
Montana is astate located in theWestern United States. According to the2020 United States Census, Montana is the8th least populous state with1,084,225 inhabitants but the4th largest by land area spanning 145,545.80 square miles (376,961.9 km2) of land.[1] Montana is divided into 56counties and contains 129municipalities comprising cities and towns.[1] Montana'smunicipalities cover only1.2% of the state's land mass but are home to53.8% of its population.[2] The Montana Code 7-1-4124 gives municipal governments in Montana powers to enact ordinances, borrow money, and enacteminent domain among other legal powers.[3]
InMontana, municipalities are divided into four classes by statestatute based on their population.[4] Members of the three largest classes are deemedcities, while the members of the fourth class are calledtowns. Cities and towns are classified at the time of their organization, and are reorganized when they change classification due to an increase or decrease in population. A place may incorporate as a town with the support of 300 electors or two-thirds of the registered electors.[5] A municipality with a population between 1,000 and 5,000 people is a Third Class city. A municipality with a population between 5,000 and 10,000 people is a Second Class city. And a municipality with a population over 10,000 people is a First Class city. Under certain exceptions municipalities with a population of between 9,000 and 10,000 may elect by resolution to be either a First or Second Class city. Under similar exceptions municipalities with a population of between 5,000 and 7,500 may elect by resolution to be either a Second or Third Class city. Municipalities with a population of between 1,000 and 2,500 may by resolution be classified as either a town or Third Class city.[6] Unincorporated places such ascensus-designated places fall outside this scheme, and are subject to county governance, and thus are neither cities nor towns.
The largest municipality by population in Montana isBillings with 117,116 residents, and the smallest municipality by population isIsmay with 17 residents.[7] The largest municipality by land area isAnaconda, aconsolidated city-county, which spans 736.53 mi2 (1,907.6 km2), whileRexford andFlaxville are the smallest at 0.10 mi2 (0.26 km2).[2]
‡ State capital andcounty seat
| Name | Type[2] | County[2] | Population (2020)[7] | Population (2010)[2] | Change | Land area (2010)[2] | Population density | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| sq mi | km2 | |||||||
| Alberton | Town | Mineral | 452 | 420 | +7.6% | 0.57 | 1.5 | 793.0/sq mi (306.2/km2) |
| Anaconda† | Consolidated city-county | Deer Lodge | 9,421 | 9,298 | +1.3% | 736.53 | 1,907.6 | 12.8/sq mi (4.9/km2) |
| Bainville | Town | Roosevelt | 271 | 208 | +30.3% | 1.02 | 2.6 | 265.7/sq mi (102.6/km2) |
| Baker† | City | Fallon | 1,802 | 1,741 | +3.5% | 0.97 | 2.5 | 1,857.7/sq mi (717.3/km2) |
