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Bennington, Vermont

Bennington is a small town of about 15,000 people in Bennington County, Vermont. It's the county seat. It has lost about 2% of its people since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.6 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Hartford, is about 82 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
14,953
down 2.3% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$213,300
Bennington County prices up 22% since 2022
Household income
$59,446
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Vermont
96.3
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Southwestern Vermont Medical Center
To Hartford
82 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 3.7% below the U.S. average in the parts of Vermont outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.6 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood83 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 5.5 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 15.9 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town7 public schools: 5 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close bySouthwestern Vermont Medical Center is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityHartford is about 82 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Bennington meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$213,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 22%Bennington County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,133 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$59,446U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
58%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$4,513 a yearVermont: $5,039
Homes built before 1940
36%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
5%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
4%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
96.3U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Vermont outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 22% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Vermont outside metro areas, not Bennington alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
14,9532020: 15,301
Median age
44.7 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
25%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
18%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
37%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
7%U.S.: 6%
College students
6%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (39%); retail (16%); manufacturing (11%)
Unemployment rate
5%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
17 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
15%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
13%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, Bennington, VT, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

7 public schools in Bennington, run by Southwest Vermont Union Elementary School District #87 and Mount Anthony Union High School District #14.

Colleges in or next to town: Bennington College (under 1,000 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Vermont's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
74%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
87%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
13°F
July average high
81°F
Days 90°F or hotter
3 a year
Nights at or below freezing
152 a year
Rain and melted snow
46.9 inches a year
Snow
75 inches a year
Elevation
808 feet

Weather stations: Bennington Morse St Ap (2 miles away) and Sunderland 2 (15 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Troy, Hartford.

Bennington County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 6, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

28 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Bennington College Historic District, Bennington Fish Hatchery, the Carrigan Lane Historic District and the Downtown Bennington Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Appalachian National Scenic Trail4 miles
  • Saratoga National Historical Park21 miles
  • Martin Van Buren National Historic Site43 miles
  • Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park59 miles

Campus life. Check Bennington College's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Bennington's history on Wikipedia.

Know Bennington?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Woodford, VT346 people, 7 miles
  • Stamford, VT848 people, 9 miles
  • Searsburg, VT124 people, 13 miles
  • Readsboro, VT686 people, 14 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.