Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,678, incorporated in 1795. 2.4 times the library visits per person than the typical New Hampshire town.
Tuftonboro grades A− overall, 42nd of 125 graded towns in New Hampshire, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Residents are healthier than 88% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and it reports less crime per resident than 84% of U.S. towns. It also does better than most on schools: its public schools beat 60% of New Hampshire towns on state tests and graduation. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $676K for a typical one and 7.8 times the county’s $86K median household income. Tuftonboro’s median age is 51.9 years, against 44.6 years in New Hampshire’s towns and 40.5 years across U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Ossipee Mountains Forest Legacy Tract, 2,004 acres with 2.8 miles of trail. Tuftonboro's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 91% of U.S. towns.
Where Tuftonboro beats most towns.
Where Tuftonboro’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Hampshire), ordered by how far Tuftonboro is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 109 in 1790, a low of 109 in 1790, 2,467 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 1906 and 4 maps from 1928 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tuftonboro, 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 Tuftonboro.
Tuftonboro has a longer frost-free season than almost anywhere else in New Hampshire and is a second-home town, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of New Hampshire.
Within New Hampshire it is healthier than 57% of the 126 graded towns: New Hampshire sets a high bar.
14% of Tuftonboro adults binge drink. Tuftonboro beats the New Hampshire average on 7 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 31% of Tuftonboro adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Tuftonboro | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 33% | 36% |
| What stands out | Tuftonboro | NH |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 6.2% | 8.1% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 4.2% | 5.4% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.3% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Governor Wentworth Regional School District. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuftonboro Central SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 99 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NH on state tests and graduation
Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025, 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
The violent crime rate in Tuftonboro is 0.4 per 1,000 residents. New Hampshire has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Tuftonboro sits closer to the middle.
| Tuftonboro | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.4 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.1 per 1,000 residents | 4.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Most working residents leave Tuftonboro for work: only 11% work in town. Tuftonboro’s average trip to work is 30 minutes. The top destinations are Wolfeboro (26%), Ossipee (6%) and Concord (4%).
| Tuftonboro | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 4% | 6.8% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $101,000 | $103,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 9.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 7.8 years of the county’s $86K median household income, the typical home (about $676K) costs more against local pay than in 96% of New Hampshire towns; that ratio is one input to its C for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $3,004, against $6,667 across New Hampshire, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
93% of households own their home in Tuftonboro. Typical home values rose 6.3% in the year to September 2026.
| Tuftonboro | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 93% | 82% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,311 a month | $1,393 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
30 miles of trail in 13 parks and preserves. Only 8 of the 126 New Hampshire towns we compare have a lower trail density than Tuftonboro.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Castle in the Clouds Conservation Area | 3.5 mi | 841 |
| 2. Ossipee Mountains Forest Legacy Tract | 2.8 mi | 2,004 |
| 3. Mount Pleasant Conservation Area | 1.5 mi | 115 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Lakeport 2 weather station, 13 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 170 days, the #2 highest of 321 New Hampshire places with climate records.
Tuftonboro has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 81°, January nights drop to 11° and about 62 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
53.6% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, against 10.1% statewide, which helps explain the older median age.
People 65 and older are 28% of residents (20% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 14% of residents (21% statewide). Tuftonboro has grown 8.6% since 2020, to 2,678 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 38% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 41% across New Hampshire.
| Tuftonboro | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 18% | 18% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 38% | 39% | 29% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.2 points. Across New Hampshire, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Tuftonboro | NH | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9% | 9.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.3% | 8.9% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.8% | 8.7% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 6.4% | 12.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7.7% | 12.4% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.9% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 18.1% | 15.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.5% | 12.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 15.4% | 7.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.8% | 5.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 22.4% | 26.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 27.9% | 17.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.2% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.6% | 24.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18.9% | 16.1% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,700, single groups can be off by several points
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 53% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Tuftonboro since 1984.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Tuftonboro. Close and well known come first.
6 mi LakeLake Winnipesaukee
27 mi Scenic railwayConway Scenic Railroad
30 mi National forestWhite Mountain National Forest
31 mi Theme parkStory Land
24 mi Ski areaWaterville Valley Resort84 runs · 1,990 ft vertical28 mi Ski areaAttitash Mountain Resort85 runs · 1,662 ft verticalLake Winnipesaukee: No machine-readable author provided. JohnJHenderson~commonswiki assumed (based o, Public domain · Conway Scenic Railroad: Pi.1415926535, CC BY-SA 3.0 · White Mountain National Forest: Ken Gallager at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Story Land: AnotherMaker, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Waterville Valley Resort: MConradWard, CC BY-SA 4.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Tuftonboro
About 1 of every 100 Tuftonboro residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Hampshire.
Town in New Hampshire, United States
Tuftonboro is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,467 at the 2020 census. Bounded on the southwest by Lake Winnipesaukee, Tuftonboro includes the villages of Tuftonboro Corner, Center Tuftonboro, Melvin Village and Mirror Lake.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Tuftonboro.
It grades higher overall than all 4 graded towns on its borders; Moultonborough (B+) comes closest.
| Town | NH rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuftonboro | #42 | A− | C | A− | B | A |
| Moultonborough | #55 | B+ | C− | A− | C+ | A |
| Wolfeboro | #66 | B | C− | A− | B | A− |
| Alton | #85 | B− | C | A− | C− | A |
| Melvin Village | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ossipee | #100 | C+ | D | B | B | B+ |
Melvin Village isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Tuftonboro with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Tuftonboro grades A− overall, better than 77% of U.S. towns and #42 of 125 in New Hampshire. It grades A for health, A− for safety and B for schools.
Yes, by national standards. New Hampshire has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Tuftonboro sits nearer the middle.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
.jpg){kind=link}