| Bearcreek | Town | Carbon | 91 | 79 | +15.2% | 0.12 | 0.31 | 758.3/sq mi (292.8/km2) |
| Belgrade | City | Gallatin | 10,460 | 7,389 | +41.6% | 3.25 | 8.4 | 3,218.5/sq mi (1,242.7/km2) |
| Belt | Town | Cascade | 510 | 597 | −14.6% | 0.35 | 0.91 | 1,457.1/sq mi (562.6/km2) |
| Big Sandy | Town | Chouteau | 605 | 598 | +1.2% | 0.44 | 1.1 | 1,375.0/sq mi (530.9/km2) |
| Big Timber† | City | Sweet Grass | 1,650 | 1,641 | +0.5% | 0.92 | 2.4 | 1,793.5/sq mi (692.5/km2) |
| Billings† | City | Yellowstone | 117,116 | 104,170 | +12.4% | 43.41 | 112.4 | 2,697.9/sq mi (1,041.7/km2) |
| Boulder† | Town | Jefferson | 1,201 | 1,183 | +1.5% | 1.13 | 2.9 | 1,062.8/sq mi (410.4/km2) |
| Bozeman† | City | Gallatin | 53,293 | 37,280 | +43.0% | 19.12 | 49.5 | 2,787.3/sq mi (1,076.2/km2) |
| Bridger | Town | Carbon | 662 | 708 | −6.5% | 0.80 | 2.1 | 827.5/sq mi (319.5/km2) |
| Broadus† | Town | Powder River | 456 | 468 | −2.6% | 0.34 | 0.88 | 1,341.2/sq mi (517.8/km2) |
| Broadview | Town | Yellowstone | 139 | 192 | −27.6% | 0.26 | 0.67 | 534.6/sq mi (206.4/km2) |
| Browning | Town | Glacier | 1,018 | 1,016 | +0.2% | 0.27 | 0.70 | 3,770.4/sq mi (1,455.7/km2) |
| Butte† | Consolidated city-county | Silver Bow | 34,494 | 33,525 | +2.9% | 716.25 | 1,855.1 | 48.2/sq mi (18.6/km2) |
| Cascade | Town | Cascade | 600 | 685 | −12.4% | 0.52 | 1.3 | 1,153.8/sq mi (445.5/km2) |
| Chester† | Town | Liberty | 847 | 847 | 0.0% | 0.48 | 1.2 | 1,764.6/sq mi (681.3/km2) |
| Chinook† | City | Blaine | 1,185 | 1,203 | −1.5% | 0.51 | 1.3 | 2,323.5/sq mi (897.1/km2) |
| Choteau† | City | Teton | 1,721 | 1,684 | +2.2% | 1.83 | 4.7 | 940.4/sq mi (363.1/km2) |
| Circle† | Town | McCone | 591 | 615 | −3.9% | 0.78 | 2.0 | 757.7/sq mi (292.5/km2) |
| Clyde Park | Town | Park | 332 | 288 | +15.3% | 0.32 | 0.83 | 1,037.5/sq mi (400.6/km2) |
| Colstrip | City | Rosebud | 2,096 | 2,214 | −5.3% | 4.47 | 11.6 | 468.9/sq mi (181.0/km2) |
| Columbia Falls | City | Flathead | 5,308 | 4,688 | +13.2% | 2.05 | 5.3 | 2,589.3/sq mi (999.7/km2) |
| Columbus† | Town | Stillwater | 1,857 | 1,893 | −1.9% | 1.32 | 3.4 | 1,406.8/sq mi (543.2/km2) |
| Conrad† | City | Pondera | 2,318 | 2,570 | −9.8% | 1.25 | 3.2 | 1,854.4/sq mi (716.0/km2) |
| Culbertson | Town | Roosevelt | 753 | 714 | +5.5% | 0.60 | 1.6 | 1,255.0/sq mi (484.6/km2) |
| Cut Bank† | City | Glacier | 3,056 | 2,869 | +6.5% | 0.99 | 2.6 | 3,086.9/sq mi (1,191.8/km2) |
| Darby | Town | Ravalli | 783 | 720 | +8.7% | 0.58 | 1.5 | 1,350.0/sq mi (521.2/km2) |
| Deer Lodge† | City | Powell | 2,938 | 3,111 | −5.6% | 1.44 | 3.7 | 2,040.3/sq mi (787.8/km2) |
| Denton | Town | Fergus | 205 | 255 | −19.6% | 0.76 | 2.0 | 269.7/sq mi (104.1/km2) |
| Dillon† | City | Beaverhead | 3,880 | 4,134 | −6.1% | 1.76 | 4.6 | 2,204.5/sq mi (851.2/km2) |
| Dodson | Town | Phillips | 125 | 124 | +0.8% | 0.19 | 0.49 | 657.9/sq mi (254.0/km2) |
| Drummond | Town | Granite | 272 | 309 | −12.0% | 0.53 | 1.4 | 513.2/sq mi (198.2/km2) |
| Dutton | Town | Teton | 303 | 316 | −4.1% | 0.31 | 0.80 | 977.4/sq mi (377.4/km2) |
