What stands out worked out from the figures below

Beacon Falls has the most kids (18% under 18).

Thompson has the most affordable homes ($292k 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	Thompson
People
Population	6,147Lowest	9,337Highest
Median age	48.4±3.8Lowest 18% above CT	54.1±2.2Highest 32% above CT
	Thompson and Beacon Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18%±4.8Highest CT: 20.2%	11.4%±2.8Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Beacon Falls and Thompson 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%	24.4%±4.3Highest CT: 18.5%
	Thompson 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%Highest CT: 42.5%	21.9%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.3%±3.2Highest CT: 7.1%	2.9%±1.3Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Beacon Falls and Thompson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$101,516±$42kHighest 6% above CT	$93,629±$18kLowest about the CT average
	Beacon Falls and Thompson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$350,300±$34kHighest 5% below CT	$291,900±$24kLowest 20% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,921±$286Highest 29% above CT	$1,012±$344Lowest 32% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,534Highest about the CT average	$3,822Lowest 42% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	50.7%±30.4Lowest CT: 52.6%	54%±18.7Highest CT: 52.6%
	Thompson and Beacon Falls 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%	5.9%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	85.5%Highest CT: 66.5%	84.3%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1985Highest 18 yrs newer than CT	1963Lowest 4 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	33 minHighest 23% above CT	32 minLowest 20% above CT
Work from home	20.3%±7.4Highest CT: 16%	13.1%±4.4Lowest CT: 16%
	Beacon Falls and Thompson 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	#130 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 16	Thompson School District
High school in town	Woodland Regional High School	Tourtellotte Memorial High School
Students per teacherat that high school	11.2Highest	7.9Lowest
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.