What stands out worked out from the figures below

Ashford has the highest household income ($122k).

Hamden has the shortest commute (22 min average).

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	Ashford	Hamden
People
Population	4,226Lowest	61,045Highest
Median age	37.9±10.3Lowest 8% below CT	38.7±0.9Highest 6% below CT
	Hamden and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.5%±5.5Highest CT: 20.2%	17%±1.5Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Ashford and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.9%±3.7Highest CT: 18.5%	18.1%±1.3Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Ashford and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	35.3%Lowest CT: 42.5%	47.8%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.4%±1.7Lowest CT: 7.1%	15%±1.1Highest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$121,926±$23kHighest 27% above CT	$98,306±$7kLowest about the CT average
	Ashford and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$334,800±$18kHighest 9% below CT	$298,200±$9kLowest 19% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,246±$208Lowest 16% below CT	$1,746±$50Highest 17% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,982Lowest 5% above CT	$7,784Highest 17% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	47%±26Lowest CT: 52.6%	50.9%±5.4Highest CT: 52.6%
	Hamden and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.4%Lowest CT: 10%	9.3%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	76.8%Highest CT: 66.5%	62.4%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1982Highest 15 yrs newer than CT	1964Lowest 3 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	34 minHighest 30% above CT	22 minLowest 18% below CT
Work from home	19.3%±5.5Highest CT: 16%	16.3%±2.1Lowest CT: 16%
	Ashford and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#90 of 149 in CT	#122 of 149 in CT
School district	Ashford School District	Connecticut Technical Education and Career System · Area Cooperative Educational Services
High school in town	None in town	Hamden High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	13.5
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

CT 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.