Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 7,907.
Bellwood gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $323K, 3.7 years of the Richmond metro’s $87K median household income. It grades C+ overall, 197th among Virginia's 249 graded towns. The low prices come with trade-offs. Residents are less healthy than 96% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On the plus side, natural-hazard risk is low. 21% of residents live below the poverty line in Bellwood, where Virginia’s towns sit at 7.7% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. Bellwood has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Fort Harrison National Cemetery and Kingsland. Among 253 Virginia towns, just 9 have a lower share of adults with a bachelor’s degree than Bellwood.
Where Bellwood beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
6,352 counted in 2010 and 7,678 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Virginia), ordered by how far Bellwood is from typical.
Its grades run from A for hazard risk (better than 93% of comparable towns) to D− for health (better than 4%), so the C+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 5,974 in 2000, 7,678 in 2020. The archive holds 2 old photos and papers and 8 maps from 1894 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bellwood. Close and well known come first.
9 mi LandmarkHollywood Cemetery
30 mi Theme parkKings Dominion
9 mi MuseumWhite House of the Confederacy
10 mi LandmarkRobert E. Lee Monument
5 mi Ancient siteHenricus
10 mi Stadium & arenaRichmond ColiseumHollywood Cemetery: Andrew Bain, Public domain · Kings Dominion: Erechtheus, CC BY-SA 3.0 · White House of the Confederacy: AlbertHerring, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Robert E. Lee Monument: Martin Falbisoner, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Henricus: Morgan Riley, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Richmond Coliseum: Mentes at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Bellwood is unincorporated, so Chesterfield County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Bellwood.
Bellwood trades workers with Richmond and other neighbors, but it has poverty well above the Virginia rate and has many renters stretched by housing costs.
28% of adults worry about having enough food in Bellwood. Bellwood beats the Virginia average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 22. 17% of adults have diabetes in Bellwood.
| Bellwood | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 12% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 11% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 17% | 19% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Bellwood | VA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.1% | 7.7% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 28% | 13.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Chesterfield County Public Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bellwood ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 493 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VA on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 89% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 13 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bellwood.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
61.3% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.5% across Virginia.
44% of Bellwood households own their home. The typical Bellwood home is worth about $323,000, up 3.2% in a year, 22% below the Virginia typical home. The median rent in Bellwood is $1,059 a month.
| Bellwood | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 44% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,059 a month | $1,764 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Bellwood has mild winters and warm summers. Bellwood’s July high is 90°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Bellwood has about as many jobs (3,170) as working residents, but only 84 people both live and work here. Jobs based here grew from 2,229 in 2013 to 3,170.
Most working residents leave Bellwood for work: only 3% work in town. Since 2013, Bellwood has added 941 jobs, to 3,170 in 2023. The top destinations are Richmond (17%), Chester (3%) and Petersburg (2%).
| Bellwood | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $48,000 | $102,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 6.5% | 18% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.8% | 5% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
| Bellwood | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.4% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bensley Park | 0.6 mi | 17 |
| 2. Falling Creek Ironworks | — | 4 |
| 3. Fort Stevens Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
7 within 15 miles of the center of Bellwood
About 4 of every 100 Bellwood residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Virginia.
2 places in Bellwood on the National Register of Historic Places.
CDP in Virginia, United States
Bellwood is a census-designated place (CDP) in Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, Bellwood had a population of 7,678. The community takes its name from Bellwood, one of the James River Plantations.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Bellwood.
| Town | VA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellwood | #197 | C+ | B | — | B | D− |
| Bensley | #207 | C | B− | — | B | D− |
| Chester | #148 | B | C | — | B | B |
| Meadowbrook | #210 | C | C | — | B | C− |
Bellwood, Bensley, Chester and Meadowbrook report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Bellwood with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Bellwood grades C+ overall, better than 36% of U.S. towns and #197 of 249 in Virginia. It grades D− for health and B for schools. Health 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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