What stands out worked out from the figures below

Berlin has the most affordable homes ($131k median).

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

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	Berlin	Bennington
People
Population	9,383Lowest	15,249Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-6.2%Lowest U.S.: +7.4%	-2.7%Highest U.S.: +7.4%
Median age	44.6±2.8Lowest 15% above U.S.	44.7±2.3Highest 15% above U.S.
	Bennington and Berlin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.2%±2.8Lowest U.S.: 22%	17.7%±2.3Highest U.S.: 22%
	Bennington and Berlin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	20.1%±2.7Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	25.2%±2.8Highest U.S.: 17.2%
	Bennington and Berlin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	14.1%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%	36.9%Highest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.7%±1.1Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	5.8%±1.6Highest U.S.: 6.4%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$45,180±$5kLowest 44% below U.S.	$59,446±$7kHighest 26% below U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$131,000±$15kLowest 61% below U.S.	$213,300±$15kHighest 36% below U.S.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$815±$141Lowest 42% below U.S.	$1,133±$63Highest 20% below U.S.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,437Lowest 10% above U.S.	$4,513Highest 45% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	43.7%±12Lowest U.S.: 51.1%	68.8%±14.1Highest U.S.: 51.1%
	Bennington and Berlin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	15.3%Highest U.S.: 12.5%	13.2%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	62.6%Highest U.S.: 65.2%	58.4%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1938Lowest 42 yrs older than U.S.	1961Highest 19 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	19 minHighest 29% below U.S.	17 minLowest 35% below U.S.
Work from home	3.5%±2.1Lowest U.S.: 15.1%	15.1%±4.4Highest U.S.: 15.1%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#108 of 120 in NH	#58 of 70 in VT
School district	Berlin School District	Southwest Tech · Southwest Vermont Union Elementary School District #87
High school in town	Berlin Senior High School	Mt. Anthony Senior Union High School
Students per teacherat that high school	8.2Lowest	14.7Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

U.S. 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.