What stands out worked out from the figures below

Ashford has the most affordable homes ($335k median).

Salem has the most kids (23.2% under 18).

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	Salem
People
Population	4,226Lowest	4,282Highest
Median age	37.9±10.3Lowest 8% below CT	40.9±5.4Highest about the CT average
	Salem and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.5%±5.5Lowest CT: 20.2%	23.2%±5.1Highest CT: 20.2%
	Salem and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.9%±3.7Lowest CT: 18.5%	19.7%±4.7Highest CT: 18.5%
	Salem and Ashford 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%	50.6%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.4%±1.7Lowest CT: 7.1%	5.8%±3.3Highest CT: 7.1%
	Salem and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$121,926±$23kLowest 27% above CT	$123,245±$8kHighest 29% above CT
	Salem and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$334,800±$18kLowest 9% below CT	$403,600±$33kHighest 10% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,246±$208Lowest 16% below CT	$1,440±$150Highest 3% below CT
	Salem and Ashford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,982Highest 5% above CT	$6,668Lowest about the CT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	47%±26Highest CT: 52.6%	32.1%±26Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Ashford and Salem 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%	6.2%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	76.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	86.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1982Lowest 15 yrs newer than CT	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	34 minHighest 30% above CT	32 minLowest 19% above CT
Work from home	19.3%±5.5Highest CT: 16%	18%±9.6Lowest CT: 16%
	Ashford and Salem 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	#11 of 149 in CT
School district	Ashford School District	Salem School District
High school in town	None in town	None in town
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.