Property Tax in Aroostook County, Maine
In Aroostook County, Maine, the typical homeowner pays $1,611 a year in property taxes on a home worth a median of $131,700. The figures on this page are the Census Bureau's published medians (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023), shown exactly as released.
What the Aroostook County numbers mean
Read the two medians together: $1,611 is the middle tax bill among owner-occupied households in Aroostook County, and $131,700 is the middle home value. Neither figure describes a specific property — together they describe the typical homeowner's situation in the county.
The derived effective rate for Aroostook County is 1.22% (median tax ÷ median value). Treat it as an estimate for comparison only: it comes from survey medians of different households, not from the county's rate schedule.
Aroostook County by the numbers
| Measure | Aroostook County | Maine | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid | $1,611 | $2,926 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $131,700 | $266,400 | $303,400 |
| Derived effective rate* | 1.22% | 1.10% | 0.98% |
| Median tax per month | $134 | $244 | $247 |
*Estimate derived from Census medians (tax ÷ value), not an official rate.
Aroostook County at a glance
- Median tax rank in Maine: #15 of 16 counties
- Median home value rank in Maine: #16 of 16
- Population rank in Maine: #6 of 16 (67,227 residents)
- Population density rank: #15 of 16 (10 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in Maine: #1 of 16 (6,671 sq mi, 21.6% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $134; per $1,000 of home value: $1.22
How Aroostook County compares
Of the 16 Maine counties with published data, 14 have a higher median property tax bill than Aroostook County's $1,611, putting the county at #15 in the state. Its bill is about 45% lower than the state median of $2,926 and about 46% lower than the national median of $2,969.
Rates and values pull in opposite directions: an expensive housing market can produce big bills at ordinary rates. Here the derived rate is 1.22%, versus 0.98% derived nationally, and the median home value ranks #16 within Maine.
Some extra context for Aroostook County: the median bill works out to about $134 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $1,223 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 67,227 people — the #6 most populous county in Maine, spread over 6,671 square miles, a density of about 10 people per square mile. Its median home value, $131,700, ranks #16 among the state's 16 counties with data.
Zooming out: of 3133 counties nationwide with published Census figures, only 1482 record a higher median tax bill than Aroostook County — it sits in the top 47% nationally. The county holds roughly 4.9% of Maine's people. Its homes are worth less than the state norm (median $131,700 versus $266,400), and a decade at the derived rate of 1.22% adds up to about 12.23% of the median home's value in tax. The cheapest county in the state, Piscataquis County, medians $1,487 — $124 less than Aroostook County per year.
Counties nearest Aroostook County in the Maine ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somerset County, ME | $1,798 | $155,200 | 1.16% |
| Washington County, ME | $1,654 | $147,100 | 1.12% |
| Piscataquis County, ME | $1,487 | $153,300 | 0.97% |
Aroostook County and its population peers
For a like-for-like sense of scale, compare Aroostook County with its national population peers: the counties nearest to its 67,227 residents, listed in the table below with their own Census medians. Of the 9 counties in that group, Aroostook County's median bill of $1,611 is #7 of 9.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McCracken County, KY | 67,584 | $1,342 | $182,900 | 0.73% |
| Madison County, NY | 67,572 | $4,058 | $176,800 | 2.29% |
| Rice County, MN | 67,389 | $2,899 | $298,500 | 0.97% |
| Effingham County, GA | 67,265 | $2,344 | $245,300 | 0.96% |
| Montcalm County, MI | 67,174 | $1,851 | $172,100 | 1.08% |
| Crow Wing County, MN | 67,113 | $2,161 | $274,400 | 0.79% |
| Mason County, WA | 66,968 | $2,833 | $377,400 | 0.75% |
| Kershaw County, SC | 66,924 | $937 | $191,900 | 0.49% |
The closest population match is Effingham County, Georgia (67,265 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $2,344 on a median home value of $245,300 — $733 less than Aroostook County pays.
Inside Maine itself, the counties closest to Aroostook County in population are Kennebec County (125,614 residents, median tax $2,510 on a median value of $219,900); Androscoggin County (112,323 residents, median tax $2,913 on a median value of $232,000); Oxford County (58,728 residents, median tax $2,103 on a median value of $192,300); Hancock County (56,084 residents, median tax $2,445 on a median value of $278,400). Same state, same broad tax framework — yet the median bills still differ, because assessed values and the mix of county, municipal and school-district rates are set locally.
How the tax is worked out
Think of the final bill as three ingredients: the assessed value of the property, the exemptions subtracted from it, and the combined rate of every district the property sits in. Aroostook County's medians imply a derived rate of 1.22%; applied illustratively, a $400,000 home would owe about $4,892 a year, or around $408 a month spread evenly. Individual properties depart from the illustration in both directions.
Illustrative bills in Aroostook County at the derived rate
The derived rate of 1.22% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Aroostook County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 1.10% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $1,834 | $153 |
| $250,000 | $3,058 | $255 |
| $350,000 | $4,281 | $357 |
| $500,000 | $6,115 | $510 |
| $750,000 | $9,173 | $764 |
Illustration only: real bills are computed from the assessed value, exemptions, and the combined rates of the property's actual taxing districts.
Checking your assessment in Aroostook County
Believe your assessment is too high? The practical order of attack is: obtain your record card and audit it line by line; collect comparable recent sales in Aroostook County; ask the assessor's office to correct anything plainly wrong; and, if the value still seems off, lodge a formal appeal ahead of the deadline printed on your assessment notice. Windows are short — often 30 to 90 days — and late appeals are usually rejected outright, however strong the case.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Aroostook County, Maine?
The median real estate tax paid in Aroostook County, Maine is $1,611 per year, on a median home value of $131,700 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Aroostook County, Maine?
The derived effective rate is 1.22% — the median bill ($1,611) expressed as a share of the median home value ($131,700). No authority sets a rate this way; it exists to make counties with different home prices comparable.
How does Aroostook County compare with the rest of Maine?
By median taxes paid, Aroostook County stands at #15 among the 16 Maine counties the Census publishes figures for. Its $1,611 median bill is about 45% lower than the state median ($2,926), and 14 counties in the state record a higher median.
How are property taxes calculated in Aroostook County, Maine?
Three steps produce the bill: an assessment of market value by the local assessor, a reduction for exemptions you qualify for (a homestead exemption is the common one), and multiplication by the combined rates of the county, municipality, school district and any special districts covering the property. The median result in Aroostook County is $1,611 of tax on a $131,700 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Aroostook County, Maine?
You can. Pull your property record card from the Aroostook County assessor, verify its details, and compare the assessed value against similar homes that sold recently. If the value still seems too high, submit a formal appeal to the board named on your notice before the stated deadline — usually a 30-to-90-day window.