night Science, we emerged with this set of cities in the Treasure State that have people climbing over each other to get in.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In Montana For 2024

  1. Belgrade
  2. Bozeman
  3. Kalispell
  4. Whitefish
  5. Sidney
  6. Livingston
  7. Helena
  8. Columbia Falls
  9. Polson
  10. Billings

Fastest Growing Cities In Montana Map

What’s the fastest growing city in Montana for 2024? Based on the most recent ACS data, Belgrade ranks as the fastest-growing city in Montana. If you happen to be a resident of Belgrade, you’re probably not surprised to find it on our list.

If you’re surprised — and you’re wondering why these places are a big deal — keep reading. We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 places in Montana grow like weeds.

For more Montana state reading:

The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In Montana For 2024

1. Belgrade

Belgrade, MT

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 10,941
Population 2010: 7,281
Percent Growth 50.3%
Absolute Growth: 3,660
More on Belgrade: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

2. Bozeman

Bozeman, MT

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 53,500
Population 2010: 36,440
Percent Growth 46.8%
Absolute Growth: 17,060
More on Bozeman: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

3. Kalispell

Kalispell, MT

Source: Wikipedia User User: Dan Petesch | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 25,473
Population 2010: 19,298
Percent Growth 32.0%
Absolute Growth: 6,175
More on Kalispell: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

4. Whitefish

Whitefish, MT

Source: Wikipedia User Elkman | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 8,098
Population 2010: 6,352
Percent Growth 27.5%
Absolute Growth: 1,746
More on Whitefish: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

5. Sidney

Sidney, MT

Source: Wikipedia User Larry D. Moore | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 6,257
Population 2010: 5,052
Percent Growth 23.9%
Absolute Growth: 1,205
More on Sidney: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

6. Livingston

Livingston, MT

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 8,489
Population 2010: 7,094
Percent Growth 19.7%
Absolute Growth: 1,395
More on Livingston: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

7. Helena

Helena, MT

Source: Wikipedia User RTC at English Wikipedia | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 32,529
Population 2010: 27,672
Percent Growth 17.6%
Absolute Growth: 4,857
More on Helena: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

8. Columbia Falls

Columbia Falls, MT

Source: Wikipedia User JERRYE AND ROY KLOTZ MD | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 5,435
Population 2010: 4,626
Percent Growth 17.5%
Absolute Growth: 809
More on Columbia Falls: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

9. Polson

Polson, MT

Source: Wikipedia User Montanabw | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 5,218
Population 2010: 4,468
Percent Growth 16.8%
Absolute Growth: 750
More on Polson: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

10. Billings

Billings, MT

Source: Wikipedia User Sara goth | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 117,093
Population 2010: 101,549
Percent Growth 15.3%
Absolute Growth: 15,544
More on Billings: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How We Measured The Fastest Growing Cities In the Treasure State for 2024

To figure out which cities are growing the most, we used Saturday Night Science to look at the growth rates for cities since the beginning of the decade, according to the American Community Survey put out by the census every year. Specifically:

  • Current Population
  • Population in 2010
  • Growth rate from 2010 to Current (The latest available data which came out in Dec 2022)

We ranked all 17 Montana cities with a population over 5,000 people from highest growth rate to lowest.

The city with the highest growth rate during this time was crowned the fastest-growing city in the Treasure State.

And for those of you who are a little rusty with their statistics, you can calculate the growth rate by the following formula:

[Current Population – Population 2010] / [Population 2010]

The data has been updated for 2024. This report is our tenth time ranking the fastest growing cities in Montana.

Here’s a graph of the cities in Montana with the most significant percent increase in population:
Fastest Growing Cities in Montana Graph For 2024

Click to enlarge

Summary: These Places Grew Up So Fast In Montana, You Know?

So there you have it, the fastest growing cities in Montana are led by Belgrade which has been growing at a blistering pace this decade relative to other cities and towns around the state.

The fastest-growing cities in Montana are Belgrade, Bozeman, Kalispell, Whitefish, Sidney, Livingston, Helena, Columbia Falls, Polson, and Billings.

It’ll be interesting to see if these places can keep growing at the same rate over the next couple of years. We’ll be here to let you know!

These places have been growing (or shrinking) the slowest (fastest):

  1. Lewistown
  2. Havre
  3. Miles City

For more Montana reading, check out:

Fastest Growing Places In Montana For 2024

Rank City Population Population 2010 Growth Absolute Growth
1 Belgrade 10,941 7,281 50.3% 3,660
2 Bozeman 53,500 36,440 46.8% 17,060
3 Kalispell 25,473 19,298 32.0% 6,175
4 Whitefish 8,098 6,352 27.5% 1,746
5 Sidney 6,257 5,052 23.9% 1,205
6 Livingston 8,489 7,094 19.7% 1,395
7 Helena 32,529 27,672 17.6% 4,857
8 Columbia Falls 5,435 4,626 17.5% 809
9 Polson 5,218 4,468 16.8% 750
10 Billings 117,093 101,549 15.3% 15,544
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.