Short-term kit
Radon Short Term Test Kit short-term charcoal radon test kit, lab fee included
- Lab fee included
Method: Charcoal
In home: 2 to 7 days
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in Cheshire County, New Hampshire
EPA puts Cheshire County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and 19.4% of its 103 reported radon tests (2021) were at or above 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
19.4%
23.3 pts below NH
- Cheshire
- 19.4%
- NH
- 42.7%
103 tests, 2021
Median result
2.1pCi/L
Below action level
- Cheshire
- 2.1 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2021
Tests reported
103
7th of 10 by tests
- Cheshire
- 103
- Rockingham
- 638
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2021
EPA radon zone
Zone 2
Moderate potential
- 1
- Zone 2
- 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts 2 to 4 pCi/L indoors
Rank in NH
10 of 10
Lowest quarter
- Cheshire
- 19.4%
- Carroll
- 54.0%
By share, of 10 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Cheshire County
Starts at Cheshire County's median, 2.1 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 2.1 pCi/L
Between 2 and 4 pCi/L
- Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
- 2 to 4consider a fix
- 4 and aboveEPA says fix it
This result is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends considering a fix when the level is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. Cheshire County's median reported result, 2021.
The data
Cheshire County, At a glance
Cheshire County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential
Cheshire County is a
USGS geologic potential: Moderate across 86% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Cheshire County, 2021
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 18.9% |
| 2019 | 20.6% |
| 2020 | 23.8% |
| 2021 | 19.4% |
2021: 19.4%. Across these years the share ran from 18.9% to 23.8%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
These are the 103 tests reported to CDC for Cheshire County over 2021, many from homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: they describe the county's reported tests, not this house.
Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2021. Measured data period: 2005 to 2021 (every CDC figure on file).
Cheshire County, Compared
Cheshire County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411Cheshire County's 103 reported tests in 2021 had a middle value of 2.1 pCi/L and a maximum of 49.6 pCi/L, and 19.4% reached 4 pCi/L. New Hampshire as a whole (10 New Hampshire counties, pooled) comes to 42.7%: 23.3 points higher than here.
Among its state's counties it ranks 10th of 10 New Hampshire counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. Statewide for the same period, Carroll County reported the highest share (54.0%) and Sullivan County the lowest (23.3%).
Below the action level, 47 tests (45.6%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 32.3% statewide, and 36 tests (35.0%) fell between 2 and 4, against 25.0% statewide. The busiest year on file was 2018, with 201 tests reported; the quietest, 2021, had 103.
EPA's 1993 zone map puts Cheshire County in Zone 2, a predicted county average between 2 and 4 pCi/L. USGS geology rates 86% of the county's land moderate radon potential.
Next door, the shares run from 12.0% in Windham County, VT to 41.5% in Hillsborough County, with Windham County, VT below Cheshire County. Over 4 years of annual figures the share held within 2 points, from 18.9% in 2018 to 19.4% in 2021; its peak was 23.8% in 2020.
CDC also counts 11 tests taken after mitigation in Cheshire County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.
Cheshire CountyNew Hampshire, pooled
19.4% % of tests42.7% % of tests
| Year | Tests | Cheshire County, at or above 4 pCi/L | New Hampshire, pooled |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 201 | 18.9% | 34.6% |
| 2019 | 131 | 20.6% | 40.6% |
| 2020 | 168 | 23.8% | 40.2% |
| 2021 | 103 | 19.4% | 42.7% |
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Cheshire County, Geology
The ground under Cheshire County
PredictedMost of the ground under Cheshire County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 86.2% of its land is moderate radon potential, with 6.5% high and 7.3% low. The map puts 52.8% of Cheshire County in the area it calls Eastern New England Upland and 26.4% in Eastern New England Upland, with 7 smaller areas beside them. USGS gives both a radon index of 10, in the moderate band (9 to 11).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern New England Upland | Late Cambrian-Early Devonian limestone, conglomerate, phyllite, schist, slate. | Moderate | 10 | 52.8% |
| Eastern New England Upland | Silurian-Devonian intrusive rocks ranging from gabbro to granite and Middle to Late Ordovician intrusive rocks ranging from gabbro to syenite. | Moderate | 10 | 26.4% |
| Eastern New England Upland | Silurian-Devonian intrusive rocks ranging from gabbro to granite. | Low | 8 | 7.3% |
| Eastern New England Upland | Devonian-Carboniferous two-mica granite. | High | 13 | 6.4% |
| Eastern New England Upland | Jurassic-Cretaceous rocks of the White Mountain and New England-Quebec igneous succession. | Moderate | 10 | 2.5% |
| Eastern New England Upland | Middle to Late Ordovician intrusive rocks ranging from gabbro to syenite. | Moderate | 10 | 1.3% |
3 smaller areas are not listed. Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Cheshire County beside the ground around it
New Hampshire as a whole has more high-potential ground than Cheshire County: 18.8% of its land, against 6.5% here. Of the 5 counties that border it, 2 have more high-potential ground, Worcester County, MA the most at 85.4%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Cheshire County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Cheshire County
- New Hampshire Radon ProgramNew Hampshire Radon Program, run by New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, does not license radon professionals and offers free or discounted test kits, and answers questions about testing and mitigation in New Hampshire.Visit the program’s page(opens in a new tab)
- Free and low-cost kitsThe program says:
The NH Radon Program provides free radon test kits to NH residents.
