What stands out worked out from the figures below

Beacon Falls has the most affordable homes ($350k median).

Madison has the most expensive homes ($584k 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	Beacon Falls	Madison
People
Population	6,147Lowest	17,616Highest
Median age	48.4±3.8Lowest 18% above CT	51.9±1.9Highest 26% above CT
	Madison and Beacon Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18%±4.8Lowest CT: 20.2%	18.1%±2.2Highest CT: 20.2%
	Madison and Beacon Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	23.5%±4.4Lowest CT: 18.5%	25.2%±2.4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Madison and Beacon Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	44.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	72.4%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.3%±3.2Lowest CT: 7.1%	5.9%±1.5Highest CT: 7.1%
	Madison and Beacon Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$101,516±$42kLowest 6% above CT	$167,442±$16kHighest 75% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$350,300±$34kLowest 5% below CT	$583,900±$30kHighest 59% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,921±$286Lowest 29% above CT	$2,025±$741Highest 36% above CT
	Madison and Beacon Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,534Lowest about the CT average	$8,843Highest 33% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	50.7%±30.4Highest CT: 52.6%	44%±12.3Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Beacon Falls and Madison are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	2.1%Lowest CT: 10%	3.6%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	85.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%	90.4%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1985Highest 18 yrs newer than CT	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	33 minHighest 23% above CT	30 minLowest 12% above CT
Work from home	20.3%±7.4Lowest CT: 16%	30.2%±5.3Highest CT: 16%
	Madison and Beacon Falls 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	#77 of 149 in CT	#7 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 16	Madison School District
High school in town	Woodland Regional High School	Daniel Hand High School
Students per teacherat that high school	11.2Highest	9.8Lowest
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.