The 10 Dumbest Places In Oregon For 2024


The dumbest places in Oregon are Milton-Freewater and Sweet Home for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

The unfortunate fact of the matter is that some places in the Beaver 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 Oregon have the highest percentage of adults without a high school degree.

A recent study we published found that Oregon is the 22nd smartest state in the United States, with an average IQ of 100.

But that doesn’t mean that a few cities in Oregon are a bit slower than others due to a lack of basic education.


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


Dumbest Cities In Oregon Map

Don’t freak out.

Some places are just smarter than others, but that says nothing about the character of the people living there. It’s another data point a real estate agent would never tell you.

For this ranking, we only looked at cities with populations greater than 5,000, leaving us 74 cities in Oregon to rank. You can take a look at the data below.

For more Oregon reading, check out:

The 10 Dumbest Places In Oregon For 2024

Milton-Freewater, OR

Source: Wikipedia User Bobjgalindo | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10
Population: 7,137
% Adult High School Dropout: 24.0%
% Highly Educated: 10.0%
More on Milton-Freewater: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Sweet Home, OR

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

5
/10
Population: 9,852
% Adult High School Dropout: 20.0%
% Highly Educated: 9.0%
More on Sweet Home: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Cornelius, OR

Source: Wikipedia User M.O. Stevens | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10
Population: 13,245
% Adult High School Dropout: 24.0%
% Highly Educated: 15.0%
More on Cornelius: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Woodburn, OR

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10
Population: 26,222
% Adult High School Dropout: 32.0%
% Highly Educated: 15.0%
More on Woodburn: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Umatilla, OR

Source: Wikipedia User Tedder | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10
Population: 7,433
% Adult High School Dropout: 16.0%
% Highly Educated: 12.0%
More on Umatilla: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Hermiston, OR

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

6
/10
Population: 19,267
% Adult High School Dropout: 26.0%
% Highly Educated: 16.0%
More on Hermiston: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Tillamook, OR

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

6
/10
Population: 5,215
% Adult High School Dropout: 16.0%
% Highly Educated: 13.0%
More on Tillamook: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Ontario, OR

Source: Flickr User Dougtone | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 11,610
% Adult High School Dropout: 20.0%
% Highly Educated: 17.0%
More on Ontario: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Winston, OR

Source: Wikipedia User Visitor7 | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10
Population: 5,618
% Adult High School Dropout: 11.0%
% Highly Educated: 15.0%
More on Winston: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Madras, OR

Source: Wikipedia User Tedder | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10
Population: 7,494
% Adult High School Dropout: 17.0%
% Highly Educated: 21.0%
More on Madras: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How we determined the dumbest cities in the Beaver 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 Oregon:

  • % 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 2018-2022 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 Oregon from dumbest to brightest.

For this ranking, we used every Oregon city with at least 5,000 residents. We updated this article for 2024, and it’s our tenth time ranking the dumbest cities in Oregon.

There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep

If you’re measuring the locations in Oregon 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 Oregon are Milton-Freewater, Sweet Home, Cornelius, Woodburn, Umatilla, Hermiston, Tillamook, Ontario, Winston, and Madras.

If you’re also curious enough, here are the smartest places in Oregon, according to science:

  1. Lake Oswego
  2. West Linn
  3. Ashland

For more Oregon reading, check out:

