Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Manchester grades B− overall, 36th among Vermont's 71 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Residents are healthier than 81% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and it has 55 miles of trail and 34% conserved land. On the other side, the typical home is worth about $638K, 8.7 years of the Bennington area’s $73K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 92% of U.S. towns, with 8 places on the National Register. 34% of the land in Manchester is conserved, above both Vermont’s towns (14%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). The biggest place to walk is Green Mountain National Forest, 5,486 acres with 2.4 miles of trail. Manchester is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns.
Where Manchester beats most towns.
Equinox HouseCensus counts: 1,276 in 1790, 4,484 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1840 and 4 maps from 1894 on.
8 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Vermont), ordered by how far Manchester is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Manchester, 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 Manchester.
Manchester is a second-home town and draws workers from Bennington and beyond, but it is a long drive from an emergency room.
At 8.7 years of the Bennington area’s $73K median household income, the typical home (about $638K) costs more against local pay than in 96% of Vermont towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living.
The typical Manchester home is worth about $638,000, up 2.3% in a year, 63% above the Vermont typical home.
| Manchester | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,057 a month | $1,137 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 74% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester Elementary/Middle SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 396 | B− |
| Manchester Village School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 4–12 | Grades 4–12 | 24 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests
Its 8,976 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 97% of Vermont towns.
55 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. At 1.3 miles per square mile, Manchester’s trail density is above both the Vermont town median (0.6) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4).
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lye Brook Wilderness | 5.1 mi | 4,521 |
| 2. Green Mountain National Forest | 2.4 mi | 5,486 |
| 3. Factory Point Town Green | 0.1 mi | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
3,149 jobs are based in Manchester, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 14.4 minutes, against 23.5 across Vermont.
About one in 3 of Manchester’s working residents works in town. Manchester’s average trip to work is 14 minutes. Jobs based in Manchester fell to 3,149 in 2023, 292 fewer than in 2013.
| Manchester | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 37% | 16% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 14 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 23% | 15% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 17% | 9.2% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The nearest emergency room, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, is 21.4 miles away in a straight line. Within Vermont it is less healthy than 53% of the 71 graded towns: Vermont sets a high bar.
15% of adults binge drink in Manchester. Manchester beats the Vermont average on 4 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 32% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Manchester.
| Manchester | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 27% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 32% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Manchester | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults without reliable transportation | 5.7% | 6.4% |
| More adults screened for colon cancer | 74.4% | 69.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.2% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
January nights average 10.9°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 89% of Vermont places with climate records; July afternoons average 80.4°.
Manchester has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The January low in Manchester is 11°F. About 75 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Manchester | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 11°F | 9°F | 22°F |
| July high | 80°F | 80°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 66% of U.S. communities. Since 1995, 29 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Manchester.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
28.4% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, against 14.7% statewide, which helps explain the older median age.
26% of Manchester residents are 65 or older. Only 2 of the 71 Vermont towns we compare have a higher median age than Manchester. 17% of Manchester residents are under 18.
| Manchester | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 54.5 years | 43.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 47% | 39% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 26% | 22% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 17% | 19% | 22% |
56% women, 44% men
About 78 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3.6 points). Across Vermont, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Manchester | VT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.4% | 9.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.4% | 8.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8% | 11.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 6.2% | 12.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.9% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 23.4% | 14.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.1% | 13% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 11.6% | 8.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.4% | 5.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 17.1% | 26.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.5% | 15.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.6% | 8.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.9% | 25.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 23.5% | 18.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,400, single groups can be off by several points
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Manchester. Close and well known come first.
40 mi LakeLake George
37 mi MountainMount Greylock
37 mi LandmarkFort William Henry
34 mi Theme parkGreat Escape
9 mi Ski areaStratton Mountain Resort106 runs · 1,899 ft vertical
16 mi Ski areaMount Snow119 runs · 1,648 ft verticalLake George: Sixlocal, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mount Greylock: Jstergis, CC BY 3.0 · Fort William Henry: IrisKawling at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Great Escape: Jared and Corin, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Stratton Mountain Resort: Rudi Riet from Washington, DC, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Mount Snow: William J Sisti from Morristown, NJ, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0
None within 15 miles of Manchester; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Manchester residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Vermont.
Where Manchester’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
8 places in Manchester on the National Register of Historic Places.
Town in Vermont, United States
Manchester is a town in, and one of two shire towns (county seats) of, Bennington County, Vermont, United States. The population was 4,484 at the 2020 census. Manchester Village (an incorporated village) and Manchester Center are settlement centers within the town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Manchester.
| Town | VT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester | #36 | B− | D | — | B | A− |
| Winhall | — | — | C− | A | B | A+ |
| Dorset | — | — | D | — | B | A |
| Sunderland | — | — | C | — | B | A |
| Sandgate | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Winhall, Dorset and Sunderland have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Manchester, Dorset and Sunderland report no FBI crime data of their own. Sandgate isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Manchester with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Manchester grades B− overall, better than 53% of U.S. towns and #36 of 71 in Vermont. It grades A− for health 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.
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