What stands out worked out from the figures below

Bedford has the highest household income ($167k).

Manchester has the most renters (51.3% rent).

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	Bedford	Manchester
People
Population	23,746Lowest	115,643Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+10%Highest NH: +4.6%	+5.5%Lowest NH: +4.6%
Median age	45±2.2Highest 4% above NH	38±1Lowest 12% below NH
Kids under 18	22.7%±2.5Highest NH: 18.2%	18%±1Lowest NH: 18.2%
Age 65+	20.5%±2.1Highest NH: 20.1%	15.5%±0.8Lowest NH: 20.1%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	63%Highest NH: 40.6%	34%Lowest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.7%±2.1Lowest NH: 6%	6.4%±0.7Highest NH: 6%
	Manchester and Bedford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$167,418±$12kHighest 69% above NH	$81,007±$2kLowest 18% below NH
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$612,100±$26kHighest 52% above NH	$365,600±$7kLowest 9% below NH
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,099±$274Highest 41% above NH	$1,564±$37Lowest 5% above NH
Property taxmedian, yearly	$9,803Highest 47% above NH	$5,922Lowest 11% below NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	59.4%±15.3Highest NH: 48.2%	50%±3.6Lowest NH: 48.2%
	Bedford and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	2.7%Lowest NH: 7.2%	11.2%Highest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	82.9%Highest NH: 72.8%	48.7%Lowest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1990Highest 11 yrs newer than NH	1966Lowest 13 yrs older than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minHighest 5% below NH	24 minLowest 10% below NH
Work from home	27%±3.4Highest NH: 16.8%	14.1%±1.3Lowest NH: 16.8%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#7 of 120 in NH	#115 of 120 in NH
School district	Bedford School District	Spark Academy of Advanced Technologies · Manchester School District
High school in town	Bedford High School	Manchester Memorial High School
Students per teacherat that high school	13.5Lowest	14.3Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	None yet	6 photos →

NH 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.