Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
New Britain grades D− overall, 149th of 151 graded towns in Connecticut, mostly because of schools and health. Its schools rank behind 97% of the state's. Residents are less healthy than 83% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. One bright spot: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 92% of U.S. towns. On incomes, just 9 of Connecticut’s 175 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Commercial Trust Company Building and City Hall-Monument District. On safety, just 5 of Connecticut’s 92 towns do worse.
Where New Britain beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
City Hall-Monument District
Anna Eshoo| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| DiLoreto Elementary & Middle School | K–8 | 819 |
| Smalley Elementary School | K–5 | 594 |
| Lincoln Elementary School | K–5 | 552 |
Census counts: 11,800 in 1880, 74,135 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1875 and 6 maps from 1892 on.
21 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Connecticut), ordered by how far New Britain is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 92% of comparable towns) to D− for schools (better than 3%), so the D− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around New Britain. Close and well known come first.
8 mi Theme parkLake Compounce
9 mi Stadium & arenaPeoplesBank Arena
32 mi National Historic SiteSpringfield Armory National Historic Site14K visitors a year
10 mi Stadium & arenaPratt & Whitney Stadium
27 mi Stadium & arenaYale Bowl
27 mi Theme parkSix Flags New EnglandLake Compounce: Wildcat1 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · PeoplesBank Arena: PeoplesBank Arena, CC BY 2.5 · Springfield Armory National Historic Site: National Park Service, Public domain · Pratt & Whitney Stadium: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0 · Yale Bowl: Kenneth Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Six Flags New England: Canadaolympic989, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in New Britain, 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 New Britain.
New Britain costs less than Plainville or any other town next door, but it reports violent crime at 4 times the Connecticut rate and has poverty well above the Connecticut rate.
Each of its 5 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its D−, Farmington highest at A.
Its public schools are run by the New Britain School District. Three of its 19 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pulaski Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 839 | D− |
| New Britain High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,521 | C− |
| House of Arts Letters and Science (HALS) AcademyTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 152 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CT on state tests and graduation
All 5 graded neighbors score healthier than its C−, from Plainville (B) to Farmington (A+).
36% of adults get no exercise outside work in New Britain, above both the Connecticut town median (22%) and the median of U.S. towns (25%). 41% of New Britain adults sleep under 7 hours. Only 3 of the 154 Connecticut towns we compare have a higher share of adults who smoke cigarettes than New Britain.
| New Britain | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 22% | 25% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 8.8% | 14% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 6.1% | 8.1% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 17% |
| What stands out | New Britain | CT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.2% | 8.5% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 30.9% | 14.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Violent crime runs at 4.2 per 1,000 residents, 4 times the Connecticut rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its C−. Each of the 5 graded towns on its borders reports less crime per resident, from Newington (C+) to Southington (B−).
At 4.2 per 1,000 residents, New Britain’s violent crime rate is against 0.4 in Connecticut’s towns and 1.6 across U.S. towns. The property crime rate in New Britain is 16.8 per 1,000 residents. New Britain reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 82% report less.
| New Britain | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.2 per 1,000 residents | 0.4 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 16.8 per 1,000 residents | 9.6 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
16 miles of trail in 17 parks and preserves. New Britain’s trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is A.W. Stanley Park, 214 acres with 3.6 miles of trail.
| New Britain | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.2 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 7.2% | 14% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. A.W. Stanley Park | 3.6 mi | 214 |
| 2. Stanley Quarter Park | 3 mi | 137 |
| 3. Walnut Hill Park | 1.2 mi | 84 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its typical home is the least expensive on its borders; Plainville is next at $345K.
The typical New Britain home is worth about $307,000, up 7.9% in a year, 31% below the Connecticut typical home. 45% of households own their home in New Britain.
| New Britain | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 45% | 81% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 55% | 50% | 48% |
| Median rent | $1,253 a month | $1,451 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
New Britain has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 19° and about 39 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave New Britain for work: only 15% work in town. Among 155 Connecticut towns, just 5 have a lower median household income than New Britain. The top destinations are Hartford (10%), Farmington (5%) and Newington (4%).
| New Britain | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 5.8% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $59,000 | $109,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 8% | 16% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
98 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 16 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 58% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 98 flood insurance claims have been paid out in New Britain.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
11 within 15 miles of the center of New Britain
About 9 of every 100 New Britain residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Connecticut.
21 places in New Britain on the National Register of Historic Places.
65 notable people were born in New Britain.
City in Connecticut, United States
New Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. About 9 miles (14 km) southwest of Hartford, the city is part of the Capitol Planning Region. According to the 2020 Census, the population of the city is 74,135. Among the southernmost of the communities encompassed within the Hartford-Springfield Knowledge Corridor metropolitan region, New Britain is home to Central Connecticut State University and Charter Oak State College. The city was noted for its industry during the 19th and early 20th centuries, and sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places include Walnut Hill Park, developed by the landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and Downtown New Britain. …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with New Britain.
All 5 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D−; Newington (B−) is closest.
| Town | CT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Britain | #149 | D− | D− | C− | D− | C− |
| Farmington | #29 | A− | D | B− | A | A+ |
| Newington | #95 | B− | C | C+ | B− | A− |
| Berlin | #72 | B+ | C− | B− | B | A |
| Plainville | #87 | B | B− | B− | C+ | B |
| Kensington | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Southington | #65 | B+ | C | B− | B+ | A |
Kensington isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare New Britain with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
New Britain grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns and #149 of 151 in Connecticut. It grades C− for health, C− for safety and D− for schools. Schools 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−.
65 notable people were born here, including Anna Eshoo and Tom Thibodeau.
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