Dumbest Cities In Oregon For 2024

Rank City Population % Adult High School Dropout % Highly Educated
1 Milton-Freewater, OR 7,137 24.0% 10.0%
2 Sweet Home, OR 9,852 20.0% 9.0%
3 Cornelius, OR 13,245 24.0% 15.0%
4 Woodburn, OR 26,222 32.0% 15.0%
5 Umatilla, OR 7,433 16.0% 12.0%
6 Hermiston, OR 19,267 26.0% 16.0%
7 Tillamook, OR 5,215 16.0% 13.0%
8 Ontario, OR 11,610 20.0% 17.0%
9 Winston, OR 5,618 11.0% 15.0%
10 Madras, OR 7,494 17.0% 21.0%
11 Prineville, OR 10,915 12.0% 19.0%
12 Sheridan, OR 6,237 9.0% 13.0%
13 Independence, OR 9,981 12.0% 21.0%
14 Lebanon, OR 18,587 11.0% 19.0%
15 Fairview, OR 10,515 17.0% 23.0%
16 The Dalles, OR 15,988 15.0% 22.0%
17 Pendleton, OR 17,005 12.0% 21.0%
18 Molalla, OR 10,147 9.0% 14.0%
19 St. Helens, OR 14,015 9.0% 15.0%
20 Gresham, OR 113,525 13.0% 23.0%
21 Veneta, OR 5,177 10.0% 18.0%
22 Sutherlin, OR 8,513 9.0% 16.0%
23 Coos Bay, OR 15,949 11.0% 21.0%
24 Springfield, OR 61,740 10.0% 21.0%
25 Grants Pass, OR 39,131 9.0% 19.0%
26 Eagle Point, OR 9,735 9.0% 17.0%
27 Stayton, OR 8,210 10.0% 22.0%
28 Central Point, OR 19,123 10.0% 22.0%
29 Klamath Falls, OR 21,806 11.0% 23.0%
30 Mcminnville, OR 34,432 13.0% 26.0%
31 Redmond, OR 34,191 11.0% 24.0%
32 Scappoose, OR 8,003 9.0% 22.0%
33 Salem, OR 175,754 12.0% 31.0%
34 Florence, OR 9,384 10.0% 25.0%
35 Keizer, OR 39,122 10.0% 26.0%
36 Hood River, OR 8,292 15.0% 43.0%
37 Cottage Grove, OR 10,583 7.0% 21.0%
38 Medford, OR 85,539 10.0% 28.0%
39 Forest Grove, OR 26,160 12.0% 33.0%
40 Warrenton, OR 6,254 6.0% 20.0%
41 Sandy, OR 12,592 7.0% 21.0%
42 Canby, OR 18,127 10.0% 29.0%
43 Dallas, OR 16,945 8.0% 24.0%
44 Brookings, OR 6,719 8.0% 24.0%
45 Troutdale, OR 16,150 8.0% 24.0%
46 Creswell, OR 5,607 8.0% 25.0%
47 Gladstone, OR 11,996 8.0% 26.0%
48 La Grande, OR 13,097 6.0% 23.0%
49 Roseburg, OR 23,657 6.0% 23.0%
50 Newberg, OR 25,379 9.0% 38.0%
51 Albany, OR 56,348 7.0% 28.0%
52 Newport, OR 10,319 8.0% 31.0%
53 Hillsboro, OR 106,612 9.0% 42.0%
54 Astoria, OR 10,184 8.0% 32.0%
55 Seaside, OR 7,142 6.0% 26.0%
56 North Bend, OR 10,250 7.0% 29.0%
57 Monmouth, OR 11,054 6.0% 29.0%
58 Silverton, OR 10,439 6.0% 29.0%
59 Beaverton, OR 97,554 6.0% 48.0%
60 Eugene, OR 176,755 6.0% 44.0%
61 Milwaukie, OR 21,195 4.0% 38.0%
62 Tualatin, OR 27,804 6.0% 46.0%
63 Portland, OR 646,101 6.0% 53.0%
64 Talent, OR 6,256 5.0% 44.0%
65 Wilsonville, OR 25,992 5.0% 46.0%
66 Happy Valley, OR 24,381 5.0% 48.0%
67 Bend, OR 99,442 5.0% 48.0%
68 Philomath, OR 5,429 3.0% 44.0%
69 Tigard, OR 55,161 4.0% 48.0%
70 Corvallis, OR 60,050 5.0% 60.0%
71 Sherwood, OR 20,286 4.0% 49.0%
72 Ashland, OR 21,401 4.0% 63.0%
73 West Linn, OR 27,167 2.0% 64.0%
74 Lake Oswego, OR 40,457 -1.0% 74.0%
About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends.

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.

3 thoughts on “The 10 Dumbest Places In Oregon For 2024

  1. As a native American from warm springs rezervation next to madras I know a lot of people drop out of school who start…probably what brought % down

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