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- 480Population
About Mackay
Mackay is a city in Custer County. About 480 people lived here in 2024, by Census estimate. It sits at about 5,900 feet, 84 miles west of Idaho Falls in a straight line.
Places listed for this area include the Mackay Reservoir and Merriam Lake.
Moving to Mackay
Start with homes, jobs and local services in and around Mackay.
Cost of living
Mackay is outside the Idaho metros with a 2024 federal price figure, so this uses the Idaho statewide level. A basket that costs $100 in the U.S. costs $95.49 here, under the U.S. average by 4.5%.
Open the calculator- Homes on the mapSearch homes for sale near town
- Public schools2 public schools
- DMV and utilitiesCounty offices, and gas service only where a utility names this town
- Local services2 local businesses
- Moving to Idaho checklistDriver's license, vehicle registration, voter registration and more, from official Idaho sources
Public schools in Mackay
All 2District, enrollment, and students per teacher from the federal 2024-25 directory. No ratings.
- Mackay Elementary School
Mackay Joint District · PK-6
114 students · 14.2 students per teacher
- Mackay Jr/sr High School
Mackay Joint District · 7-12
104 students · 13 students per teacher
Services for Mackay
All servicesDMV counters are the county offices. A gas utility appears only when its public list names Mackay.
- Challis · Vehicles
801 Main St Challis, ID 83226 PO Box 597
· Mon. - Fri. 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
- Challis · Driver's licenses
130 S 9th St Challis, ID 83226
· Mon., Wed. - Fri. 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
No natural gas utility on the official town lists names Mackay.
Allergy ratings in Mackay
What a typical year looks like: Low, Moderate or High for each pollen season, plus wildfire smoke. Typical, general guidance. It is not medical advice. Pollen and smoke change with the weather every year, and what bothers you depends on what you are allergic to. See an allergist for testing.
Spring trees
March to June
Moderate
Rating: Moderate, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High, Very High. Peaks in AprilEarly-summer grass
Late May to July
High
Rating: High, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High, Very High. Late May to early JulyFall weeds and sagebrush
August to October
High
Rating: High, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High, Very High. Peaks in SeptemberWildfire smoke
Mostly July to September
Low
Rating: Low, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High. 1.2 days a year with air quality over 100. Worst year 6 (2024).
Regional rating. Mackay has no pollen counter. These pollen ratings come from the Twin Falls station in the Magic Valley, 103 miles away. Mackay sits well above that station, so timing and levels can differ.
How these ratings are worked out
Pollen is rated on the National Allergy Bureau bands for the grains of pollen in a cubic meter of air. Trees: Low under 15, Moderate 15 to 89, High 90 to 1,499. Weeds: Low under 10, Moderate 10 to 49, High 50 to 499. Grass: Low under 5, Moderate 5 to 19, High 20 to 199. The band is the one reached on the busiest quarter of counted days. A rating is typical, not a forecast: one wet or windy year can move it.
Spring trees, Moderate. Twin Falls NAB station, 757 counted days in 2003 to 2024: on the busiest quarter of days the tree count was 54 grains per cubic meter or more, which the NAB bands call Moderate. On the busiest tenth of days it was 125 or more.
Early-summer grass, High. No grass counts are published for Twin Falls. The Treasure Valley figure is used: the same Snake River Plain, and Twin Falls tree and weed counts match Boise's pattern. The NAB grass bands: Low under 5, Moderate 5 to 19, High 20 to 199, Very High 200 or more grains per cubic meter.
Fall weeds and sagebrush, High. Twin Falls NAB station, 536 counted days in 2004 to 2023: on the busiest quarter of days the weed count was 71 grains per cubic meter or more, which the NAB bands call High. On the busiest tenth of days it was 114 or more.
Wildfire smoke, Low. The average number of days a year the EPA's air quality index passed 100 ("unhealthy for sensitive groups" or worse), 2021-2025. Under 3 days is Low, 3 to 9 Moderate, 10 or more High. That grouping is ours, not the EPA's. Custer County has its own EPA air monitor, which reports only part of the year, so the count is a minimum. The count includes any cause, but across Idaho's monitors 86% of those days fell in July to September and 94% were fine particles (PM2.5), which is what wildfire smoke is made of (570 county-days, 2021-2025).
Not rated. Mold: no published mold spore counts for Idaho towns are in the data used, so there is no mold rating. House dust, pets and food allergies are outside this rating.
Sources
- National Allergy Bureau daily pollen counts, CDC release 2003 to 2024 (Boise, Twin Falls, Coeur d'Alene stations)
- NAB pollen level bands (grains per cubic meter)
- The Allergy Group, Boise: Southwest Idaho pollen seasons (clinic counts since 1971)
- EPA AirData: annual AQI by county
Today
Pollen data through 2003-2024, smoke data 2021-2025. Checked 2026-10-03.
Map of Mackay
Parks, new home communities, homes for sale and stays listed in town. Select a pin to open it.
- Mackay
- Park
Parks in Mackay
1 named park on OpenStreetMap.
- City of Mackay Tourist Park
Parks, trails and things to do
All of IdahoPlaces in and around Mackay, nearest first: everything tied to Mackay plus anything within 15 miles of town.
Things to do
Lakes
- Mackay Reservoirlake5.5 mi
- Merriam Lakelake16 mi
Historic sites
- Compressor Planthistoric site2.8 mi
- White Knob Historic Structurehistoric site3.4 mi
Attractions
- Custer County Fair Groundsattraction0.5 mi
- Earthquake Interpretive Siteattraction22 mi
Parks
- 0.5 mi
- White Knob Mountains Wilderness Study Areanature reserve · near Lost River13 mi
- Borah Peak Wilderness Study Areanature reserve16 mi
- Burnt Creek Wilderness Study Areanature reserve17 mi
- Hawley Mountain Wilderness Study Areanature reserve20 mi
Trails (nearest 12 of 24)
- Lower Cedar Creek Falls Trail1.5 mi long4.7 mi
- Bear Creek Lake Trail2.3 mi long8.1 mi
- Mount Breitenbach Trail4.5 mi long9.1 mi
- Shadow Lakes Trail0.4 mi long9.5 mi
- Long Lost Trail6.3 mi long9.8 mi
- Wet Creek Trail3.1 mi long9.8 mi
- Long Lost Creek to Wet Creek Trail1.3 mi long10 mi
- Mud Lake Canyon Trail1.1 mi long11 mi
- Long Lost Creek Trail2.4 mi long11 mi
- Big Creek Massacre Trail2.7 mi long12 mi
- Swauger Lake Spur Trail1.6 mi long12 mi
- Dry Creek Trail7.5 mi long13 mi
Distances are straight-line miles. From state and federal agency pages, the USGS place names list and OpenStreetMap contributors. Checked October 2, 2026. Check the official page for hours, fees and closures before you go.
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Moving checklist: setting up a home in Mackay
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