Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 4,466, settled in 1887. Public schools that outperform most of Florida.
Yes, by almost any measure. Bagdad earns an A+, 1st among Florida's 634 graded towns. A typical home costs about $228K, 3 years of the Pensacola metro’s $76K median household income, the median household earns $82K, and its schools rank ahead of 80% of Florida towns. The exception is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 91% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Bagdad’s January low is 42°F, where Florida’s towns sit at 51°F and U.S. towns at 22°F. Bagdad Village Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Bagdad beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
3,761 counted in 2010 and 4,467 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Bagdad is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,479 in 1980, 4,467 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 1916 and 5 maps from 1920 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Bagdad is unincorporated, so Santa Rosa 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 Bagdad.
Bagdad pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, has homes that are cheap against local pay and has a longer frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Florida.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its A− for schools comes with an A for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $228K.
Its public schools are run by the Santa Rosa school district. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bagdad Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 501 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
Bagdad has 211 jobs for its 1,886 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Bagdad for work: only 1% work in town. 4.4% of residents live below the poverty line in Bagdad. Since 2013, Bagdad has added 99 jobs, to 211 in 2023.
| Bagdad | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 4.4% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 0.7% | 5% | 8% |
| Median household income | $82,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Florida is food insecurity: 10.4% of its 3,452 adults worry about having enough food, against 16.8% statewide.
Bagdad beats the Florida average on 11 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 20% of Bagdad adults get no exercise outside work.
| Bagdad | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 25% | 25% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 23% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 12% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Bagdad | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 10.4% | 16.8% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 10% | 15.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Milton Exp Stn weather station, 15 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 241 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 89% of Florida places with climate records. January nights average 41.7°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 90% of Florida places with climate records; July afternoons average 91°.
Bagdad has warm winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Bagdad is 91°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Florida average. 27% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 34% across Florida.
| Bagdad | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 20% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 20% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 27% | 31% | 29% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.2 points. Across Florida, 50.9% of residents are women.
| Bagdad | FL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.7% | 10.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.1% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.9% | 8.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.6% | 12.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.6% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.5% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.9% | 13.4% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.8% | 11.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.8% | 9.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 8.3% | 10.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 33.2% | 27.2% | 26% |
| Some college | 20.6% | 18.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.8% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.2% | 21.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 4% | 12.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,500, single groups can be off by several points
0.7 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. Bagdad’s trail density is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Bagdad | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1% | 3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bagdad Mill Site Park | 0.7 mi | 18 |
| 2. Bagdad Community Center & Recreational Park | — | 9 |
| 3. Blackwater River Water Management Area | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 3 years of the Pensacola metro’s $76K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 88% of Florida towns; that ratio is one input to its A for cost of living.
The median sale price was $295,000 in May 2026.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bagdad. Close and well known come first.
23 mi LandmarkFort Pickens
25 mi Ancient siteUSS Massachusetts
22 mi MuseumNational Naval Aviation Museum
15 mi National SeashoreGulf Islands National Seashore7.6M visitors a year
22 mi LandmarkFort Barrancas34 mi BeachOno IslandFort Pickens: Notneb82, CC BY-SA 3.0 · USS Massachusetts: Unknown authorUnknown author or not provided, Public domain · National Naval Aviation Museum: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Gulf Islands National Seashore: National Park Service, Public domain · Fort Barrancas: National Park Service, Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Bagdad
About 2 of every 100 Bagdad residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
Where Bagdad’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
CDP in Florida, United States
Bagdad is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Rosa County, Florida, United States. The population was 4,467 at the 2020 census, up from 3,761 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pensacola–Ferry Pass–Brent, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Bagdad grades A+ overall, better than 96% of U.S. towns and #1 of 634 in Florida. It grades B+ for health and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $228,000, 39% below the Florida typical home. 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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