Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 7,823, chartered in 1781. 3.5 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Vermont town.
Trash & recyclingFor most people who can afford it, yes. Montpelier grades B overall, 30th among Vermont's 71 graded towns. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 98% of U.S. towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 97% of the country and its public schools beat 81% of Vermont towns on state tests and graduation. What holds it back is price: homes are expensive, about $415K for a typical one and 5 times the Barre area’s $83K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 97% of U.S. towns, with 6 places on the National Register. Montpelier’s trail density is 2.4 miles per square mile, above both the Vermont town median (0.6) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). Montpelier's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 99% of U.S. towns. Montpelier is home to Community College of Vermont.
Where Montpelier beats most towns.
Vermont Statehouse
Vermont Statehouse is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 890 in 1800, a low of 890 in 1800, 8,074 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1833 and 5 maps from 1919 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Vermont), ordered by how far Montpelier is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 13%), so the B overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Montpelier, 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 Montpelier.
Montpelier has more 90° days than almost anywhere else in Vermont and draws workers from Barre and beyond, but it has seen reported crime rise by about half.
For Montpelier, that is below Vermont’s towns (14%) but above U.S. towns (4.3%). 25 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. Hubbard Park, at 253 acres with 8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hubbard Park | 8 mi | 253 |
| 2. North Branch River Park | 6.6 mi | 196 |
| 3. North Branch Nature Center | 1.3 mi | 27 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its A− is the best School Grade on its borders; Berlin (B+) is next. Its A− for schools comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $415K.
Its public schools are run by the Montpelier Roxbury Unified Union School District #71. Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Montpelier High School, with 388 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Union Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 447 | A− |
| Montpelier High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 388 | A |
| Main Street Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 348 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests and graduation
23% of Montpelier adults sleep under 7 hours. Montpelier beats the Vermont average on 18 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 16% of Montpelier adults get no exercise outside work.
| Montpelier | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 30% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 30% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Montpelier | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.4% | 9.2% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.7% | 10.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
6,557 jobs are based in Montpelier, 1.8 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here fell from 8,921 in 2013 to 6,557.
About one in 3 of Montpelier’s working residents works in town. 27% of workers work from home in Montpelier. Jobs based in Montpelier fell to 6,557 in 2023, 2,364 fewer than in 2013.
| Montpelier | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 27% | 15% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 33% | 16% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 6.5% | 9.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Reported crimes rose from 174 to 265 over the last three FBI years, a rise beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. At 34.6 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 65% of Vermont’s graded towns.
Montpelier’s property crime rate is 30.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Montpelier | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 30.2 per 1,000 residents | 13.6 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.4 per 1,000 residents | 1.6 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Northfield weather station, 8 miles away, records that about 6 days a year reach 90°, the highest of 416 Vermont places with climate records. The Northfield weather station, 8 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 133 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 84% of Vermont places with climate records.
Montpelier has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Montpelier is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
283 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 23 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 63% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 283 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Montpelier.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Among 71 Vermont towns, just 5 have a lower share of households owning their home than Montpelier. The typical Montpelier home is worth about $415,000, up 0.6% in a year, 6% above the Vermont typical home.
| Montpelier | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 53% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,302 a month | $1,133 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Montpelier. Close and well known come first.
23 mi MountainMount Mansfield
21 mi Ski areaStowe Mountain Resort144 runs · 2,390 ft vertical
19 mi Ski areaSugarbush Resort142 runs · 2,569 ft vertical
18 mi Ski areaMad River Glen77 runs · 1,998 ft vertical
23 mi Ski areaSmugglers' Notch Resort110 runs · 2,533 ft vertical
34 mi MuseumShelburne MuseumMount Mansfield: Original uploader was Calzarette (Joe Calzarette) at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Stowe Mountain Resort: Stevage, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sugarbush Resort: Mrtrek1701 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mad River Glen: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Smugglers' Notch Resort: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Shelburne Museum: Storylanding, CC0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Montpelier
About 5 of every 100 Montpelier residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Vermont.
2 colleges in town.
6 places in Montpelier on the National Register of Historic Places.
31 notable people were born in Montpelier.
Capital city of Vermont, United States
Montpelier ( mont-PEEL-yər) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat of Washington County. The site of Vermont's state government, it is the least populous state capital in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,074, with a daytime population growth of about 21,000 due to the large number of jobs within city limits. The Vermont College of Fine Arts is located in the municipality. It was named after Montpellier, a city in the south of France. Montpelier was chartered as a town by proprietors from Massachusetts and western Vermont on August 14, 1781, and the Town of Montpelier was granted municipal powers by the "Governor, Council and Genera…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Montpelier.
| Town | VT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montpelier | #30 | B | D | C− | A− | A+ |
| Berlin | #48 | C | C+ | D− | B+ | A |
| East Montpelier | #11 | A− | C− | — | B+ | A+ |
| Middlesex | — | — | C | — | B+ | A+ |
Middlesex has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. East Montpelier and Middlesex report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Montpelier with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Montpelier grades B overall, better than 59% of U.S. towns and #30 of 71 in Vermont. It grades A+ for health, C− 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.
31 notable people were born here, including Patrick Leahy and George Dewey.
