What stands out worked out from the figures below

Bennington has the most affordable homes ($192k median).

Andover has the most people working from home (29.6%).

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	Bennington	Andover
People
Population	9,245Highest	616Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-3.1% VT: +2.8%	—
Median age	44.5±3Lowest 3% above VT	49.2±5.1Highest 14% above VT
	Andover and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	15.8%±3Highest VT: 17.9%	11.5%±4.9Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Bennington and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	26.9%±3.8Highest VT: 21.4%	22.7%±4.3Lowest VT: 21.4%
	Bennington and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	34.5%Lowest VT: 43.8%	43.3%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.6%±2.4Highest VT: 7%	2.8%±1.5Lowest VT: 7%
	Bennington and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$54,257±$12kLowest 33% below VT	$102,500±$38kHighest 26% above VT
	Andover and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$191,700±$28kLowest 39% below VT	$382,900±$68kHighest 21% above VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,115±$57Lowest 10% below VT	$1,389±$364Highest 13% above VT
	Andover and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,331Lowest 14% below VT	$5,190Highest about the VT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	70.4%±17.4Highest VT: 48.4%	69.4%±47.1Lowest VT: 48.4%
	Bennington and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	11.4%Highest VT: 10.1%	4.6%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	54.7%Lowest VT: 73.2%	82.8%Highest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1954Lowest 22 yrs older than VT	1980Highest 4 yrs newer than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	17 minLowest 27% below VT	25 minHighest 7% above VT
Work from home	12.6%±5.8Lowest VT: 16.9%	29.6%±12.9Highest VT: 16.9%
	Andover and Bennington 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	#58 of 70 in VT	—
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

VT 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.