- Compare kits
- See the New Hampshire directoryNo professionals are listed in New Hampshire yet. The state program can point you to registered testers and mitigators.
What New Hampshire's program says
- Licensing of radon professionals
There is no requirement in New Hampshire for those professionals testing for radon to be certified but it is recommended to use a nationally certified radon measurement professional especially if a real estate transaction is involved.
What it means
Cheshire County, Questions
Questions about radon in Cheshire County
Are radon levels high in Cheshire County?
In 2021, 19.4% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Cheshire County, New Hampshire were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 2.1 pCi/L. Of 10 New Hampshire counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 9 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 42.7%.
Which counties border Cheshire County?
Cheshire County borders 5 counties: Windham County, VT, Sullivan County, NH, Hillsborough County, NH, Franklin County, MA and Worcester County, MA.
Products
Cheshire County, Products
Testing a home in Cheshire County
In Cheshire County, 19.4% of 103 tests reported to CDC in 2021 reached 4 pCi/L, against 42.7% pooled across New Hampshire. In Zone 2 a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in Cheshire County; a long-term test tells the year-round average.
Test kits and monitors3
See every kit and monitor
Long-term kit
RL116 long-term radon test kit
- Lab fee extra
Method: Alpha track
In home: 90 days to 12 months
MonitorINKBIRD
INK-RD3 battery radon monitor with an e-ink screen
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Battery
- Screen
First reading: Within 24 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Explore
Cheshire County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Cheshire County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Hillsborough County, NHEPA zone 2
41.5%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.2 pCi/L · 610 tests · 22.1 points above Cheshire County
- Radon levels in Sullivan County, NHEPA zone 2
23.3%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 2.7 pCi/L · 60 tests · 3.9 points above Cheshire County
- Radon levels in Windham County, VTEPA zone 2
12.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.5 pCi/L · 117 tests · 7.4 points below Cheshire County
- Radon levels in Franklin County, MAEPA zone 2
No CDC figure for 2021; its page reads it against its own neighbours.
- Radon levels in Worcester County, MAEPA zone 1
No CDC figure for 2021; its page reads it against its own neighbours.
Cheshire County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Cheshire County
The Census Bureau estimates 78,269 residents in Cheshire County for July 1, 2025, 1,728 more than in 2020 (+2.3%). That works out to 111 people per square mile of land. Keene, its one incorporated place, has 23,072 residents, 29.5% of the total. CDC's 103 reported tests for 2021 work out to 1.3 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to New Hampshire's 1.6.
Keene is the one incorporated place here; CDC publishes no figure by town, so it reads Cheshire County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keene | 23,072 | +0.1% | 29.5% |
One incorporated place, as listed in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 place reference files. Residents: U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025).
Cheshire County, Homes
Homes in Cheshire County
Of Cheshire County's 35,777 homes, 70% are detached houses, against 63% across New Hampshire; 12% are in buildings of five or more homes. Half of its homes were built before 1972, close to New Hampshire's 1978: 39% date from before 1960 and 16% from 2000 or later. 70% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (New Hampshire: 73%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | Cheshire County | New Hampshire |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 35,777 | 644,253 |
| Detached houses | 70% | 63% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 12% | 15% |
| Mobile homes | 6% | 5% |
| Built before 1960 | 39% | 29% |
| Built since 2000 | 16% | 18% |
| Middle year built | 1972 | 1978 |
| Owner-occupied | 70% | 73% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.