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Place dossier plate
SheetVT-BELLOWS-FALLS-VT · Bellows Falls, VT 2,851 pop · income 27th pct
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 Bellows Falls
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Bellows Falls on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
West Brattleb… · lowest
39,555
West Brattleb… · lowest
39,555 median HH income
22.7% of the leader · rank #1
El Dorado · near
54,828
El Dorado · near
54,828 median HH income
31.5% of the leader · rank #2
Tice · near
54,833
Tice · near
54,833 median HH income
31.5% of the leader · rank #3
Bellows Falls · this city
54,836
Bellows Falls · this city
54,836 median HH income
31.5% of the leader · rank #4
Lakemore · near
54,836
Lakemore · near
54,836 median HH income
31.5% of the leader · rank #5
Conway · near
54,841
Conway · near
54,841 median HH income
31.5% of the leader · rank #6
Weatogue · highest
174,286
Weatogue · highest
174,286 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 Bellows Falls 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: 2,851.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Bellows Falls - the verdict
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Bellows Falls lands in the 27th percentile for household income and the 68th percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
27th
percentile, household income
35th
percentile, home value
73rd
percentile, median rent
68th
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: Bellows Falls, VT
2,851 people live in Bellows Falls, Vermont - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Households in Bellows Falls report a median income of $54,836 per year, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 9.9%. Home values in Bellows Falls run a median of $176,000, and the median resident age is 41.8 years. Educational attainment runs 29.3% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 70.1% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Bellows Falls reports a comparatively low crime rate: per-100,000 total crime stands at 905.1 in FBI UCR data, below the national average (a voluntary reporting program, read this as reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Vermont tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Vermont scores 98.0 (Near Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,487 per month. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Vermont run around $251, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 36.4 out of 100 (Very Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Bellows Falls'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 comparison shortlist to reported crime to schools and households to work and mobility to population change to housing and income; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Bellows Falls, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, matched public-school count, commute-mode shares, FBI reported-crime rates.
No matched row is reported here for local building permits, within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
Question 1
Which cities make useful reference points for Bellows Falls?
Within Vermont, the closest population matches are White River Junction (2,878 residents, $73,546 income); Swanton (2,732 residents, $71,307 income); West Brattleboro (2,614 residents, $39,555 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Weatogue, CT (2,851 residents); Savanna, IL (2,851 residents); Bedford, PA (2,851 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.
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.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Bellows Falls?
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.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 905.1 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 60% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
What does the education layer cover for Bellows Falls?
The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 29.3% 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.
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.
What does the journey to work look like in Bellows Falls?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 76.5%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
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.
Population change
Is Bellows Falls growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
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.
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -88 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -3.1% change. No comparable local building-permit series is available here, so population change should not be read as a housing-supply measure. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Period change
-3.1%
2025 estimate
2,706
2020 estimate
2,794
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
How far does income reach against housing in Bellows Falls?
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.2 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 9.9%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
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. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
Household income
$54,836
Home value
$176,000
Value / income
3.2×
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
Below median income · poverty 9.9% (Above-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
98.0 (US=100)
Above-average cost · BEA RPP 2024, Vermont average
F
City profile score · Bellows Falls, VT
39/100
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 C
29.3%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; 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.
Poverty rate D
9.9%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime F
326 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Household income F
$54,836
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bellows Falls profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Bachelor's+ share: 57/100 (C) · 29.3%
Cost of living: 48/100 (D) · 98.0 index
Poverty rate: 40/100 (D) · 9.9%
Violent crime: 29/100 (F) · 326 /100k
Household income: 27/100 (F) · $54,836
Where Bellows Falls sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Bellows Falls'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 - Bellows Falls highlighted among 26 peers.Read the chart values
Bellows Falls, VT (this city): home $176,000, crime 905/100k
Bedford, PA : home $182,300, crime 532/100k
Newton, IL : home $98,900, crime 1,572/100k
Swanton, VT : home $210,000, crime 683/100k
Vergennes, VT : home $263,500, crime 817/100k
Fair Haven, VT : home $163,000, crime 1,218/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Bellows Falls compare to other US cities?
Here's how Bellows Falls stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income27% higher than other cities
Home value35% pricier than other cities
Median rent73% pricier than other cities
Safety68% 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, Bellows Falls ranks #12 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 Bellows Falls 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 Bellows Falls near the bottom of Vermont's cities
Among the 161 Vermont cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Bellows Falls ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Bellows Falls only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#108 of 149
28th percentile in Vermont
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 161
0th percentile in Vermont
Median Home Value
#116 of 152
24th percentile in Vermont
Poverty Rate
#39 of 161
76th percentile in Vermont
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#100 of 161
38th 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
27th percentile nationally for median household income · 68th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Bellows Falls's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Bellows Falls'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 Bellows Falls's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$176,000Among the most affordablemore affordable than 65% 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
Bellows Falls's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.2×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#7,743 of 15,516
More affordable than 50% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#6,389 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 3.2×, Bellows Falls sits in the moderate band:
national rank #7,743 of 15,516 and #6,389 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
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
$54,836Bellows Falls, VT median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Bellows Falls, 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 Bellows Falls, VT.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)29.3%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)9.9%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)70.1%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
2,851
Median Income
$54,836
Median Home Value
$176,000
Median Age
41.8
Poverty Rate
9.9%
Labor force participation
70.1%
Bachelor's Degree+
29.3%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
905.1
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
325.9
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
579.3
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.
Schools
Total Schools
3
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Bellows Falls's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
2,794 residents
2021
2,804 residents
2022
2,779 residents
2023
2,771 residents
2024
2,735 residents
2025
2,706 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
76.5%
Carpool
12.2%
Public Transit
0.6%
Walk
6.3%
Work from Home
3.2%
Other
1.2%
Based on 1,618 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 Bellows Falls. 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 Bellows Falls 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 Bellows Falls sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Bellows Falls 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, NCES CCD, 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.