What is the median rent in Scarborough, ME?

Name: Median rent in Scarborough, ME, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Scarborough, ME is $1,956 (±$178) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 2,161 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Scarborough, the median gross rent went from $1,206 in 2015–2019 to $1,956 in 2020–2024 (+62.2%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,956 (±$178)
Rented homes: 2,161 (±458)
$2,000 or more: 46.7%
Since 2015–2019: +62.2%

How much rent costs in Scarborough

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Scarborough	Cumberland County	Maine	United States
Less than $500	0.9% (±1.5 points)	8.0%	12.2%	6.3%
$500 to $999	5.8% (±3.9 points)	10.7%	27.4%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	8.6% (±4.4 points)	26.5%	31.6%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	38.1% (±11.8 points)	27.4%	16.4%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	20.6% (±8.3 points)	15.7%	7.1%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	7.7% (±6.1 points)	6.4%	2.9%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	18.4% (±11.4 points)	5.5%	2.3%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,500 to $1,999, paid by 38.1% of renting households.

46.7% of rented homes in Scarborough cost $2,000 or more a month.

Scarborough against Cumberland County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Scarborough	Cumberland County	Maine	United States
Median gross rent	$1,956 (±$178)	$1,589 (±$36)	$1,139 (±$13)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	2,161 (±458)	38,373 (±1,293)	142,202 (±2,328)	42,849,984

In Scarborough, median gross rent is higher than in Cumberland County ($1,589).

It is also higher than in Maine ($1,139).

It is higher than the national figure ($1,413).

In Cumberland County, Scarborough ranks 6 of 26 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 7 of 355.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Scarborough has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$1,206 (±$126)	$1,956 (±$178)	+62.2%	Up after inflation
Households that rent	17.6% (±3.1 points)	22.6% (±4.3 points)	+5.0 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	12.2% (±9.0 points)	3.2% (±4.6 points)	−9.0 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Scarborough

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Scarborough
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Scarborough	—	$1,956 (±$178)	—
Old Orchard Beach (community)	2.8 mi	$1,246 (±$182)	Lower
Old Orchard Beach	2.8 mi	$1,246 (±$182)	Lower
South Portland	4.8 mi	$1,812 (±$97)	Not measurably different
Saco	5.2 mi	$1,249 (±$385)	Lower
Cape Elizabeth	6.5 mi	$2,185 (±$275)	Not measurably different
Portland	8.6 mi	$1,577 (±$35)	Lower
Westbrook	9.5 mi	$1,392 (±$74)	Lower
Biddeford	9.6 mi	$1,292 (±$100)	Lower

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Old Orchard Beach (community), ME ($1,246), Old Orchard Beach, ME ($1,246), Saco, ME ($1,249).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Cumberland County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
1	Long Island	$2,194 (±$226)
2	Cape Elizabeth	$2,185 (±$275)
3	Cumberland	$2,143 (±$759)
4	Falmouth	$2,120 (±$441)
5	Chebeague Island	$2,063 (±$878)
6	Scarborough	$1,956 (±$178)
7	Naples	$1,941 (±$625)
8	South Portland	$1,812 (±$97)
9	North Yarmouth	$1,708 (±$641)
10	Yarmouth	$1,693 (±$191)
11	Gorham	$1,680 (±$355)
12	Portland	$1,577 (±$35)

Showing 12 of 26 places in Cumberland County, ranked from highest to lowest.

The figures for Scarborough include the places inside it that have pages of their own: Dunstan, Oak Hill.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Scarborough

What is the average rent in Scarborough, ME?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Scarborough is $1,956 (±$178) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Scarborough?

In Scarborough, the median gross rent went from $1,206 in 2015–2019 to $1,956 in 2020–2024 (+62.2%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

How many rentals in Scarborough cost more than $2,000 a month?

46.7% of rented homes in Scarborough have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 0.9% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Scarborough higher than in Cumberland County?

In Scarborough, median gross rent is higher than in Cumberland County ($1,589).

It is also higher than in Maine ($1,139).

It is higher than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Scarborough town, Cumberland County, Maine (county subdivision:66145, in state:23 county:005).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.