Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Bethel grades A− overall, 31st of 151 graded towns in Connecticut. Residents are healthier than 91% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. It reports less crime per resident than 91% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $117K. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $435K, 3.8 years of the Bridgeport metro’s $115K median household income. Bethel’s trail density is 1.6 miles per square mile, where Connecticut’s towns sit at 1.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Bethel has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Seth Seelye House and Greenwood Avenue Historic District. Among 90 Connecticut towns, just 2 have a lower violent crime rate than Bethel.
Where Bethel beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,711 in 1860, 20,358 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1879 and 5 maps from 1892 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Connecticut), ordered by how far Bethel is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bethel. Close and well known come first.
Big draw30 mi MuseumUnited States Military Academy
33 mi LandmarkFerncliff Cemetery
10 mi LakeCandlewood Lake
23 mi Stadium & arenaYale Bowl
37 mi National Historic SiteHome of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site102K visitors a year
17 mi MuseumGlass HouseUnited States Military Academy: USMA Public Affairs Office, Public domain · Ferncliff Cemetery: Anthony22 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Candlewood Lake: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Yale Bowl: Kenneth Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site: Crunch, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Glass House: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bethel, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Bethel.
Bethel has more 90° days than almost anywhere else in Connecticut, has seen reported crime fall beyond ordinary swings and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Connecticut.
Within Connecticut it is healthier than 60% of the 154 graded towns: Connecticut sets a high bar.
25% of Bethel adults have obesity, against 30% in Connecticut’s towns and 35% across U.S. towns. 19% of Bethel adults have been diagnosed with depression. Bethel beats the Connecticut average on 10 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0.
| Bethel | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 30% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 22% | 23% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 33% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 9.4% | 12% |
| What stands out | Bethel | CT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.1% | 8.4% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.3% | 9.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Bethel School District. Two of its 6 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Bethel High School, with 1,097 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 758 | B |
| Bethel High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,097 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CT on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 102 to 86 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025, 0 per 1,000 residents.
Bethel’s property crime rate is 3.9 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
27 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. Collis P. Huntington State Park, at 417 acres with 9.4 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Collis P. Huntington State Park | 9.4 mi | 417 |
| 2. Stephenson Preserve | 1.8 mi | 129 |
| 3. Overlook Park | 1 mi | 20 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Danbury weather station records that about 20 days a year reach 90°, the highest of 364 Connecticut places with climate records.
Bethel has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 19° and about 49 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave Bethel for work: only 13% work in town. The average trip to work in Bethel is 33 minutes. The top destinations are Danbury (20%), Stamford (5%) and Ridgefield (5%).
| Bethel | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $117,000 | $109,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 18% | 15% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.1% | 5.8% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 63% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 49 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bethel.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Connecticut average. 46% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Bethel. Bethel has grown 6.4% since 2020, to 21,682 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Bethel | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 46% | 45% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 20% | 18% |
| Median age | 42.8 years | 44.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 21% | 19% | 22% |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.1 points. Across Connecticut, 50.9% of residents are women.
| Bethel | CT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.6% | 10.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.3% | 9.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.6% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.6% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.2% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.8% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 17.6% | 14.2% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10% | 10.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.4% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.9% | 8.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 21.4% | 25.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.7% | 16.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.4% | 7.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 24% | 23.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 21.7% | 19.2% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
2 within 15 miles of the center of Bethel
About 6 of every 100 Bethel residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Connecticut.
3 places in Bethel on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Bethel.
Town in Connecticut, United States
Bethel () is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the town was 20,358. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. The town includes the Bethel Census-Designated Place.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Bethel.
| Town | CT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel | #31 | A− | C− | A | B− | A |
| Danbury | #135 | C− | D− | B− | D | B+ |
| Redding | #4 | A+ | D | A+ | A+ | A+ |
| Brookfield | #45 | A− | C | A− | B | A+ |
| Newtown | #61 | B+ | D | — | A− | A+ |
Newtown reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Bethel with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Bethel grades A− overall, better than 82% of U.S. towns and #31 of 151 in Connecticut. It grades A for health, A for safety and B− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. The typical home is worth about $435,000, 3% below the Connecticut typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
10 notable people were born here, including P. T. Barnum and Orris S. Ferry.
