Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Few places in the country grade higher. Bristol earns an A, 6th among Rhode Island's 38 graded towns. It reports less crime per resident than 96% of U.S. towns, residents are healthier than 90% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates, and the median household earns $98K. The exception is cost of living: homes are expensive, about $610K for a typical one and 7 times the Providence metro’s $87K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 98% of U.S. towns, with 13 places on the National Register. Bristol is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 95% of U.S. towns. On hazard risk, just 2 of Rhode Island’s 39 towns do better. Its National Register listings include Joseph Reynolds House and Bristol Waterfront Historic District.
Where Bristol beats most towns.
Joseph Reynolds House
Joseph Reynolds House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,406 in 1790, 22,493 in 2020. The archive holds 21 old photos and papers going back to 1765 and 6 maps from 1890 on.
13 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Bristol takes its name from Bristol, England, 3,210 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionBristol, settled in 1680, takes its name from Bristol, a city in England.
6 more U.S. towns are named after Bristol:Bristol, CT62,341Bristol, PA9,970Bristol, IN1,818Bristol Township, MN449Bristol, SD278+1 more
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Rhode Island), ordered by how far Bristol is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for hazard risk (better than 99% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 8%), so the A overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bristol. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi MuseumThe Breakers
6 mi MuseumUSS Massachusetts
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
7 mi Ancient siteHMS Endeavour
Big draw39 mi LakeLake Chaubunagungamaug
15 mi MuseumMarble HouseThe Breakers: UpstateNYer, CC BY-SA 3.0 · USS Massachusetts: USN, Public domain · Gillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · HMS Endeavour: Samuel Atkins (c.1760-1810), Public domain · Lake Chaubunagungamaug: Bree from Worcester, MA, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Marble House: [email protected], Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bristol, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Bristol.
Bristol reports less crime than Portsmouth or any other graded neighbor and has less tooth loss than most of Rhode Island, but it has a long record of flood insurance claims.
Its A+ tops all 4 graded towns on its borders; Portsmouth (A) comes closest. Violent crime is rare: 10 reported in 2025, 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
Bristol’s property crime rate is 2.5 per 1,000 residents, where Rhode Island’s towns sit at 5.5 and U.S. towns at 9.9.
| Bristol | Rhode Island towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.5 per 1,000 residents | 5.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.5 per 1,000 residents | 0.6 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Bristol Warren school district. Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Mt. Hope High School, with 787 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colt Andrews SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 307 | A− |
| Mt. Hope High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 787 | B |
| Rockwell SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 260 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within RI on state tests and graduation
145 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 12 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 97% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 145 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bristol.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its widest gap with Rhode Island is tooth loss: 7.9% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.2% statewide.
25% of adults have obesity in Bristol, below both Rhode Island’s towns (30%) and U.S. towns (35%). 32% of adults have high blood pressure in Bristol. Bristol beats the Rhode Island average on 10 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1.
| Bristol | Rhode Island towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 30% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 86% | 85% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 34% | 36% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 17% | 16% |
| What stands out | Bristol | RI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.9% | 14.2% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.1% | 15.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10% | 8.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
17 miles of trail in 20 parks and preserves. Only 3 of the 38 Rhode Island towns we compare have a lower share of conserved land than Bristol. The biggest place to walk is Colt State Park, 486 acres with 2.8 miles of trail.
| Bristol | Rhode Island towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 5.9% | 14% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Colt State Park | 2.8 mi | 486 |
| 2. Perry-Tavares Farm Open Space | 1.5 mi | 106 |
| 3. Claire D. McIntosh Wildlife Refuge | 0.8 mi | 52 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Bristol has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Bristol’s July high is 82°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median rent in Bristol is $1,579 a month. The typical Bristol home is worth about $610,000, up 3.1% in a year, 20% above the Rhode Island typical home. 66% of Bristol households own their home.
| Bristol | Rhode Island towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,579 a month | $1,366 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 66% | 76% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
About one in 5 of Bristol’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Providence (12%), Middletown (6%) and Warren (5%). Half commute less than 11 miles.
| Bristol | Rhode Island towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 21% | 12% | 8% |
| Median household income | $98,000 | $105,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.5% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 11% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Only 1 of the 38 Rhode Island towns we compare have a lower share of children under 18 than Bristol. Bristol has lost 2.3% of its people since 2020, down to 21,970 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. Children under 18 are 13% of residents (19% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 29% of residents (24% statewide).
| Bristol | Rhode Island towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 13% | 18% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 48% | 37% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 23% | 21% | 18% |
| Median age | 43 years | 44 years | 40.5 years |
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1.4 points). Across Rhode Island, 50.9% of residents are women.
| Bristol | RI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.3% | 10% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.6% | 8.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 17.6% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.8% | 13.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 9.6% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.4% | 11.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.7% | 13.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.3% | 11% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.6% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.7% | 10.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.5% | 26.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.8% | 17.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.5% | 8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 28.5% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 19.1% | 15.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
12 within 15 miles of the center of Bristol
College town 19 of every 100 Bristol residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Rhode Island.
2 colleges in town.
13 places in Bristol on the National Register of Historic Places.
17 notable people were born in Bristol.
Town in Rhode Island, United States
Bristol is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States, as well as the county seat. The population of Bristol was 22,493 at the 2020 census. It is a deep water seaport named after Bristol, England. Major industries include boat building and related marine industries, manufacturing, and tourism. The Bristol Warren Regional School District manages the unified school system for Bristol and the neighboring town of Warren. Prominent communities include Portuguese-Americans, mostly Azoreans, and Italian-Americans.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Bristol.
| Town | RI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bristol | #6 | A | D | A+ | B+ | A |
| Portsmouth | #5 | A+ | D | A | A | A |
| Warren | #23 | B+ | D | B | B+ | A− |
| Tiverton | #11 | A | C | A− | B+ | A |
| Barrington | #3 | A+ | D | A | A+ | A+ |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Bristol grades A overall, better than 95% of U.S. towns and #6 of 38 in Rhode Island. It grades A for health, A+ for safety and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
17 notable people were born here, including Jack Wilson and James DeWolf.
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