Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Windsor earns a D, 238th of 286 graded towns in North Carolina, mostly because of incomes and health. The median household income is $41K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line. Residents are less healthy than 80% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. One bright spot: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 76% of U.S. towns. 11% of residents are under 18 in Windsor, against 22% in North Carolina’s towns and 22% across U.S. towns. No town among the 234 in North Carolina we compare has a lower typical home value than Windsor. Windsor's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 93% of U.S. towns.
Where Windsor beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Windsor is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 315 in 1860, 3,582 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and a map from 1978 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Windsor, 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 Windsor.
Windsor trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of North Carolina (mostly hurricanes).
Homes are within reach (about $76K for the typical one, B for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 29 miles. At 1.5 years of the county’s $49K median household income, the typical home (about $76K) costs less against local pay than in any other North Carolina town; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living.
The typical Windsor home is worth about $76,000, up 4.4% in a year, 77% below the North Carolina typical home. Windsor’s median rent is $746 a month.
| Windsor | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $746 a month | $1,086 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 60% | 67% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 81% of North Carolina towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on. 286 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 81 properties have flooded more than once.
The FEMA risk score in Windsor is 85 of 100. Since 1996, 286 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Windsor.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 2,585 U.S. towns with household incomes like Windsor’s, it is healthier than 70%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
43% of Windsor adults sleep under 7 hours. Windsor beats the North Carolina average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 17. 19% of Windsor adults smoke cigarettes.
| Windsor | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 34% | 36% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 15% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 38% | 35% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 36% | 35% |
| What stands out | Windsor | NC |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.9% | 7.9% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 14.8% | 8.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Within North Carolina, it does better than 67% of towns.
| Windsor | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.3 per 1,000 residents | 3.1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 8 per 1,000 residents | 21.8 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Windsor has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 32° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
0.8 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Wrc Windsor Boat Access Area | — | 15 |
| 2. Windsor Youth Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Windsor has about as many jobs (1,302) as working residents, but only 138 people both live and work here. The average commute takes 17.7 minutes, against 25.1 across North Carolina.
Most working residents leave Windsor for work: only 12% work in town. Since 2013, Windsor has added 98 jobs, to 1,302 in 2023. The top destinations are Greenville (8%), Ahoskie (5%) and Raleigh (4%).
| Windsor | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $41,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 12% | 6.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
1 within 15 miles of the center of Windsor
About 3 of every 100 Windsor residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across North Carolina.
6 places in Windsor on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Windsor.
Town in North Carolina, United States
Windsor is a town established by an act of the Colonial Assembly in 1768, on the site known as Gray’s Landing and is the county seat of Bertie County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, Windsor had a population of 3,582. Windsor is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Windsor grades D overall, better than 10% of U.S. towns and #238 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades C− for health, C for safety and C for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
Within North Carolina, it does better than 67% of towns.
That is 1.5 years of the area's median household income ($48,750 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
8 notable people were born here, including William Blount and Frank Ballance.
