Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Northfield's schools rank behind 96% of the state's. Overall it grades B−, 34th among Vermont's 71 graded towns. Crime is low: it reports less per resident than 93% of U.S. towns and residents are healthier than 82% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Northfield is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns. Northfield is home to Norwich University. Among 37 Vermont towns, just 3 have a lower violent crime rate than Northfield.
Where Northfield beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Slaughterhouse Covered Bridge| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Northfield Elementary School | PK–5 | 263 |
| Northfield Middle/High School | 6–12 | 254 |
Census counts: 204 in 1800, a low of 204 in 1800, 5,918 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1875 and 3 maps from 1924 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Vermont), ordered by how far Northfield is from typical.
Its grades run from A for safety (better than 93% of comparable towns) to D− for schools (better than 4%), so the B− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Northfield, 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 Northfield.
Northfield has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Vermont; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Vermont (mostly inland flooding).
Its public schools are run by the Paine Mountain Union School District #68. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northfield Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 263 | B |
| Northfield Middle/High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 6–12 | Grades 6–12 | 254 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 21 to 5 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 0 reported in 2025, 0 per 1,000 residents.
At 0.8 per 1,000 residents, Northfield’s property crime rate is against 14.2 in Vermont’s towns and 9.9 across U.S. towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Within Vermont it is healthier than 51% of the 71 graded towns: Vermont sets a high bar.
71% of adults had a checkup this year in Northfield, where Vermont’s towns sit at 76% and U.S. towns at 79%. 26% of Northfield adults sleep under 7 hours. Northfield beats the Vermont average on 6 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 6.
| Northfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 76% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 30% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 32% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 27% | 23% |
| What stands out | Northfield | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.6% | 9.9% |
| Fewer adults with high blood pressure | 26.3% | 31.4% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.4% | 10.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
23 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Norwich University Land, 851 acres with 14.3 miles of trail.
| Northfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 5% | 14% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Norwich University Land | 14.3 mi | 851 |
| 2. Northfield Municipal Forest | 5.5 mi | 403 |
| 3. Northfield Falls Park | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Adults 18 to 34 are 34% of residents (22% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 32% of residents (39% statewide). 15% of residents are under 18 in Northfield. Among 71 Vermont towns, just 5 have a lower median age than Northfield.
| Northfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 15% | 19% | 22% |
| Median age | 36.4 years | 43.8 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 35% | 40% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 22% | 18% |
46% women, 54% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.3 points. Across Vermont, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Northfield | VT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.1% | 9.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 3.4% | 8.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 21% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.8% | 11.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 9.7% | 12.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.9% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14% | 14.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.6% | 13% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.4% | 8.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 1.9% | 5.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 36.6% | 26.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.3% | 15.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.5% | 8.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.7% | 25.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.9% | 18.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The Northfield weather station records that about 6 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 95% of U.S. towns.
Northfield has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Northfield’s July high is 79°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of Vermont towns, with expected losses of about $127 per resident a year; that rating is what its B− for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in Northfield is 67 of 100. Since 2011, 34 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Northfield.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
63.3% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.4% across Vermont.
The typical Northfield home is worth about $316,000, about the same as a year ago, 19% below the Vermont typical home.
| Northfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,018 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
About one in 4 of Northfield’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Montpelier (9%), Berlin (8%) and Barre (7%).
| Northfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 24% | 16% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9.2% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Northfield. Close and well known come first.
28 mi MountainMount Mansfield
11 mi Ski areaSugarbush Resort142 runs · 2,569 ft vertical
37 mi Ski areaKillington Resort184 runs · 3,031 ft vertical
27 mi Ski areaStowe Mountain Resort144 runs · 2,390 ft vertical
12 mi Ski areaMad River Glen77 runs · 1,998 ft vertical
23 mi National forestGreen Mountain National ForestMount Mansfield: Original uploader was Calzarette (Joe Calzarette) at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Sugarbush Resort: Mrtrek1701 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Killington Resort: NHRHS2010, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Stowe Mountain Resort: Stevage, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mad River Glen: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Green Mountain National Forest: Brian W. Schaller, FAL
4 within 15 miles of the center of Northfield
College town 15 of every 100 Northfield residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Vermont.
9 places in Northfield on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Northfield.
Town in Vermont, United States
Northfield is a town in Washington County, Vermont, United States. The town lies in a valley within the Green Mountains and has been home to Norwich University since 1866. It contains the village of Northfield, where over half of the population lives. The town's total population was 5,918 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Northfield.
| Town | VT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northfield | #34 | B− | C | A | D− | A− |
| Waitsfield | — | — | C− | — | A | A+ |
| Williamstown | #59 | C− | C | — | D− | B+ |
| Berlin | #48 | C | C+ | D− | B+ | A |
| Moretown | — | — | B | — | A | A+ |
Waitsfield and Moretown have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Waitsfield, Williamstown and Moretown report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Northfield with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Northfield grades B− overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #34 of 71 in Vermont. It grades A− for health, A for safety and D− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 3.8 years of the area's median household income ($83,449 across the Barre, VT area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
10 notable people were born here, including Jay Hayden and Charles Albert Plumley.
