Village · Windham County, Vermont

Bellows Falls, Vermont

Bellows Falls is a village in Windham County, Vermont, part of the Brattleboro, VT metro area. It has 2,891 residents. Bellows Falls, Vermont has a quality-of-life score of 75 out of 100 (high), ranking #3,850 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Vermont it ranks #32 of 51 cities and towns. It ranks best on students per teacher (low), median Air Quality Index (low) and grocery stores (high). It ranks worst on child care cost burden (high), depression (high) and effective property tax rate (high).

75High

Quality-of-life score: #3,850 of 15,651 cities and towns
Vermont: #32 of 51 in VT
Population: 2,891 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 2,127.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 5004225

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety59#6,441/15,637
Economy12#13,752/15,631
Housing35#9,725/14,977
Health46#8,361/15,609
Healthcare88#1,945/15,650
Environment95#780/15,453
Education93#1,119/15,649
Infrastructure65#5,483/15,650
Community63#5,867/15,651
Leisure & amenities100#59/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Bellows Falls, Vermont ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Windham County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Students per teacher · low9.3×
99/100Vermont 11.4×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsWindham County value
Median Air Quality Index · low12
99/1002024U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWindham County value
Grocery stores · high4.4 /10k
99/100Vermont 3.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWindham County value
Public EV charging ports · high27.6 /10k
98/100Vermont 20.8 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyWindham County value
Mental health providers · high864 /100k
98/100Vermont 599 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWindham County value
Restaurants and bars · high18.1 /10k
98/100Vermont 11.1 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWindham County value

Weaknesses

Child care cost burden · high53.3%
0/100Vermont 50.1%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWindham County value
Depression · high30.2%
3/100Vermont 27.8%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Effective property tax rate · high2.18%
5/100Vermont 1.51%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Unemployment rate · high11.7%
6/100Vermont 2.7%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Comfortable days · low22.8%
7/100Vermont 21.6%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationWindham County value
Injury deaths · high129 /100k
10/100Vermont 105 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWindham County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Child poverty rateWorsening
29.9% (2015-2019) → 50.5% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
69.6% (2015-2019) → 89.1% (2020-2024)
+20 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
62.0% (2015-2019) → 43.9% (2020-2024)
−18 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
80.0% (2015-2019) → 97.7% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$33,286 (2015-2019) → $56,086 (2020-2024)
+68%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateWorsening
3.3% (2015-2019) → 11.7% (2020-2024)
+8.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Bellows Falls, Vermont improved on 3 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved3

High school++18 points80.0% → 97.7%
Household income+68%$33,286 → $56,086
Broadband+20 points69.6% → 89.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Bellows Falls, Vermont between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.5 min2015-2019	20.1 min2020-2024	+2.6 min	Within the margin of error	22%
Bachelor's degree or higher	21.5%2015-2019	27.5%2020-2024	+6 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Broadband subscriptions	69.6%2015-2019	89.1%2020-2024	+20 points	Improved	89%
Child poverty rate	29.9%2015-2019	50.5%2020-2024	+21 points	Within the margin of error	4%
Effective property tax rate	2.90%2015-2019	2.18%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Within the margin of error	97%
High school diploma or higher	80.0%2015-2019	97.7%2020-2024	+18 points	Improved	99%
Home price to income ratio	3.9×2015-2019	3.5×2020-2024	−0.5×	Within the margin of error	93%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4472015-2019	0.4312020-2024	−0.016	Within the margin of error	65%
Median household income	$33,2862015-2019	$56,0862020-2024	+68%	Improved	94%
Poverty rate	23.1%2015-2019	25.1%2020-2024	+2 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Rent as share of income	33.9%2015-2019	28.0%2020-2024	−5.9 points	Within the margin of error	85%
Rent-burdened households	62.0%2015-2019	43.9%2020-2024	−18 points	Within the margin of error	92%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Bellows Falls, Vermont five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Bellows Falls, Vermont in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Bellows Falls, Vermont itself moved +24.3 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

2,891 residents (±232)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

1,290 households (±150)

Bellows Falls, Vermont
Vermont share

Under $25k31%†398
$25k–50k11%†143
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

1,290 households (±150)

Bellows Falls, Vermont
Vermont share

Own51%654
Rent49%636

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

1,322 workers (±259)

Bellows Falls, Vermont
Vermont share

Drive alone75%992
Carpool7.0%†92
Public transit0.9%†

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Brattleboro, VT

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Windham County, the county holding most of Bellows Falls's residents.

Windham County has 1,657 employer establishments, 361 for every 10,000 residents (1.45× the US rate of 248; 1.12× Vermont's), with 19,316 paid employees at an average annual pay of $46,730. The Census Bureau also counts 5,404 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,657; 5,404 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 361; US 248 · Vermont 322
Paid employees: 19,316
Average annual pay: $46,730; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Windham County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	138	30.1	1.94×More than typical	626	$75,919	528
Restaurants and other eating places	123	26.8	1.46×More than typical	1,329	$26,308	18
Ambulatory health care services	89	19.4	0.93×About typical	714	$51,944	372
Construction of buildings	81	17.6	2.33×More than typical	306	$59,503	231
Lessors of real estate	78	17	1.38×More than typical	299	$41,572	574
Services to buildings and dwellings	70	15.2	2.26×More than typical	193	$46,347	412
Full-service restaurants	63	13.7	1.79×More than typical	727	$27,770	7
Building equipment contractors	55	12	1.99×More than typical	255	$62,373	75
Schools, colleges and instruction	51	11.1	3.17×More than typical	1,564	$42,698	241
Traveler accommodation	48	10.5	5.79×More than typical	1,859	$20,116	39
Landscaping services	46	10	2.86×More than typical	121	$57,091	172
Limited-service restaurants	44	9.6	1.19×About typical	489	$24,748	9

Rank places for an industry Open Windham County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 45,923 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $6,872 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Bellows Falls, Vermont: $2.38 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $6,872; −65% vs FY2025
Per resident: $2.38; US $1,994
Sole-source: 3.4%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

HOLT GILMOUR SURVEY ASSOCIATES LLC$4,36764%
LIVE WIRE LLC$2,27033%
COTA & COTA, INC.$2353.4%

Spending by fiscal year

2.1KFY2017
3.2KFY2018
17.7FY2019
29.7KFY2020
31.9KFY2021
7.8KFY2022
6.8KFY2023
6.1KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$4,36764%
Audio and video equipment manufacturing · 3343$2,10531%
Retail trade (NAICS 4572) · 4572$2353.4%
Apparel accessories and other apparel manufacturing · 3159$1652.4%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Bellows Falls, Vermont, so they do not add up across cities.

Bellows Falls, Vermont's figures are part of those of Windham County, VT ($1.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.4% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Bellows Falls is mostly in Windham County.

See federal money in Windham County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Bellows Falls, Vermont is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Becca BalintD-VT · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 1.2%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Windham County84100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Brattleboro, VT84

Other cities and towns in Windham County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/5004225

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends