Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Rochester grades C+ overall, 95th among New Hampshire's 125 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. On the other side, its schools rank behind 92% of the state's. It also does better than most on health: residents are healthier than 69% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. A typical home there costs about $407K, 3.5 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 92% of U.S. towns, with 2 places on the National Register. Its National Register listings include Rochester Commercial and Industrial District and Richard Hayes House. 19% of working residents work locally in Rochester, against 9.8% in New Hampshire’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is William H. Champlin Jr. Forest, 186 acres with 1.9 miles of trail.
Where Rochester beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Rochester Commercial and Industrial District| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Chamberlain Street School | K–5 | 316 |
| McClelland School | K–5 | 310 |
| East Rochester School | PK–5 | 300 |
Census counts: 2,857 in 1790, 32,492 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1877 and 5 maps from 1891 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Hampshire), ordered by how far Rochester is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rochester, 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 Rochester.
Rochester has a shorter frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of New Hampshire and is healthy by national standards but behind most towns in New Hampshire; it also trails Barrington and its other neighbors on schools.
Each of its 4 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its D, Barrington highest at B.
Its public schools are run by the Rochester School District. Two of its 12 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 803 | D |
| Spaulding High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,298 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NH on state tests and graduation
Since 2013, Rochester has added 991 jobs, to 11,532 in 2023. The top destinations are Portsmouth (14%), Dover (12%) and Somersworth (5%). Half commute less than 16 miles.
| Rochester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $81,000 | $103,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 12% | 16% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 8.3% | 6.7% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
46 miles of trail in 11 parks and preserves. The trail density in Rochester is 1.0 miles per square mile.
| Rochester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 8.9% | 18% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 1.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. William H. Champlin Jr. Forest | 1.9 mi | 186 |
| 2. The Gonic Trails | 1.4 mi | 80 |
| 3. Dominicus Hanson Pines | 1 mi | 31 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Within New Hampshire it is less healthy than 84% of the 126 graded towns: New Hampshire sets a high bar.
27% of Rochester adults have been diagnosed with depression. Rochester beats the New Hampshire average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 11. 34% of Rochester adults feel lonely.
| Rochester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 23% | 23% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 30% | 33% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 33% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Rochester | NH |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.1% | 8.9% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 11.7% | 9.5% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.6% | 5.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Durham weather station, 11 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 148 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 85% of New Hampshire places with climate records. July afternoons average 82°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 78% of New Hampshire places with climate records; January nights average 13.2°.
Rochester has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. About 39 inches of snow falls in a winter. Rochester’s January low is 13°F.
| Rochester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 13°F | 13°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 81°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
66% of households own their home in Rochester. The typical Rochester home is worth about $407,000, up 3.7% in a year, 20% below the New Hampshire typical home.
| Rochester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 66% | 82% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,369 a month | $1,393 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Rochester's reported crime rate is above New Hampshire's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 33 violent crimes were reported in 2025.
| Rochester | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 12.2 per 1,000 residents | 4.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 58% of U.S. communities. Since 1998, 15 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Rochester.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Rochester. Close and well known come first.
27 mi LakeLake Winnipesaukee
33 mi Ancient siteAmerica's Stonehenge
21 mi LighthouseCape Neddick Light
37 mi Theme parkCanobie Lake Park
19 mi MuseumStrawbery Banke
21 mi LandmarkFort William and MaryLake Winnipesaukee: No machine-readable author provided. JohnJHenderson~commonswiki assumed (based o, Public domain · America's Stonehenge: User:Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cape Neddick Light: Stefan Hillebrand, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Canobie Lake Park: Alex1961, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Strawbery Banke: Ken Gallager (Ken Gallager from en.wikipedia), Public domain · Fort William and Mary: AlexiusHoratius, CC BY-SA 3.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Rochester
About 4 of every 100 Rochester residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Hampshire.
2 places in Rochester on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in New Hampshire, United States
Rochester is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 32,492 at the 2020 census, making it the 6th most populous city in New Hampshire. In addition to the downtown area, the city contains the villages of East Rochester, Gonic, and North Rochester. Skyhaven Airport and part of Baxter Lake are located in Rochester. Rochester was one of New Hampshire's fastest growing cities between 2010 and 2020.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Rochester.
Dover next door grades higher for schools (C+ to Rochester’s D) and lower for cost of living (C− to B−).
| Town | NH rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester | #95 | C+ | B− | — | D | B+ |
| Barrington | #44 | A− | C | A | B | A |
| Farmington | #111 | C | B | B | C− | B− |
| Dover | #60 | B+ | C− | A− | C+ | A |
| Strafford | #72 | B | B− | A+ | C− | A− |
Rochester reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Rochester with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Rochester grades C+ overall, better than 39% of U.S. towns and #95 of 125 in New Hampshire. It grades B+ for health and D for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
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