| East Helena | City | Lewis and Clark | 1,944 | 1,984 | −2.0% | 1.73 | 4.5 | 1,123.7/sq mi (433.9/km2) |
| Ekalaka† | Town | Carter | 399 | 332 | +20.2% | 1.04 | 2.7 | 383.7/sq mi (148.1/km2) |
| Ennis | Town | Madison | 917 | 838 | +9.4% | 0.77 | 2.0 | 1,190.9/sq mi (459.8/km2) |
| Eureka | Town | Lincoln | 1,380 | 1,037 | +33.1% | 1.01 | 2.6 | 1,366.3/sq mi (527.5/km2) |
| Fairfield | Town | Teton | 759 | 708 | +7.2% | 0.31 | 0.80 | 2,448.4/sq mi (945.3/km2) |
| Fairview | Town | Richland | 896 | 840 | +6.7% | 0.97 | 2.5 | 923.7/sq mi (356.6/km2) |
| Flaxville | Town | Daniels | 63 | 71 | −11.3% | 0.10 | 0.26 | 630.0/sq mi (243.2/km2) |
| Forsyth† | City | Rosebud | 1,647 | 1,777 | −7.3% | 0.99 | 2.6 | 1,663.6/sq mi (642.3/km2) |
| Fort Benton† | City | Chouteau | 1,449 | 1,464 | −1.0% | 2.07 | 5.4 | 700.0/sq mi (270.3/km2) |
| Fort Peck | Town | Valley | 239 | 233 | +2.6% | 0.86 | 2.2 | 277.9/sq mi (107.3/km2) |
| Froid | Town | Roosevelt | 195 | 185 | +5.4% | 0.28 | 0.73 | 696.4/sq mi (268.9/km2) |
| Fromberg | Town | Carbon | 392 | 438 | −10.5% | 0.48 | 1.2 | 816.7/sq mi (315.3/km2) |
| Geraldine | Town | Chouteau | 207 | 261 | −20.7% | 0.52 | 1.3 | 398.1/sq mi (153.7/km2) |
| Glasgow† | City | Valley | 3,202 | 3,250 | −1.5% | 1.43 | 3.7 | 2,239.2/sq mi (864.5/km2) |
| Glendive† | City | Dawson | 4,873 | 4,935 | −1.3% | 3.32 | 8.6 | 1,467.8/sq mi (566.7/km2) |
| Grass Range | Town | Fergus | 110 | 110 | 0.0% | 0.15 | 0.39 | 733.3/sq mi (283.1/km2) |
| Great Falls† | City | Cascade | 60,442 | 58,505 | +3.3% | 21.79 | 56.4 | 2,773.8/sq mi (1,071.0/km2) |
| Hamilton† | City | Ravalli | 4,659 | 4,348 | +7.2% | 2.53 | 6.6 | 1,841.5/sq mi (711.0/km2) |
| Hardin† | City | Big Horn | 3,818 | 3,505 | +8.9% | 2.57 | 6.7 | 1,485.6/sq mi (573.6/km2) |
| Harlem | City | Blaine | 769 | 808 | −4.8% | 0.43 | 1.1 | 1,788.4/sq mi (690.5/km2) |
| Harlowton† | City | Wheatland | 955 | 997 | −4.2% | 0.58 | 1.5 | 1,646.6/sq mi (635.7/km2) |
| Havre† | City | Hill | 9,362 | 9,310 | +0.6% | 3.28 | 8.5 | 2,854.3/sq mi (1,102.0/km2) |
| Helena‡ | City | Lewis and Clark | 32,091 | 28,190 | +13.8% | 16.35 | 42.3 | 1,962.8/sq mi (757.8/km2) |
| Hingham | Town | Hill | 131 | 118 | +11.0% | 0.17 | 0.44 | 770.6/sq mi (297.5/km2) |
| Hobson | City | Judith Basin | 179 | 215 | −16.7% | 0.24 | 0.62 | 745.8/sq mi (288.0/km2) |
| Hot Springs | Town | Sanders | 557 | 544 | +2.4% | 0.38 | 0.98 | 1,465.8/sq mi (565.9/km2) |
| Hysham† | Town | Treasure | 276 | 312 | −11.5% | 0.21 | 0.54 | 1,314.3/sq mi (507.4/km2) |
| Ismay | Town | Custer | 17 | 19 | −10.5% | 0.42 | 1.1 | 40.5/sq mi (15.6/km2) |
| Joliet | Town | Carbon | 577 | 595 | −3.0% | 0.30 | 0.78 | 1,923.3/sq mi (742.6/km2) |
| Jordan† | Town | Garfield | 356 | 343 | +3.8% | 0.34 | 0.88 | 1,047.1/sq mi (404.3/km2) |
| Judith Gap | City | Wheatland | 110 | 126 | −12.7% | 0.38 | 0.98 | 289.5/sq mi (111.8/km2) |
