Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Overall, Glenwood Springs earns a C−: better than 24% of U.S. towns, and 135th of 158 in Colorado. Its lowest grade is for safety (D): its crime rate is higher than 92% of U.S. towns, with 38 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Where it does best is walkability (A+): it is more walkable than 95% of U.S. towns. It is strong on health as well: residents are healthier than 86% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. At about $853K, a typical home costs 8.9 years of the Rifle area’s $96K median household income. Hazard risk is weaker too: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 86% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. The town is home to Colorado Mountain College. This Colorado town has 8 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Hotel Colorado and Starr Manor.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · FBI crime data, 2025 · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index · National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Glenwood Springs is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 95% of comparable towns) to D for safety (better than 8%), so the C− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Where Glenwood Springs beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| Widest gap | Glenwood Springs | CO |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 14.5% | 11.1% |
Census counts: 920 in 1890, 9,963 in 2020. The archive holds 16 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 2 maps from 1961 on.
8 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 places in Glenwood Springs on the National Register of Historic Places.
Ordered by what stands out in Glenwood Springs.
Glenwood Springs draws workers from Rifle and beyond and fares better on crime within Colorado than nationally, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Colorado (mostly inland flooding).
The trail network density for Glenwood Springs comes to 3.4 miles per square mile, where Colorado’s towns sit at 1.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4. There are 20 miles of trail across 5 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves locally: 5, covering 34 acres.
| Glenwood Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 3.4 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.2% | 7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Two Rivers Park | 0.1 mi | 15 |
| 2. Veltus Park | — | 7 |
| 3. Sayre Park | 0.1 mi | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Below: Two of its 8 schools, each with why it was picked. Its public schools are run by the Roaring Fork School District No. Re-1. The largest public high school is Glenwood Springs High School, with 1,032 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glenwood Springs Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 452 | D |
| Glenwood Springs High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,032 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
At 8.9 years of the Rifle area’s $96K median household income, the typical home (about $853K) costs more against local pay than in 88% of Colorado towns; that ratio is one input to that grade. Values rose 2.9% in the past year while the Colorado typical home fell 1.3%.
In the year to September 2026, typical home values climbed 2.9%. 55% of households are owner-occupiers in Glenwood Springs. The rent at the middle of the market for Glenwood Springs comes to $1,867 a month, near the Colorado town median ($1,807 a month) and above the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). A home in Glenwood Springs typically sold within 30 days of listing.
| Glenwood Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 71% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,867 a month | $1,807 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
9,046 jobs are based in Glenwood Springs, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
The top destinations are Aspen (8%), Carbondale (5%) and Denver (5%). About one worker in three stays in Glenwood Springs for work. Glenwood Springs’ mean commuting time is 28 minutes. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs here rose by 1,241, to 9,046.
| Glenwood Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 35% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Work from home | 8.4% | 18% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $91,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 53.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 78% of Colorado’s graded towns.
In Glenwood Springs, the property offense rate is 34.6 per 1,000 residents. Glenwood Springs’ level of violent crime comes in at 3.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Glenwood Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 34.6 per 1,000 residents | 15.2 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.7 per 1,000 residents | 2.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Within Colorado it is less healthy than 57% of the 159 graded towns: Colorado sets a high bar.
Two figures for adults in the town: 70% had a checkup this year, 24% have obesity. In Glenwood Springs, 13% of adults report frequent physical distress.
| Glenwood Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 30% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 70% | 71% | 79% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 26% | 35% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 10% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Glenwood Springs | CO |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 14.5% | 11.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of Colorado towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
FEMA puts 51% of Glenwood Springs’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 46% to avalanches. Since 1981, Glenwood Springs has seen 4 flood insurance claims paid out.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The range runs from 14° on a January night to 87° on a July afternoon, with about 39 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Population is up 4.4% in Glenwood Springs since 2020, to 10,395 by the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. No age group stands out against Colorado: all are within 4 points. The share of residents in Glenwood Springs who are 65 or older: 13%. Colorado has 46% of adults 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or more; here it is 36%.
| Glenwood Springs | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 13% | 15% | 18% |
| Median age | 36.3 years | 38.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 36% | 45% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 23% | 22% | 22% |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.1 points. Across Colorado, 49.3% of residents are women.
| Glenwood Springs | CO | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.2% | 10.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.6% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.1% | 15.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 18.2% | 14.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.6% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11% | 11.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9% | 9.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4.3% | 5.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.5% | 7.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.5% | 19.7% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.2% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.5% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.1% | 28.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 17.2% | 17.6% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Glenwood Springs. Close and well known come first.
38 mi MountainMaroon Bells
7 mi Canyon & gorgeGlenwood Canyon
38 mi Ski areaAspen Mountain138 runs · 3,299 ft vertical32 mi Ski areaAspen Snowmass107 runs · 4,403 ft vertical
24 mi National forestWhite River National ForestMaroon Bells: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Glenwood Canyon: White River National Forest U.S. Forest Service, Public domain · Aspen Mountain: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · White River National Forest: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Glenwood Springs, 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.
1 within 15 miles of the center of Glenwood Springs
About 6 of every 100 Glenwood Springs residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Colorado.
7 notable people were born in Glenwood Springs.
City in Colorado, United States
Glenwood Springs is a home rule municipality and the county seat of Garfield County, Colorado, United States. According to the 2020 United States census, the city has a population of 9,963. It is located at the confluence of the Roaring Fork River and the Colorado River, connecting the Roaring Fork Valley and a series of smaller towns on the Colorado River. Glenwood Springs is known for its hot springs.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Glenwood Springs grades C− overall, better than 24% of U.S. towns and #135 of 158 in Colorado. It grades A for health, D for safety and B− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
7 notable people were born here, including Sarah Schleper and Alice McKennis.
Ask a question, answer one, post a photo or an event. Free, and the parts only a neighbor would know are the parts worth reading.
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