The Sandgate population reached the 1,000 mark in the early nineteenth century, but the numbers fell off again twenty years later. This pattern has continued in all censuses since, as the town's population is estimated by using the sixteen compass points. This means there isn't much direct travel between Sandgate and the surrounding towns. It shows one phone company, one electric company, and various areas of town.
The population of Sandgate is small, and many of the original hill farms are now summer homes and acreages. This means the population is higher during the summer, but the population is largely made up of summer residents, who have legal residence elsewhere. Since most of these residents do not live in Sandgate year-round, the census figures do not represent the population. Sandgate's population has fluctuated between one thousand and two hundred residents, but its relative decline has resulted in an increased real estate market. The town boasts great fishing and is a popular destination for outdoors enthusiasts.
The population of Sandgate was estimated at eleven hundred and seventeen in 1801. In 1801, the town had a gristmill and a chair factory. Other businesses included a peg factory and a clothespin factory. Two physicians lived in Sandgate, one in West Sandgate and the other in East Sandgate. The census showed that the town's population was up to eleven hundred and eighty-seven in 1810.