| Kalispell† | City | Flathead | 24,558 | 19,927 | +23.2% | 11.64 | 30.1 | 1,711.9/sq mi (661.0/km2) |
| Kevin | Town | Toole | 154 | 154 | 0.0% | 0.34 | 0.88 | 452.9/sq mi (174.9/km2) |
| Laurel | City | Yellowstone | 7,222 | 6,718 | +7.5% | 2.14 | 5.5 | 3,374.8/sq mi (1,303.0/km2) |
| Lavina | Town | Golden Valley | 136 | 187 | −27.3% | 1.00 | 2.6 | 136.0/sq mi (52.5/km2) |
| Lewistown† | City | Fergus | 5,952 | 5,901 | +0.9% | 5.32 | 13.8 | 1,118.8/sq mi (432.0/km2) |
| Libby† | City | Lincoln | 2,775 | 2,628 | +5.6% | 1.91 | 4.9 | 1,452.9/sq mi (561.0/km2) |
| Lima | Town | Beaverhead | 212 | 221 | −4.1% | 0.53 | 1.4 | 400.0/sq mi (154.4/km2) |
| Livingston† | City | Park | 8,040 | 7,044 | +14.1% | 6.02 | 15.6 | 1,335.5/sq mi (515.7/km2) |
| Lodge Grass | Town | Big Horn | 441 | 428 | +3.0% | 0.24 | 0.62 | 1,837.5/sq mi (709.5/km2) |
| Malta† | City | Phillips | 1,860 | 1,997 | −6.9% | 1.06 | 2.7 | 1,754.7/sq mi (677.5/km2) |
| Manhattan | Town | Gallatin | 2,086 | 1,520 | +37.2% | 1.93 | 5.0 | 1,080.8/sq mi (417.3/km2) |
| Medicine Lake | Town | Sheridan | 244 | 225 | +8.4% | 0.40 | 1.0 | 610.0/sq mi (235.5/km2) |
| Melstone | Town | Musselshell | 126 | 96 | +31.3% | 0.69 | 1.8 | 182.6/sq mi (70.5/km2) |
| Miles City† | City | Custer | 8,354 | 8,410 | −0.7% | 3.34 | 8.7 | 2,501.2/sq mi (965.7/km2) |
| Missoula† | City | Missoula | 73,489 | 66,788 | +10.0% | 27.51 | 71.3 | 2,671.4/sq mi (1,031.4/km2) |
| Moore | Town | Fergus | 194 | 193 | +0.5% | 0.24 | 0.62 | 808.3/sq mi (312.1/km2) |
| Nashua | Town | Valley | 301 | 290 | +3.8% | 0.66 | 1.7 | 456.1/sq mi (176.1/km2) |
| Neihart | Town | Cascade | 43 | 51 | −15.7% | 1.99 | 5.2 | 21.6/sq mi (8.3/km2) |
| Opheim | Town | Valley | 75 | 85 | −11.8% | 0.21 | 0.54 | 357.1/sq mi (137.9/km2) |
| Outlook | Town | Sheridan | 84 | 47 | +78.7% | 1.30 | 3.4 | 64.6/sq mi (24.9/km2) |
| Philipsburg† | Town | Granite | 841 | 820 | +2.6% | 0.80 | 2.1 | 1,051.3/sq mi (405.9/km2) |
| Pinesdale | Town | Ravalli | 805 | 917 | −12.2% | 1.29 | 3.3 | 624.0/sq mi (240.9/km2) |
| Plains | Town | Sanders | 1,106 | 1,048 | +5.5% | 0.59 | 1.5 | 1,874.6/sq mi (723.8/km2) |
| Plentywood† | City | Sheridan | 1,669 | 1,734 | −3.7% | 1.17 | 3.0 | 1,426.5/sq mi (550.8/km2) |
| Plevna | Town | Fallon | 179 | 162 | +10.5% | 0.59 | 1.5 | 303.4/sq mi (117.1/km2) |
| Polson† | City | Lake | 5,148 | 4,488 | +14.7% | 4.14 | 10.7 | 1,243.5/sq mi (480.1/km2) |
| Poplar | City | Roosevelt | 758 | 810 | −6.4% | 0.28 | 0.73 | 2,707.1/sq mi (1,045.2/km2) |
| Red Lodge† | City | Carbon | 2,257 | 2,125 | +6.2% | 2.80 | 7.3 | 806.1/sq mi (311.2/km2) |
| Rexford | Town | Lincoln | 78 | 105 | −25.7% | 0.10 | 0.26 | 780.0/sq mi (301.2/km2) |
| Richey | Town | Dawson | 164 | 177 | −7.3% | 0.24 | 0.62 | 683.3/sq mi (263.8/km2) |
| Ronan | City | Lake | 1,955 | 1,871 | +4.5% | 1.19 | 3.1 | 1,642.9/sq mi (634.3/km2) |
| Roundup† | City | Musselshell | 1,742 | 1,788 | −2.6% | 1.34 | 3.5 | 1,300.0/sq mi (501.9/km2) |
