What stands out worked out from the figures below

Bethany has the highest household income ($166k).

Old Lyme has the most people working from home (24.2%).

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	Bethany	Old Lyme
People
Population	5,288Lowest	7,679Highest
Median age	42.5±2.9Lowest 3% above CT	50.6±3.3Highest 23% above CT
Kids under 18	20.3%±5.9 CT: 20.2%	20.3%±3.1 CT: 20.2%
Age 65+	17.2%±4.2Lowest CT: 18.5%	26.4%±3.1Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	58%Highest CT: 42.5%	56.5%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.8%±3.7Highest CT: 7.1%	2.4%±1.2Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Bethany and Old Lyme are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$166,236±$20kHighest 74% above CT	$131,899±$11kLowest 38% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$418,000±$42kLowest 14% above CT	$484,200±$21kHighest 32% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$2,238±$295 50% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,313Highest 25% above CT	$6,284Lowest 5% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	0%±100Lowest CT: 52.6%	51.6%±17.2Highest CT: 52.6%
	Old Lyme and Bethany are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	2.3%Lowest CT: 10%	2.9%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	97.2%Highest CT: 66.5%	88.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1970Highest 3 yrs newer than CT	1965Lowest 2 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	32 minHighest 21% above CT	27 minLowest about the CT average
Work from home	12%±5.2Lowest CT: 16%	24.2%±5.7Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#30 of 149 in CT	#10 of 149 in CT
School district	Bethany School District · Regional School District 05	Regional School District 18
High school in town	None in town	Lyme-Old Lyme High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	9.6
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.