Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Bellevue's schools rank among the lowest in Kentucky on tests and graduation. Overall it grades B−, ranked 54th of 138 in Kentucky. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 90% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 91% of U.S. towns, with 9 places on the National Register. Its National Register listings include Sacred Heart Church and Marianne Theater. Only 9 of the 142 Kentucky towns we compare have a lower share of children under 18 than Bellevue.
Where Bellevue beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Sacred Heart Church| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Grandview Elementary School | PK–5 | 251 |
| Holy Trinity School | K–7 | 69 |
| Bellevue High School | 6–12 | 300 |
Census counts: 1,460 in 1880, a peak of 9,336 in 1960, 5,548 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1870 and 6 maps from 1898 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Bellevue is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 91% of comparable towns) to D− for schools (better than 1%), so the B− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bellevue. Close and well known come first.
2 mi Stadium & arenaPaycor Stadium
2 mi Stadium & arenaGreat American Ball Park
Big draw20 mi Theme parkKings Island3.5M visitors a year
3 mi Stadium & arenaNippert Stadium
3 mi Stadium & arenaTQL Stadium
Big draw34 mi Theme parkArk EncounterPaycor Stadium: JonRidinger, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Great American Ball Park: Eric Kilby profile at Flickr website, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Kings Island: Eli Duke from Portland, OR, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Nippert Stadium: Ben Levin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · TQL Stadium: Cornfield948, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ark Encounter: OlinEJ, CC0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bellevue, and how to reach them.
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 Bellevue.
Bellevue sends many workers across the state line to Blue Ash, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has seen reported crime fall by a third or more.
Its public schools are run by the Bellevue Independent school district. One of its 3 schools is below, with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Bellevue High School, with 300 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grandview Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 251 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KY on state tests and graduation
40% of working residents cross a state line to work, Blue Ash among the top destinations.
Most working residents leave Bellevue for work: only 5% work in town. Bellevue’s average trip to work is 19 minutes, below both Kentucky’s towns (22 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Since 2013, Bellevue has added 116 jobs, to 1,325 in 2023.
| Bellevue | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 15% | 10% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 5% | 15% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 16% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Bellevue has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 24° and about 23 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 10,599 U.S. towns with household incomes like Bellevue’s, it is healthier than 79%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Bellevue beats the Kentucky average on 14 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 17% of Bellevue adults binge drink, where Kentucky’s towns sit at 14% and U.S. towns at 16%. 22% of Bellevue adults get no exercise outside work.
| Bellevue | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 16% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 27% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 23% | 19% |
| What stands out | Bellevue | KY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 11.3% | 15.5% |
| Fewer adults in fair or poor health | 17.3% | 22.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Reported crimes fell from 73 to 52 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 4 reported in 2025, 0.7 per 1,000 residents.
Bellevue’s violent crime rate is 0.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Bellevue | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.7 per 1,000 residents | 1.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 8.3 per 1,000 residents | 8.2 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 63% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 62 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bellevue.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
61.2% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 45.4% across Kentucky. The median property tax bill is $2,318, against $1,544 across Kentucky, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical Bellevue home is worth about $241,000, down 0.5% in a year, close to the Kentucky typical home. The median rent in Bellevue is $1,265 a month.
| Bellevue | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,265 a month | $930 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 70% | 59% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
| Bellevue | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.9% | 1.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Thomas Wiethorn Memorial Beach Park | 0.4 mi | 3 |
| 2. Bellevue Vets Ballfields | — | 12 |
| 3. Swope Park | 0.1 mi | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
18 within 15 miles of the center of Bellevue
About 6 of every 100 Bellevue residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Kentucky.
Where Bellevue’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
9 places in Bellevue on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Bellevue.
City in Kentucky, United States
Bellevue is a home rule-class city in Campbell County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is located along the southern bank of the Ohio River. The population was 5,548 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Bellevue.
| Town | KY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellevue | #54 | B− | B− | B | D− | B |
| Newport | #134 | D | B | D | D− | C− |
| Dayton | #44 | B | B | B | A | C− |
| Fort Thomas | #3 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ | A |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Bellevue grades B− overall, better than 52% of U.S. towns and #54 of 138 in Kentucky. It grades B for health, B for safety and D− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 3 years of the area's median household income ($81,120 across the Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
9 notable people were born here, including Harlan Hubbard and Bob Dougherty.
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