Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,115, settled in 1888. 70% more nonprofits per person than the typical Louisiana town.
Vinton grades D overall, 118th among Louisiana's 161 graded towns, mostly because of health and safety. On CDC estimates, its residents' health ranks in the bottom 2% nationally. Its crime rate is higher than 96% of U.S. towns, with 29 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. In its favor, its schools rank ahead of 81% of Louisiana towns. 33% of residents live below the poverty line in Vinton, above both the Louisiana town median (20%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). On civic life, just 1 of Louisiana’s 152 towns do better. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 84% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top.
Where Vinton beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Vinton Elementary School | PK–5 | 374 |
| Vinton Middle School | 6–8 | 191 |
| Vinton High School | 9–12 | 242 |
| Widest gap | Vinton | LA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 36.7% | 18.1% |
Where Vinton’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Louisiana), ordered by how far Vinton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,441 in 1920, 3,400 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 2002 and 6 maps from 1932 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Vinton, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Vinton.
Vinton pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices and has homes that are cheap against local pay, but it reports violent crime at about twice the Louisiana rate.
31% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Vinton. Vinton beats the Louisiana average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 23. 50% of adults have obesity in Vinton.
| Vinton | Louisiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 27% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 19% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 16% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 47% | 34% | 25% |
| What stands out | Vinton | LA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 36.7% | 18.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 14.4% | 8.5% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 37.4% | 22.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its A− for schools comes with a B+ for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $143K.
Its public schools are run by the Calcasieu Parish school district. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vinton Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 374 | B |
| Vinton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 242 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within LA on state tests and graduation
Violent crime runs at 9.5 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Louisiana rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D−.
The violent crime rate in Vinton is 9.5 per 1,000 residents. Vinton reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 96% report less. Within Louisiana, it does better than 36% of towns.
| Vinton | Louisiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 9.5 per 1,000 residents | 4.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 28.9 per 1,000 residents | 23.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Since 1990, 8 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Vinton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Vinton for work: only 13% work in town. Vinton’s median household income is $42,000. Jobs based in Vinton fell to 375 in 2023, 47 fewer than in 2013.
| Vinton | Louisiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $42,000 | $56,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 13% | 9.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 2.1 years of the Lake Charles metro’s $67K median household income, the typical home (about $143K) costs less against local pay than in 86% of Louisiana towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living. The typical value, about $143K, is 30% below its October 2020 peak.
The typical Vinton home is worth about $143,000, up 8.4% in a year, 33% below the Louisiana typical home. 49% of Vinton households own their home.
| Vinton | Louisiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $947 a month | $992 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
January nights average 42.2°, milder than in 95% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 91.5°. The Orange 9 N weather station, 10 miles away, records that about 74 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 86% of Louisiana places with climate records.
Vinton has warm winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Vinton | Louisiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 42°F | 42°F | 22°F |
| July high | 92°F | 92°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1 within 15 miles of the center of Vinton
About 1 of every 100 Vinton residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Louisiana.
Town in Louisiana, United States
Vinton is a town in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 3,400 in 2020. It is part of the Lake Charles metropolitan statistical area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Vinton grades D overall, better than 14% of U.S. towns and #118 of 161 in Louisiana. It grades D− for health, D− for safety and A− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within Louisiana, it does better than 36% of towns.
Not for the area. That is 2.1 years of the area's median household income ($66,700 across the Lake Charles, LA 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+.
2 notable people were born here, including Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown and Ken Bahnsen.