What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Wolcott has the most affordable homes ($326k 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	Wolcott
People
Population	17,403Highest	16,279Lowest
Median age	43.7±1.7Lowest 12% above U.S.	44.4±2.5Highest 14% above U.S.
	Wolcott and Amesbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	20%±2.4Highest U.S.: 22%	19.4%±3.1Lowest U.S.: 22%
	Amesbury and Wolcott are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.2%±2.1Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	18.8%±2.8Highest U.S.: 17.2%
	Wolcott and Amesbury 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%	37%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.1%±1.3Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	5.3%±1.9Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Wolcott 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±$12kLowest 28% above U.S.	$110,850±$10kHighest 37% above U.S.
	Wolcott and Amesbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$519,300±$32kHighest 56% above U.S.	$326,200±$17kLowest about the U.S. average
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,683±$115Highest 19% above U.S.	$1,464±$913Lowest 4% above U.S.
	Amesbury and Wolcott are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,360Highest 136% above U.S.	$5,799Lowest 86% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	66.7%±10.7Highest U.S.: 51.1%	49.8%±24.2Lowest U.S.: 51.1%
	Amesbury and Wolcott are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	7.1%Highest U.S.: 12.5%	1.8%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	68.6%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%	88.4%Highest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1969Lowest 11 yrs older than U.S.	1976Highest 4 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minLowest 10% above U.S.	30 minHighest 13% above U.S.
Work from home	17.4%±2.8Highest U.S.: 15.1%	11.2%±3.1Lowest U.S.: 15.1%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#151 of 282 in MA	#76 of 149 in CT
School district	Amesbury	Wolcott School District
High school in town	Amesbury High	Wolcott High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.9Highest	10.1Lowest
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.