Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Babson Park’s subject grades is an A− for cost of living; the weakest is a D for incomes. Only 27 of Florida’s 774 towns score higher on cost of living. Babson Park's public schools trail 88% of Florida towns on state tests and graduation. On incomes, just 63 of Florida’s 774 towns do worse. Babson Park is home to Webber International University. Babson Park has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Babson Park beats most towns.
| College | Students |
|---|---|
| Webber International University | 848 |
Babson Park Woman's ClubIn a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Babson Park is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 19 old photos and papers going back to 2013 and 3 maps from 1952 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Babson Park is unincorporated, so Polk 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 17, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Babson Park.
Its public schools are run by the Polk school district. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dale R Fair Babson Park ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 453 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
96% of Babson Park households own their home, where Florida’s towns sit at 72% and U.S. towns at 73%. The typical Babson Park home is worth about $228,000, down 0.6% in a year, 39% below the Florida typical home.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Most working residents leave Babson Park for work: only 1% work in town. Babson Park’s median household income is $48,000, below both the Florida town median ($73,000) and the median of U.S. towns ($80,000). Jobs based in Babson Park fell to 83 in 2023, 123 fewer than in 2013.
| Babson Park | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $48,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 0.8% | 5% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 78% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The July high in Babson Park is 92°F. Babson Park has warm winters and hot summers, with plenty of rain.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Babson Park beats the Florida average on 7 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 9. 20% of Babson Park adults binge drink.
| Babson Park | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 79% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 37% | 35% |
| What stands out | Babson Park | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.8% | 9.1% |
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 10.2% | 13.5% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.5% | 12.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Babson Park | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.6% | 3% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Ridge Audubon Nature Reserve | — | 13 |
| 2. Fire House Trail | — | 5 |
| 3. Scrub Plum Trail | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Babson Park. Close and well known come first.
Big draw37 mi Theme parkWalt Disney World Resort
8 mi GardenBok Tower Gardens
40 mi Theme parkSeaWorld Orlando4.3M visitors a year
15 mi Theme parkLegoland Florida
15 mi Theme parkCypress Gardens34 mi Theme parkFun SpotWalt Disney World Resort: Anthony Quintano from Westminster, United States, CC BY 2.0 · Bok Tower Gardens: Averette, CC BY 3.0 · SeaWorld Orlando: SeaWorld, CC BY 2.0 · Legoland Florida: Jacob Montgomery, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cypress Gardens: Bruchey at English Wikipedia, Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Babson Park
College town 34 of every 100 Babson Park residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
Census-designated place in Florida, US
Babson Park is a census-designated place (CDP) in Polk County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, Babson Park had a population of 1,330. It is also the home of Webber International University. Babson Park is part of the Lakeland–Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area, situated roughly halfway between Tampa and Orlando.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
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