Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Waterbury grades A− overall, ranked 10th of 71 in Vermont. Residents are healthier than 96% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Its schools rank ahead of 87% of Vermont towns. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $530K, 6.4 years of the Barre area’s $83K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 93% of U.S. towns, with 6 places on the National Register. Waterbury’s trail density is 1.3 miles per square mile, against 0.6 in Vermont’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Mount Mansfield State Forest, 12,358 acres with 33.5 miles of trail. Waterbury's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Where Waterbury beats most towns.
Census counts: 644 in 1800, 5,331 in 2020. The archive holds 26 old photos and papers going back to 1914 and 2 maps from 1924 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 Waterbury is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Waterbury, 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 Waterbury.
Waterbury gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and trades workers with Burlington and other neighbors, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Vermont.
66 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mount Mansfield State Forest | 33.5 mi | 12,358 |
| 2. C.C. Putnam State Forest | 8.5 mi | 584 |
| 3. Waterbury Center State Park | 0.8 mi | 49 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Harwood Unified Union School District #60. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brookside Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 389 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests and graduation
24% of Waterbury adults sleep under 7 hours, where Vermont’s towns sit at 30% and U.S. towns at 36%. 27% of Waterbury adults have high blood pressure. Waterbury beats the Vermont average on 14 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 0.
| Waterbury | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 30% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 32% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 13% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 19% | 25% |
| What stands out | Waterbury | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with COPD | 4.9% | 6.5% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.1% | 9.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 6.4 years of the Barre area’s $83K median household income, the typical home (about $530K) costs more against local pay than in 90% of Vermont towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living.
The typical Waterbury home is worth about $530,000, down 0.9% in a year, 35% above the Vermont typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The Worcester 2 W weather station, 8 miles away, records that 126 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 99% of U.S. towns. The Worcester 2 W weather station, 8 miles away, records that about 1 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Waterbury has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Waterbury’s July high is 79°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Waterbury has about as many jobs (2,487) as working residents, but only 417 people both live and work here. Jobs based here fell from 3,553 in 2013 to 2,487.
Most working residents leave Waterbury for work: only 16% work in town. The average trip to work in Waterbury is 30 minutes. Jobs based in Waterbury fell to 2,487 in 2023, 1,066 fewer than in 2013.
| Waterbury | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $104,000 | $80,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 16% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.9% | 9.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
64 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 12 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 52% of U.S. communities. Since 2011, 64 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Waterbury.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Waterbury. Close and well known come first.
Big draw31 mi LakeLake Champlain
11 mi MountainMount Mansfield
10 mi Ski areaStowe Mountain Resort144 runs · 2,390 ft vertical
19 mi Ski areaSugarbush Resort142 runs · 2,569 ft vertical
13 mi Ski areaSmugglers' Notch Resort110 runs · 2,533 ft vertical
6 mi Ski areaBolton Valley Resort76 runs · 1,557 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 · Sugarbush Resort: Mrtrek1701 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Smugglers' Notch Resort: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bolton Valley Resort: Gopats92, Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Waterbury
About 3 of every 100 Waterbury residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Vermont.
6 places in Waterbury on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Waterbury.
Town in Vermont, United States
Waterbury is a town in Washington County in central Vermont, United States. Although the town is still home to the Waterbury Village Historic District, the village sharing the name of the town officially dissolved as a municipality in 2018. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,331.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Waterbury.
| Town | VT rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waterbury | #10 | A− | C− | — | A | A+ |
| Duxbury | — | — | C− | — | A | A+ |
| Moretown | — | — | B | — | A | A+ |
| Middlesex | — | — | C | — | B+ | A+ |
| Bolton | — | — | B− | — | A | A+ |
| Stowe | #23 | B+ | D− | B+ | A | A+ |
Duxbury, Moretown, Middlesex and Bolton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Waterbury, Duxbury, Moretown, Middlesex and Bolton report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Waterbury with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Waterbury grades A− overall, better than 83% of U.S. towns and #10 of 71 in Vermont. It grades A+ for health and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
9 notable people were born here, including William P. Dillingham and Wallace M. Greene.
