Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 11,346, settled in 1763.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Essex grades A− overall, 13th among Vermont's 71 graded towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 97% of the country. The median household earns $110K and its public schools beat 85% of Vermont towns on state tests and graduation. What holds it back is price: homes are expensive, about $471K for a typical one and 5.1 times the Burlington metro’s $93K median household income. Essex’s trail density is 2.1 miles per square mile, against 0.6 in Vermont’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. On hazard risk, just 12 of Vermont’s 172 towns do better. Roswell Butler House is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Essex beats most towns.
Census counts: 354 in 1790, 22,094 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 4 maps from 1915 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Vermont), ordered by how far Essex is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Essex, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Essex.
Essex reports less crime than Colchester or any other graded neighbor, gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and trades workers with Burlington and other neighbors.
For Essex, that is where Vermont’s towns sit at 14% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. 70 miles of trail in 17 parks and preserves. Indian Brook Park, at 499 acres with 7.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Indian Brook Park | 7.9 mi | 499 |
| 2. Saxon Hill | 5.7 mi | 116 |
| 3. Saint Michael's College Natural Area | 3 mi | 239 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its A for schools comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $471K.
Its public schools are run by Essex Westford Educational Community Unified Union SD #51. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essex Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 484 | – |
| Essex Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 366 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Vermont is tooth loss: 6.4% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 10.1% statewide.
25% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Essex. Essex beats the Vermont average on 16 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 23% of adults have obesity in Essex.
| Essex | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 30% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 30% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 32% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 19% | 25% |
| What stands out | Essex | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.4% | 10.1% |
| Fewer adults who get no exercise | 14% | 18.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Essex’s FEMA risk score is 10 of 100. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Essex since 1995.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Essex Junction 1 N weather station records that 86 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 95% of U.S. towns. The Essex Junction 1 N weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 160 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 88% of Vermont places with climate records.
Essex has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Essex is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Essex home is worth about $471,000, down 0.5% in a year, 20% above the Vermont typical home.
| Essex | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,569 a month | $1,133 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 76% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Essex has about as many jobs (5,535) as working residents, but only 610 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Essex for work: only 11% work in town. 22% of Essex workers work from home. The top destinations are Burlington (22%), South Burlington (14%) and Essex Junction (10%).
| Essex | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 22% | 15% | 11% |
| Median household income | $110,000 | $80,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 5% | 9.6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Crime runs higher than in most U.S. towns, but its B− tops all 3 graded towns on its borders; Colchester (C+) comes closest.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Essex. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi LakeLake Champlain
12 mi MountainMount Mansfield
13 mi Ski areaStowe Mountain Resort144 runs · 2,390 ft vertical
15 mi MuseumShelburne Museum
14 mi Ski areaSmugglers' Notch Resort110 runs · 2,533 ft vertical
28 mi Ski areaSugarbush Resort142 runs · 2,569 ft verticalLake Champlain: Copernicus Sentinel-2, ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 igo · Mount Mansfield: Original uploader was Calzarette (Joe Calzarette) at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Stowe Mountain Resort: Stevage, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Shelburne Museum: Storylanding, CC0 · Smugglers' Notch Resort: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sugarbush Resort: Mrtrek1701 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Essex
About 3 of every 100 Essex residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Vermont.
19,587 counted in 2010 and 22,094 in 2020; an estimated 11,346 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Town in Vermont, United States
Essex is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. Vermont Route 289 crosses the town from east to west. The city of Essex Junction, with a population as of 2020 of 10,590, was located within the town as an incorporated village until 2022.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Essex.
| Town | VT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essex | #13 | A− | D | B− | A | A+ |
| Williston | #25 | B | D | D | A+ | A+ |
| Essex Junction | #5 | A | D | — | A | A+ |
| South Burlington | #26 | B | D | D | A | A+ |
| Jericho | #2 | A | D | — | A | A+ |
| Westford | — | — | D | — | A | A+ |
| Colchester | #16 | A− | C− | C+ | A | A |
| Underhill | #24 | B+ | D | — | A | A+ |
Westford has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Essex Junction, Jericho, Westford and Underhill report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Essex with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Essex grades A− overall, better than 81% of U.S. towns and #13 of 71 in Vermont. It grades A+ for health, B− for safety and A 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.
2 notable people were born here, including Bert Abbey and William B. Castle.
