What stands out worked out from the figures below

Bennington has the most people working from home (15.1%).

Orleans has the most affordable homes ($156k 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	Bennington	Orleans
People
Population	15,249Highest	809Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-2.7%Highest VT: +2.8%	-3.7%Lowest VT: +2.8%
Median age	44.7±2.3Highest 4% above VT	41.7±5.8Lowest 3% below VT
	Bennington and Orleans are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.7%±2.3Lowest VT: 17.9%	17.9%±4.5Highest VT: 17.9%
	Orleans and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	25.2%±2.8Highest VT: 21.4%	19.7%±3.2Lowest VT: 21.4%
	Bennington and Orleans are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	36.9%Highest VT: 43.8%	24.8%Lowest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.8%±1.6Highest VT: 7%	3.7%±2.1Lowest VT: 7%
	Bennington and Orleans are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$59,446±$7kHighest 27% below VT	$57,159±$10kLowest 30% below VT
	Bennington and Orleans are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$213,300±$15kHighest 33% below VT	$156,300±$18kLowest 51% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,133±$63Highest 8% below VT	$810±$94Lowest 34% below VT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,513Highest 10% below VT	$3,019Lowest 40% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	68.8%±14.1Highest VT: 48.4%	27.3%±17.2Lowest VT: 48.4%
Below poverty line	13.2%Highest VT: 10.1%	8.2%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	58.4%Lowest VT: 73.2%	64.1%Highest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1961Highest 15 yrs older than VT	1938Lowest 38 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	17 minLowest 27% below VT	31 minHighest 33% above VT
Work from home	15.1%±4.4Highest VT: 16.9%	8.3%±3.7Lowest VT: 16.9%
	Bennington and Orleans 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	—
School district	Southwest Tech · Southwest Vermont Union Elementary School District #87	—
High school in town	Mt. Anthony Senior Union High School	—
Students per teacherat that high school	14.7	—
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.