Side-by-side metrics and state or size-class ranks use the same Census and FBI fields shown on this profile. Results stay in the URL so you can bookmark or share them.
Place dossier plate
SheetVT-BURLINGTON-VT · Burlington, VT 44,649 pop · income 48th pct · 41 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Burlington
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Burlington on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Alexandria · lowest
47,357
Alexandria · lowest
47,357 median HH income
48.7% of the leader · rank #1
Burlington · this city
68,854
Burlington · this city
68,854 median HH income
70.8% of the leader · rank #2
Cactus Forest · near
68,854
Cactus Forest · near
68,854 median HH income
70.8% of the leader · rank #3
Lake Alfred · near
68,854
Lake Alfred · near
68,854 median HH income
70.8% of the leader · rank #4
Marshalltown · near
68,854
Marshalltown · near
68,854 median HH income
70.8% of the leader · rank #5
Rossburg · near
68,854
Rossburg · near
68,854 median HH income
70.8% of the leader · rank #6
South Burling… · highest
97,229
South Burling… · highest
97,229 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Burlington on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 44,649.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Burlington - the verdict
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Burlington lands in the 48th percentile for household income and the 4th percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
48th
percentile, household income
77th
percentile, home value
73rd
percentile, median rent
4th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Burlington, VT
Burlington is a small city in Vermont, home to 44,649 residents per U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Households in Burlington report a median income of $68,854 per year, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 7.6%. Home values in Burlington run a median of $400,200, and the median resident age is 26.7 years. Educational attainment runs 60.5% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 61.1% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 228 residential building permits were authorized in Burlington (Rapid Growth), up 45% from five years earlier, per Census BPS data. Burlington's reported crime rate runs above the national norm: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 4768.8 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, above the national average (agency reporting is voluntary, so this measures reporting activity, not a definitive danger score). NOAA puts Burlington's yearly average temperature at 47.6°F with 37.5 inches of precipitation per year and 87.5 inches of snowfall.
Vermont tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts Vermont at 98.0 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Near Average). Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,487 monthly. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Vermont's average monthly utility costs around $251 (state average). Commute times here average 16.0 minutes, with 47.3% driving alone and 16.7% working from home, per Census ACS commuting data. Natural-hazard exposure scores 36.4 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Very Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Burlington's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from schools and households to population change to reported crime to climate and hazard context to housing and income to work and mobility to comparison shortlist to within-city variation; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Burlington, city-specific coverage includes within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count, FBI reported-crime rates, commute-mode shares, annual population history, local building permits.
All six city-specific enrichment layers used by this profile are present.
1. Schools and households
What does the education layer cover for Burlington?
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
The NCES join finds 9 public schools within the city match. 60.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
Is Burlington growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -734 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -1.6% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 228 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
Which cities make useful reference points for Burlington?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Within Vermont, the closest population matches are South Burlington (20,488 residents, $97,229 income); Rutland (15,747 residents, $55,000 income); Essex Junction (10,720 residents, $94,423 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are North Lauderdale, FL (44,650 residents); Cleveland Heights, OH (44,694 residents); Fairfield, OH (44,597 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
What can 41 Census tracts reveal inside Burlington?
PlainCities matches 41 Census tracts to this city.
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Reported crime
What can the FBI record say about safety in Burlington?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 4768.8 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, above the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 109% higher in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
Total reported rate
4768.8
Violent rate
479.1
Property rate
4289.6
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
What physical conditions frame life in Burlington?
The two sources should not be blended into one comfort or safety score. Use the climate values for baseline conditions and the risk index as a prompt to inspect specific hazards, insurance, and local emergency guidance for a particular address.
NOAA normals put the annual mean temperature at 47.6°F, with 37.5 inches of precipitation and 87.5 inches of annual snowfall. FEMA's state-averaged National Risk Index score for Vermont is 36.4 out of 100. Climate normals describe long-run weather; the FEMA score on PlainCities is a state average of county NRI inputs and combines hazards, exposure, vulnerability, and resilience.
FEMA risk index (state avg)
36.4
Annual precipitation
37.5 in
Mean temperature
47.6°F
NOAA Climate Normals and FEMA National Risk Index (state-averaged on PlainCities). Hazard context is not address-level.
How far does income reach against housing in Burlington?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median. That flags a question for comparison, not a verdict: tenure, household composition, financing costs, and the age of the ACS estimate can all change what a resident actually pays.
