Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Ridgefield is one of the best-graded places in America: an A+, ranked 2nd of 151 in Connecticut. It is among the healthiest towns in the country on CDC estimates, crime is low: it reports less per resident than 97% of U.S. towns, and the median household earns $179K. The exception is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $836K, 7.3 years of the Bridgeport metro’s $115K median household income. 73% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Ridgefield, against 45% in Connecticut’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns. On hazard risk, just 10 of Connecticut’s 175 towns do better. Its National Register listings include Frederic Remington House and Phineas Chapman Lounsbury House.
Where Ridgefield beats most towns.
Frederic Remington House| Widest gap | Ridgefield | CT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.1% | 14.9% |
Frederic Remington House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,947 in 1790, 25,033 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1713 and 3 maps from 1959 on.
13 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Connecticut), ordered by how far Ridgefield is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Ridgefield. Close and well known come first.
Big draw24 mi MuseumUnited States Military Academy
Big draw39 mi MuseumThe Cloisters
27 mi LandmarkFerncliff Cemetery
38 mi Zoo & aquariumBronx Zoo
13 mi LakeCandlewood Lake
12 mi MuseumGlass HouseUnited States Military Academy: USMA Public Affairs Office, Public domain · The Cloisters: Paweł Drozd on Wiki Drozdpl cropped by Beyond My Ken (talk) 17:05, 27 December 2, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ferncliff Cemetery: Anthony22 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bronx Zoo: Stavenn, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Candlewood Lake: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Glass House: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Ridgefield, 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 Ridgefield.
Ridgefield reports less crime than Redding or any other graded neighbor and has less food insecurity than most of Connecticut, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Connecticut.
Its widest gap with Connecticut is food insecurity: 6.1% of its 18,682 adults worry about having enough food, against 14.9% statewide.
Ridgefield beats the Connecticut average on 25 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 22% of adults have obesity in Ridgefield. Only 6 of the 154 Connecticut towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have diabetes than Ridgefield.
| Ridgefield | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 30% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 15% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 22% | 23% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 6.4% | 9.7% | 14% |
| What stands out | Ridgefield | CT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.1% | 14.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 5.8% | 12.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.2% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its A for schools comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $836K.
Its public schools are run by the Ridgefield School District. Three of its 11 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotts Ridge Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 548 | A− |
| Ridgefield High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,411 | A+ |
| Branchville Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 340 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CT on state tests and graduation
Its A+ tops all 3 graded towns on its borders; Redding (A+) comes closest. Violent crime is rare: 6 reported in 2024, 0.2 per 1,000 residents.
The property crime rate in Ridgefield is 2.8 per 1,000 residents.
| Ridgefield | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 2.8 per 1,000 residents | 10.9 | 11.5 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 0.2 per 1,000 residents | 0.6 | 1.7 |
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #2 of 155 in Connecticut.
57 miles of trail in 127 parks and preserves. Ridgefield’s trail density is 1.6 miles per square mile. Bennett's Pond State Park, at 444 acres with 6.3 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hemlock Hills | 6.5 mi | 348 |
| 2. Bennett's Pond State Park | 6.3 mi | 444 |
| 3. Seth Low Pierrepont State Park Reserve | 5.8 mi | 307 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Ridgefield 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
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 66% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 46 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Ridgefield.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Ridgefield has about as many jobs (10,118) as working residents, but only 1,844 people both live and work here. 29.7% of workers work from home, against 16% across Connecticut.
About one in 5 of Ridgefield’s working residents works in town. 30% of Ridgefield workers work from home. Among 155 Connecticut towns, just 9 have a higher median household income than Ridgefield.
| Ridgefield | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $179,000 | $109,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 30% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 20% | 11% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 7.3 years of the Bridgeport metro’s $115K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 89% of Connecticut towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
2 within 15 miles of the center of Ridgefield
About 5 of every 100 Ridgefield residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Connecticut.
17.8% of the town is conserved land, across 127 parks and preserves.
13 places in Ridgefield on the National Register of Historic Places.
20 notable people were born in Ridgefield.
Town in Connecticut, United States
Ridgefield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains and on the New York state border, Ridgefield had a population of 25,033 as of the 2020 census. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. The town center, which was formerly a borough, is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place. The town was settled then quickly incorporated by 1709.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
10 towns share a border with Ridgefield.
At #2 in CT, it grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Wilton (A+) comes closest.
| Town | CT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ridgefield | #2 | A+ | D | A+ | A | A+ |
| Wilton | #3 | A+ | C− | A | A | A+ |
| Redding | #4 | A+ | D | A+ | A+ | A+ |
| Danbury | #135 | C− | D− | B− | D | B+ |
| Ridgebury | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| West Mountain | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Branchville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Georgetown | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Ridgebury, West Mountain, Branchville and Georgetown aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Ridgefield with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Ridgefield grades A+ overall, better than 98% of U.S. towns and #2 of 151 in Connecticut. It grades A+ for health, A+ for safety and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. The typical home is worth about $836,000, 87% above the Connecticut typical home.
20 notable people were born here, including Bill Lawrence and Ian Falconer.
