What stands out worked out from the figures below

Amesbury has the most expensive homes ($519k median).

Plainfield has the most affordable homes ($272k median).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	Amesbury	Plainfield
People
Population	17,403Highest	15,141Lowest
Median age	43.7±1.7Highest 12% above U.S.	37±4.5Lowest 5% below U.S.
Kids under 18	20%±2.4Highest U.S.: 22%	19.4%±2.6Lowest U.S.: 22%
	Amesbury and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.2%±2.1Highest U.S.: 17.2%	16.6%±2.4Lowest U.S.: 17.2%
	Amesbury and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	44.8%Highest U.S.: 35.7%	15%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.1%±1.3Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	5.6%±1.8Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Plainfield and Amesbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$103,554±$12kHighest 28% above U.S.	$76,993±$8kLowest 5% below U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$519,300±$32kHighest 56% above U.S.	$272,100±$16kLowest 18% below U.S.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,683±$115Highest 19% above U.S.	$1,204±$70Lowest 15% below U.S.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,360Highest 136% above U.S.	$4,209Lowest 35% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	66.7%±10.7Highest U.S.: 51.1%	39.8%±9.5Lowest U.S.: 51.1%
Below poverty line	7.1%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%	8.7%Highest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	68.6%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%	73.6%Highest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1969Lowest 11 yrs older than U.S.	1971Highest 9 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 10% above U.S.	27 minLowest about the U.S. average
Work from home	17.4%±2.8Highest U.S.: 15.1%	10%±4Lowest U.S.: 15.1%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#151 of 282 in MA	#131 of 149 in CT
School district	Amesbury	Plainfield School District
High school in town	Amesbury High	Plainfield High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.9Highest	10.3Lowest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

U.S. average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.