Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
3.1 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Connecticut town.
Kent's standout: it has 66 miles of trail and 45% conserved land. Overall it grades A, 23rd among Connecticut's 151 graded towns. Residents are healthier than 87% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and it is more walkable than 84% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 79% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 94% of U.S. towns, with 4 places on the National Register. 45% of the land in Kent is conserved, against 14% in Connecticut’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. On cost of living, just 5 of Connecticut’s 175 towns do better. Kent's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Where Kent beats most towns.
Bull's Bridge
Census counts: 1,956 in 1820, a low of 1,054 in 1930, 3,019 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 4 maps from 1892 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Connecticut), ordered by how far Kent is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Kent, 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 Kent.
Kent keeps more of its land conserved than most of Connecticut and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Connecticut; it also has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Connecticut.
Its 14,308 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 99% of Connecticut towns.
66 miles of trail in 18 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Appalachian Trail Scenic Open Space, 2,736 acres with 14.2 miles of trail. Kent’s trail density is 1.3 miles per square mile, where Connecticut’s towns sit at 1.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Appalachian Trail Scenic Open Space | 14.2 mi | 2,736 |
| 2. Macedonia Brook State Park | 11.9 mi | 1,748 |
| 3. Pond Mountain Natural Area | 5.9 mi | 706 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Kent School District. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kent Center SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 180 | A |
| Kent School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 516 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CT on state tests and graduation
Within Connecticut it is less healthy than 56% of the 154 graded towns: Connecticut sets a high bar. Its widest gap with Connecticut is food insecurity: 8.6% of its 1,433 adults worry about having enough food, against 14.9% statewide.
28% of adults feel lonely in Kent. Kent beats the Connecticut average on 9 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 27% of adults have obesity in Kent.
| Kent | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 31% | 33% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 30% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 81% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 34% | 36% |
| What stands out | Kent | CT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.6% | 14.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 7.3% | 12.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.7% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 6.6 years of the Torrington area’s $94K median household income, the typical home (about $616K) costs more against local pay than in 85% of Connecticut towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living.
The median rent in Kent is $688 a month. The typical Kent home is worth about $616,000, up 1.3% in a year, 38% above the Connecticut typical home.
| Kent | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $688 a month | $1,451 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 71% | 81% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Among 154 Connecticut towns, just 5 have a higher FEMA risk score than Kent. Since 1979, 18 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Kent.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Kent has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Kent’s July high is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 1,163 working residents takes 20.4 minutes, against 26.5 across Connecticut.
34% of Kent working residents work locally. Since 2013, Kent has added 57 jobs, to 1,182 in 2023. Only 4 of the 155 Connecticut towns we compare have a lower average trip to work than Kent.
| Kent | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 34% | 11% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $96,000 | $109,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 9% | 5.8% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Kent. Close and well known come first.
Big draw35 mi MuseumUnited States Military Academy
23 mi National Historic SiteHome of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site102K visitors a year
16 mi LakeCandlewood Lake
28 mi Theme parkLake Compounce
39 mi Stadium & arenaYale Bowl
25 mi National Historic SiteVanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site295K visitors a yearUnited States Military Academy: USMA Public Affairs Office, Public domain · Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site: Crunch, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Candlewood Lake: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Lake Compounce: Wildcat1 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Yale Bowl: Kenneth Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site: Daderot, Public domain
None within 15 miles of Kent; the nearest are
About 7 of every 100 Kent residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Connecticut.
45.3% of the town is conserved land, across 18 parks and preserves.
4 places in Kent on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Kent.
Town in Connecticut, United States
Kent is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. Located alongside the border with New York, the town's population was 3,019 according to the 2020 census. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. Kent is home to three boarding schools: Kent School, the Marvelwood School, and South Kent School. The Schaghticoke Indian Reservation is also located within town borders. The town was also home to former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. The town is also the birthplace of Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
9 towns share a border with Kent.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Washington (B+) comes closest.
| Town | CT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kent | #23 | A | B | — | B+ | A |
| Warren | — | — | C− | — | — | A− |
| New Milford | #89 | B | C | A− | C+ | A |
| Sherman | #68 | B+ | C− | — | B+ | A+ |
| Cornwall Bridge | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| New Preston | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Washington | #58 | B+ | C− | — | A | A |
| Cornwall | — | — | C | — | B | A− |
Warren and Cornwall have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Kent, Warren, Sherman, Washington and Cornwall report no FBI crime data of their own. Cornwall Bridge and New Preston aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Kent with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Kent grades A overall, better than 86% of U.S. towns and #23 of 151 in Connecticut. It grades A for health and B+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
4 notable people were born here, including Seth MacFarlane and Rachael MacFarlane.
