# Custer, Montana — #180 of 3,144 counties

> Liberty Moving composite score 7.42 of 10. FIPS 30017. Population 11,985. v4 — beta, 30 October 2026, sourced values.

About 12,000 people live in Custer, Montana. It ranks #180 of 3,144 counties for liberty, and #41 of 56 in Montana. There is no state or county sales tax, lower than in 96% of counties. Property tax takes about 0.8% of a home's value each year, more than in 55% of counties. Local government employs a larger share of working residents than in 77% of counties. The homicide rate is lower than in 73% of counties. Life expectancy is about 76.2 years, longer than in 54% of counties. Air quality is better than in 65% of counties (a typical day's air quality index is 38), and flood and hurricane risk is lower than in 73% of counties. On this site's state scores, Montana gets 6.79 of 10 for economic freedom, based on the Fraser Institute's ranking, and 10 of 10 for gun rights.

## Scores

| Factor | Level | Score (0–10) | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fraser Institute state ranking | state | 6.79 |  |
| 2A | state | 10.00 |  |
| Air quality | county | 6.17 |  |
| GOP + LP vote for President | county | 7.32 |  |
| Homicide rate | county | 9.57 |  |
| Sales tax | county | 10.00 |  |
| Property tax | county | 6.00 |  |
| Floods / hurricanes | county | 6.17 |  |
| Life expectancy | county | 6.20 |  |
| Government employees | county | 2.08 |  |
| Single-parent households | county | 8.71 |  |

"est" marks a derived or placeholder value with no published county figure.

## Neighbors

- #31 Prairie, Montana — https://libertymoving.org/counties/30079.md
- #7 Garfield, Montana — https://libertymoving.org/counties/30033.md
- #4 Carter, Montana — https://libertymoving.org/counties/30011.md
- #25 Powder River, Montana — https://libertymoving.org/counties/30075.md
- #9 Fallon, Montana — https://libertymoving.org/counties/30025.md
- #791 Rosebud, Montana — https://libertymoving.org/counties/30087.md

## Links

- Page: https://libertymoving.org/counties/30017
- Compare: https://libertymoving.org/compare?a=30017
- Methodology: https://libertymoving.org/methodology
- Sources and terms: https://libertymoving.org/privacy