| Ryegate† | Town | Golden Valley | 223 | 245 | −9.0% | 0.69 | 1.8 | 323.2/sq mi (124.8/km2) |
| Saco | Town | Phillips | 159 | 197 | −19.3% | 0.33 | 0.85 | 481.8/sq mi (186.0/km2) |
| Scobey† | City | Daniels | 999 | 1,017 | −1.8% | 0.76 | 2.0 | 1,314.5/sq mi (507.5/km2) |
| Shelby† | City | Toole | 3,169 | 3,376 | −6.1% | 6.03 | 15.6 | 525.5/sq mi (202.9/km2) |
| Sheridan | Town | Madison | 694 | 642 | +8.1% | 1.02 | 2.6 | 680.4/sq mi (262.7/km2) |
| Sidney† | City | Richland | 6,346 | 5,191 | +22.3% | 2.66 | 6.9 | 2,385.7/sq mi (921.1/km2) |
| St. Ignatius | Town | Lake | 768 | 842 | −8.8% | 0.56 | 1.5 | 1,371.4/sq mi (529.5/km2) |
| Stanford† | Town | Judith Basin | 403 | 401 | +0.5% | 0.44 | 1.1 | 915.9/sq mi (353.6/km2) |
| Stevensville | Town | Ravalli | 2,002 | 1,809 | +10.7% | 0.98 | 2.5 | 2,042.9/sq mi (788.8/km2) |
| Sunburst | Town | Toole | 333 | 375 | −11.2% | 0.24 | 0.62 | 1,387.5/sq mi (535.7/km2) |
| Superior† | Town | Mineral | 830 | 812 | +2.2% | 1.04 | 2.7 | 798.1/sq mi (308.1/km2) |
| Terry† | Town | Prairie | 562 | 605 | −7.1% | 0.71 | 1.8 | 791.5/sq mi (305.6/km2) |
| Thompson Falls† | City | Sanders | 1,336 | 1,313 | +1.8% | 1.73 | 4.5 | 772.3/sq mi (298.2/km2) |
| Three Forks | City | Gallatin | 1,989 | 1,869 | +6.4% | 1.44 | 3.7 | 1,381.3/sq mi (533.3/km2) |
| Townsend† | City | Broadwater | 1,787 | 1,878 | −4.8% | 1.58 | 4.1 | 1,131.0/sq mi (436.7/km2) |
| Troy | City | Lincoln | 797 | 938 | −15.0% | 0.76 | 2.0 | 1,048.7/sq mi (404.9/km2) |
| Twin Bridges | Town | Madison | 330 | 375 | −12.0% | 0.96 | 2.5 | 343.8/sq mi (132.7/km2) |
| Valier | Town | Pondera | 530 | 509 | +4.1% | 0.92 | 2.4 | 576.1/sq mi (222.4/km2) |
| Virginia City† | Town | Madison | 219 | 190 | +15.3% | 0.95 | 2.5 | 230.5/sq mi (89.0/km2) |
| Walkerville | Town | Silver Bow | 639 | 675 | −5.3% | 2.23 | 5.8 | 286.5/sq mi (110.6/km2) |
| West Yellowstone | Town | Gallatin | 1,272 | 1,271 | +0.1% | 0.80 | 2.1 | 1,590.0/sq mi (613.9/km2) |
| Westby | Town | Sheridan | 167 | 168 | −0.6% | 0.54 | 1.4 | 309.3/sq mi (119.4/km2) |
| White Sulphur Springs† | City | Meagher | 955 | 939 | +1.7% | 1.01 | 2.6 | 945.5/sq mi (365.1/km2) |
| Whitefish | City | Flathead | 7,751 | 6,357 | +21.9% | 6.43 | 16.7 | 1,205.4/sq mi (465.4/km2) |
| Whitehall | Town | Jefferson | 1,006 | 1,038 | −3.1% | 0.67 | 1.7 | 1,501.5/sq mi (579.7/km2) |
| Wibaux† | Town | Wibaux | 462 | 589 | −21.6% | 1.08 | 2.8 | 427.8/sq mi (165.2/km2) |
| Winifred | Town | Fergus | 172 | 208 | −17.3% | 0.50 | 1.3 | 344.0/sq mi (132.8/km2) |
| Winnett† | Town | Petroleum | 188 | 182 | +3.3% | 0.98 | 2.5 | 191.8/sq mi (74.1/km2) |
| Wolf Point† | City | Roosevelt | 2,517 | 2,621 | −4.0% | 0.87 | 2.3 | 2,893.1/sq mi (1,117.0/km2) |
| Total towns | 76 | — | 38,130 | 37,333 | +2.1% | 49.01 | 126.9 | 778.0/sq mi (300.4/km2) |
| Total cities | 53 | — | 549,663 | 494,659 | +11.1% | 1,685.57 | 4,365.6 | 326.1/sq mi (125.9/km2) |
| Total | 129 | — | 587,793 | 531,992 | +10.5% | 1,734.58 | 4,492.5 | 338.9/sq mi (130.8/km2) |