82,182 people (2024 Census estimate, +3.3% since 2020)
760 square miles of land · 108 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
19 active community water systems list Bedford County in the area they serve, reporting 41,541 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| BEDFORD REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY (BRWA) surface water · local government · VA5019052 | 38,794 served |
| MONTVALE WATER, INC. groundwater · private · VA5019675 | 698 served |
| MOUNTAIN VIEW SHORES groundwater · local government · VA5019685 | 490 served |
| STEWARTSVILLE CONSECUTIVE buys surface water · local government · VA5019795 | 340 served |
| HARDY ROAD TRAILER PARK, SECTION 2 groundwater · private · VA5019379 | 200 served |
| VIRGINIA RIDGE groundwater · private · VA5019878 | 180 served |
| RIDGEVIEW VILLAGE groundwater · private · VA5019767 | 128 served |
| TIMBER RIDGE SUBDIVISION groundwater · private · VA5019800 | 110 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 1 people were held in Bedford County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2025). In 2020 it was about 85.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
1 school district has its office in Bedford County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $134.1 million — $122.8 million to run schools, about $13,519 per student, plus $11.2 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $46.5 million local (mostly property tax), $74.7 million state, $20.8 million federal. Long-term debt: $74.5 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Bedford County about $17.6 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Relatively Low.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
206 bridges in Bedford County: 107 in good condition, 93 fair, and 6 poor (2.9%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| Village Dr 1460 over Br of Beaver Dam Ck · built 1985 | 521 vehicles a day |
| Hurricane Dr 639 over North Otter Creek · built 1939 | 262 vehicles a day |
| Elkton Farm Rd 666 over Elk Creek · built 1915 | 130 vehicles a day |
| Elkton Farm Rd 666 over Norfolk Southern RR · built 1932 | 130 vehicles a day |
| Riverside Inn Cir. over HUNTING CREEK · built 1932 | 102 vehicles a day |
| Shepherds St 691 over Wolf Creek · built 1932 | 65 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $7.7 million of work in Bedford County in fiscal 2025, about $97 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Early voting: 2026-09-18 to 2026-10-31. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-23. Mail ballot request deadline: 2026-10-23. Election Day: 2026-11-03.
Source: Virginia Department of Elections: upcoming elections · Virginia Department of Elections: voter FAQ · Virginia Department of Elections: absentee voting
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Bedford County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Bedford County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Virginia: the state government and every county in Virginia.
Nearby counties: Lynchburg city (19 mi) · Botetourt County (23 mi) · Roanoke city (24 mi) · Campbell County (25 mi) · Salem city (29 mi) · Franklin County (30 mi).