Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Florence gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $277K, 4.4 years of the Cañon City area’s $63K median household income. It grades C− overall, 133rd of 158 graded towns in Colorado. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 92% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. On health, just 21 of Colorado’s 218 towns do worse. Florence's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 90% of U.S. towns. Only 11 of Colorado’s 218 towns score higher on history.
Where Florence beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Where Florence’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Florence is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 3,728 in 1900, 3,822 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1905 and 2 maps from 1959 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Florence, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Florence.
Florence trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Colorado (mostly inland flooding).
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of Colorado towns; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
Among 159 Colorado towns, just 6 have a higher FEMA risk score than Florence. Since 1999, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Florence.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Fremont Re-2 school district. Its two schools are below. The largest public high school is Florence Jr./Sr. High School, with 572 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fremont Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 441 | B |
| Florence Jr./Sr. High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 572 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
Homes are within reach (about $277K for the typical one, B+ for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 28 miles. The median property tax bill is $1,179, against $2,602 across Colorado, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Florence’s median rent is $754 a month, below both Colorado’s towns ($1,812 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). The typical Florence home is worth about $277,000, down 2.3% in a year, 48% below the Colorado typical home.
| Florence | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $754 a month | $1,812 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 68% | 71% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Most working residents leave Florence for work: only 13% work in town. Florence’s median household income is $50,000, below both the Colorado town median ($95,000) and the median of U.S. towns ($80,000). Florence’s average trip to work is 28 minutes.
| Florence | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $50,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 13% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The violent crime rate in Florence is 4.6 per 1,000 residents. Within Colorado, it does better than 56% of towns. The property crime rate in Florence is 17 per 1,000 residents.
| Florence | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.6 per 1,000 residents | 2.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 17 per 1,000 residents | 15.2 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Florence has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 91°, January nights drop to 19° and about 38 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 5,876 U.S. towns with household incomes like Florence’s, it is healthier than 82%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Florence beats the Colorado average on 2 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 14. 17% of Florence adults report frequent physical distress. Among 159 Colorado towns, just 9 have a higher share of adults who smoke cigarettes than Florence.
| Florence | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 12% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 15% | 19% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 18% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 11% | 14% |
| What stands out | Florence | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 15.3% | 19% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 76.1% | 69.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.1% | 5.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Florence; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Florence residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Colorado.
4 places in Florence on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Florence.
Statutory city in Fremont County, Colorado, United States
Florence is a statutory city located in Fremont County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 3,822 at the 2020 United States census. Florence is a part of the Cañon City, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor. The city lies along the Arkansas River in eastern Fremont County. It is near Federal Correctional Complex, Florence, a major U.S. federal prison complex that includes a supermax prison, ADX Florence.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Florence grades C− overall, better than 24% of U.S. towns and #133 of 158 in Colorado. It grades C+ for health, C for safety and C+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within Colorado, it does better than 56% of towns.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
7 notable people were born here, including Donald Howard Menzel and Ernest Pagano.
