Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Chester grades A− overall, 45th among New Hampshire's 125 graded towns. It reports less crime per resident than 96% of U.S. towns. It is healthier than 93% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $142K. The trade-off is money: the typical home is worth about $655K, 5.7 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. 19% of the land in Chester is conserved, close to New Hampshire’s towns (18%) and above U.S. towns (4.3%). Chester has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Chester Village Cemetery and Chester Congregational Church. Only 2 of the 126 New Hampshire towns we compare have a higher share of households owning their home than Chester.
Where Chester beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,902 in 1790, a low of 652 in 1920, 5,232 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1908 and 4 maps from 1953 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Hampshire), ordered by how far Chester is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Chester. Close and well known come first.
10 mi Ancient siteAmerica's Stonehenge
38 mi LakeWalden Pond
13 mi Theme parkCanobie Lake Park
11 mi Stadium & arenaSNHU Arena
37 mi MuseumPeabody Essex Museum34 mi Theme parkPleasure IslandAmerica's Stonehenge: User:Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Walden Pond: Victorgrigas, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Canobie Lake Park: Alex1961, CC BY-SA 2.0 · SNHU Arena: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0 · Peabody Essex Museum: Fletcher6, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chester, 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 19, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Chester.
Chester sends most of its workers to Manchester and beyond, owes part of its health edge to its incomes and has cooler summers than most of the country, though not than most of New Hampshire.
Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025, 0.2 per 1,000 residents.
At 2.6 per 1,000 residents, Chester’s property crime rate is where New Hampshire’s towns sit at 4.5 and U.S. towns at 9.9. Chester’s violent crime rate is 0.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Chester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.6 per 1,000 residents | 4.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.2 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Chester School District. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chester AcademyLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 508 | C |
| Busche Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 120 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NH on state tests
Against the 3,388 U.S. towns with household incomes like Chester’s, it is healthier than 74%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
28% of Chester adults feel lonely. Chester beats the New Hampshire average on 6 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 12% of Chester adults say their health is fair or poor.
| Chester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 33% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 19% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 20% | 25% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.3% | 9.5% | 12% |
| What stands out | Chester | NH |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.2% | 6.8% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.1% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
34 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The trail density in Chester is 1.3 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Spring Hill Farm, 144 acres with 2.4 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Spring Hill Farm | 2.4 mi | 144 |
| 2. Wason Pond Conservation & Recreation Area | 0.7 mi | 99 |
| 3. Forsaith Forest | — | 65 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Chester has 549 jobs for its 3,031 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 35.1 minutes, against 26.7 across New Hampshire.
Most working residents leave Chester for work: only 5% work in town. Since 2013, Chester has added 179 jobs, to 549 in 2023. 4% of residents live below the poverty line in Chester.
| Chester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 35 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $142,000 | $103,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 4% | 6.8% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 16% | 16% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Home values rose 59% in five years, to about $655K, against 36% across New Hampshire.
Typical home values rose 11% in the year to September 2026.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
July afternoons average 82.3°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 81% of New Hampshire places with climate records; January nights average 14.6°.
Chester has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. About 76 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Chester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 15°F | 13°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 81°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Adults 35 to 64 are 46% of residents (40% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 17% of residents (21% statewide). 41% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 41% across New Hampshire.
| Chester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 47.2 years | 44.6 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 41% | 39% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 20% | 18% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 17% | 20% | 18% |
47% women, 53% men
About 112 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.1 points). Across New Hampshire, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Chester | NH | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.7% | 9.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.9% | 8.9% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.2% | 8.7% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8.9% | 12.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.7% | 12.4% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.1% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 22.1% | 15.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.2% | 12.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.3% | 7.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 1.9% | 5.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.1% | 26.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 13.8% | 17.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 14.2% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 24.7% | 24.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 16.4% | 16.1% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 55% of U.S. communities. Since 2006, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Chester.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
4 within 15 miles of the center of Chester
About 4 of every 100 Chester residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Hampshire.
Where Chester’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 places in Chester on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Chester.
Town in New Hampshire, United States
Chester is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,232 at the 2020 census, up from 4,768 at the 2010 census. It was home to the now defunct Chester College (formerly White Pines College).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Chester.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Chester grades A− overall, better than 76% of U.S. towns and #45 of 125 in New Hampshire. It grades A for health, A+ for safety and C+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
8 notable people were born here, including Samuel Newell Bell and George Cochrane Hazelton.
