Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With 2,962 residents, it is a town in Delaware.
Some subjects shine; others lag. Its weakest subject is cost of living (D−): the typical home is worth about , years of the Dover metro’s $74K median household income. Taken together, its subjects give Dover Base Housing a C+ overall, better than 36% of U.S. towns. In the ranking it comes 23rd of 37 in Delaware. Incomes are its strong suit (A−): the median household earns $82K. The town’s average trip to work is 12 minutes, below both the Delaware town median (25 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 73% of U.S. towns. Dover Base Housing’s trail density is 5.5 miles per square mile, above both Delaware’s towns (0.4) and U.S. towns (0.4).
Figures: incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · OpenStreetMap.
Where Dover Base Housing beats most towns.
3,450 counted in 2010 and 2,810 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Delaware), ordered by how far Dover Base Housing is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 8,106 in 1970, 2,810 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1980 and 5 maps from 1936 on.
Explore the history →Dover Base Housing is unincorporated, so Kent County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Dover Base Housing.
Dover Base Housing has less heart disease than most of Delaware, has commutes shorter than most of Delaware and is mostly renters.
Walkers can cover 4.4 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. Of the 34 Delaware towns we compare, none has a lower share of conserved land than Dover Base Housing. More trails than any other town in Delaware.
| Dover Base Housing | Delaware towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 5.5 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 0.9% | 16% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Liberty Park | 0.1 mi | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its two schools are below. The public schools here belong to the Caesar Rodney School District. Also worth knowing: 2 public schools serve Dover Base Housing, with 359 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major George S. Welch Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 261 | A− |
| Dover Air Force Base Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 98 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within DE on state tests and graduation
The average commute for its 595 working residents takes 11.7 minutes, against 26 across Delaware.
Jobs in Dover Base Housing grew by 147 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 223. Among 37 Delaware towns, just 2 have a lower share of residents below the poverty line than Dover Base Housing. Only 1% of working residents stay in Dover Base Housing for work; the rest commute out. The top destinations are Dover (10%), Wilmington (6%) and New Castle (5%).
| Dover Base Housing | Delaware towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 12 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 2.2% | 8.3% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.3% | 5.2% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Delaware is heart disease: 2.1% of its 1,802 adults have heart disease, against 6.9% statewide.
Only one of the 37 Delaware towns we compare has a lower share of adults who report frequent physical distress than Dover Base Housing. Against the Delaware average, Dover Base Housing comes out ahead on 10 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 10. 5.5% of Dover Base Housing adults have diabetes.
| Dover Base Housing | Delaware towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 5.5% | 13% | 12% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 37% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 16% | 17% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 14% | 16% |
| What stands out | Dover Base Housing | DE |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 2.1% | 6.9% |
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 2.9% | 9.1% |
| More binge drinkers | 19.3% | 14.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
A winter brings about 13 inches of snow, with January nights at 27° and July afternoons at 87°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Of the losses FEMA expects in Dover Base Housing, 49% come from inland flooding and 23% from cold waves. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 53% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
2 within 15 miles of the center of Dover Base Housing
College town 19 of every 100 Dover Base Housing residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Delaware.
Where Dover Base Housing’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
US Air Force base near Dover, Delaware
Dover Air Force Base or Dover AFB (IATA: DOV, ICAO: KDOV, FAA LID: DOV) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base under the operational control of Air Mobility Command (AMC), located 2 mi (3.2 km) southeast of the city of Dover, Delaware. The 436th Airlift Wing (436th AW) serves as the host wing and operates a major Department of Defense air freight terminal. The AMC-gained 512th Airlift Wing (512th AW) of the Air Force Reserve Command is co-located at the base. Together the two wings fly a fleet of C-5M Super Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster III aircraft. Construction began in March 1941 and the facility opened on December 17, 1941, ten days after the attack on Pearl Harbor; it was converted to …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Dover Base Housing.
| Town | DE rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dover Base Housing | #23 | C+ | D− | — | B+ | B+ |
| Dover | #37 | D | C | D− | C+ | C− |
| Rising Sun-Lebanon | #13 | B+ | C | — | B+ | B |
Dover Base Housing and Rising Sun-Lebanon report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Dover Base Housing with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Dover Base Housing grades C+ overall, better than 36% of U.S. towns and #23 of 37 in Delaware. It grades B+ for health and B+ for schools, and has the most trail per square mile in the state. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.