Living in Glendive, MT

Dawson County

Glendive is the real Dawson County seat, a far-eastern Montana ranching and agricultural hub on the Yellowstone River along Interstate 94, near the North Dakota border. Its 2026 population ran approximately 4,707, DOWN approximately 3.27% from the 2020 Census count of 4,866 -- a real, disclosed, continuing decline consistent with this project's own Montana state record's documented pattern of eastern Montana stagnation outside the Bozeman/Missoula/Flathead corridor. Glendive's real, defining recreational asset is Makoshika State Park -- Montana's LARGEST state park, a genuine badlands-terrain, dinosaur-fossil-bearing landscape immediately adjacent to the city. Bakken-adjacent oil activity has had a genuinely limited direct impact in Dawson County specifically (only ~2.3% of Montana's 2021 oil-and-gas tax collections), so this record does not characterize Glendive as an active oil-boom town; agriculture, transportation/warehousing, and healthcare/education anchor the local economy more durably. Housing runs genuinely affordable (median value ~$170,000-$182,600 depending on source, well below the ~$408,776 national median), though this record discloses a real, disclosed ABOVE-average local property tax rate (~1.38%, above both the national median and Montana's own statewide average) tied to the county's infrastructure-cost burden from limited oil-and-gas revenue. Glendive's crime picture ran genuinely favorable per one cited source (voted Montana's safest city for three consecutive years), though healthcare access runs genuinely limited (a 25-bed critical access hospital, with the nearest major trauma center approximately 202 miles away).

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Housing

Median sale price$182,600

Taxes

Local effective property tax rate1.38%

Not independently sourced at the Dawson County level this session. Montana's top state income tax rate is 5.65%. See the Montana hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Glendive-specific.

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The tradeoffs

Pros

Genuinely affordable housing (median value well below the national comparison figure) and a low overall cost of living. Makoshika State Park -- Montana's largest state park -- offers a real, distinctive badlands/dinosaur-fossil recreational asset immediately adjacent to the city. A cited, favorable safety reputation (voted Montana's safest city for three consecutive years per one source). A stable, diversified small-city economy (education/healthcare, transportation/warehousing, retail, ranching) not overly dependent on Bakken-adjacent oil cycles.

Cons

A real, disclosed, continuing population decline (down ~3.27% since the 2020 Census) reflects eastern Montana's genuinely more stagnant economic story relative to the state's booming western corridor. Property taxes run above both the national median and Montana's own statewide average, tied to the county's limited oil-and-gas revenue base relative to real infrastructure demand. Healthcare access runs genuinely limited -- a small critical access hospital, with the nearest major trauma center roughly 202 miles away. Winters run genuinely severe on the open eastern plains, with real wind-chill and blizzard risk.

Who this fits

Best for: Best fits budget-conscious movers and small-town-living seekers drawn to genuinely low housing costs, ranching/agricultural workers, and those who value Makoshika State Park's real outdoor-recreation and badlands/fossil draw.

Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for movers prioritizing robust local healthcare access, or those seeking a growing job market -- Glendive's real, disclosed population decline and limited hospital capacity carry real weight for those needs. Those needing confidently sourced, dated crime statistics beyond a general favorable characterization should also weigh this record's disclosed data gap.

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Last reviewed: 2026-08-28. Independent research; see individual metric entries above for source attribution. This is not financial, tax, or legal advice -- confirm current figures with a local professional before making a decision.