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 5.8 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 7.6%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Value / income
5.8×
Home value
$400,200
Household income
$68,854
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
What does the journey to work look like in Burlington?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 47.3%. The reported mean trip to work is 16.0 minutes.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.
Drive alone
47.3%
Work from home
16.7%
Public transit
5.3%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 24,014 workers age 16+.
Below median income · poverty 7.6% (Above-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
98.0 (US=100)
Above-average cost · BEA RPP 2024, Vermont average
D
City profile score · Burlington, VT
49/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Bachelor's+ share A+
60.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Poverty rate D
7.6%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income D
$68,854
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Cost of living D
98.0 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Violent crime F
479 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Burlington profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Bachelor's+ share: 92/100 (A+) · 60.5%
Poverty rate: 49/100 (D) · 7.6%
Household income: 48/100 (D) · $68,854
Cost of living: 48/100 (D) · 98.0 index
Violent crime: 17/100 (F) · 479 /100k
Where Burlington sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Burlington's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Burlington highlighted among 11 peers.Read the chart values
Burlington, VT (this city): home $400,200, crime 4,769/100k
Cleveland Heights, OH : home $176,700, crime 1,551/100k
Fairfield, OH : home $218,100, crime 1,659/100k
Moorhead, MN : home $246,300, crime 2,041/100k
Alexandria, LA : home $182,800, crime 9,310/100k
Bremerton, WA : home $409,500, crime 3,249/100k
South Burlington, VT : home $399,600, crime 4,620/100k
Rutland, VT : home $176,400, crime 4,269/100k
Bennington, VT : home $185,100, crime 2,855/100k
Barre, VT : home $200,100, crime 3,577/100k
Winooski, VT : home $350,700, crime 2,944/100k
How does Burlington compare to other US cities?
Where Burlington sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income48% higher than other cities
Home value77% pricier than other cities
Median rent73% pricier than other cities
Safety4% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to Vermont alone, Burlington ranks #29 of 30 Vermont cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Burlington against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Vermont only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Vermont-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Burlington near the bottom of Vermont's cities
Among the 161 Vermont cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Burlington ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Burlington only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#68 of 149
54th percentile in Vermont
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 161
0th percentile in Vermont
Median Home Value
#11 of 152
93rd percentile in Vermont
Poverty Rate
#57 of 161
65th percentile in Vermont
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#19 of 161
88th percentile in Vermont
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Vermont only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
48th percentile nationally for median household income · 4th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Burlington's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Burlington's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Burlington's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$400,20023rd percentilemore affordable than 23% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Burlington's home-value-to-income ratio: 5.8×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
pressured
> 5.0×
National rank
#13,927 of 15,516
More affordable than 10% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#2,922 of 3,317
Small cities (10,000–49,999)
At 5.8×, Burlington sits in the pressured band:
national rank #13,927 of 15,516 and #2,922 of 3,317small cities (10,000–49,999).
Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median, a comparison flag, not a verdict on any household.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$68,854Burlington, VT median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Burlington, VT median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Burlington, VT.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)60.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)7.6%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)61.1%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
44,649
Median Income
$68,854
Median Home Value
$400,200
Median Age
26.7
Poverty Rate
7.6%
Labor force participation
61.1%
Bachelor's Degree+
60.5%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
4768.8
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
479.1
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
4289.6
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Climate
Avg Temperature
47.6°F
Annual Precipitation
37.5"
Annual Snowfall
87.5"
Schools
Total Schools
9
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Burlington's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
44,753 residents
2021
44,722 residents
2022
44,676 residents
2023
44,517 residents
2024
44,135 residents
2025
44,019 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Rapid Growth
Total Permits (2024)
228
housing units authorized
Single-Family
6
detached homes
Multifamily
222
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
5.1
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
157
7
150
$28.4M
2020
107
7
100
$17.0M
2021
133
8
125
$20.6M
2022
149
3
146
$6.0M
2023
21
14
7
$3.6M
2024
228
6
222
$30.6M
Permit volume increased 45% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
16.0 minutes
Drive Alone
47.3%
Carpool
8.5%
Public Transit
5.3%
Walk
16.2%
Work from Home
16.7%
Other
6.0%
Based on 24,014 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Vermont statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $251
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Vermont at $251 (electricity about $105 , water and sewer about $48 ).
These are Vermont statewide averages, not a meter reading for Burlington. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Vermont's BEA cost-of-living index is 98.0 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Burlington is $1,487/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Vermont statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 36.4 / 100 (Very Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Vermont statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Burlington sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Burlington compares to similar-size Vermont cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.