What stands out worked out from the figures below

Bethel has the most renters (24.8% rent).

Brookfield has the highest household income ($148k).

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	Bethel	Brookfield
People
Population	20,796Highest	17,706Lowest
Median age	42.8±2.6Lowest 4% above CT	44.3±1.8Highest 8% above CT
	Brookfield and Bethel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	20.9%±2.5Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.7%±3Highest CT: 20.2%
	Brookfield and Bethel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	16.4%±1.8Lowest CT: 18.5%	18.8%±2.8Highest CT: 18.5%
	Brookfield and Bethel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	45.7%Lowest CT: 42.5%	58.3%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.7%±1.5Highest CT: 7.1%	4.3%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Bethel and Brookfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$116,541±$7kLowest 22% above CT	$148,360±$11kHighest 55% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$434,600±$16kLowest 18% above CT	$479,700±$24kHighest 31% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,640±$142Lowest 10% above CT	$1,892±$183Highest 27% above CT
	Brookfield and Bethel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,165Highest 23% above CT	$7,594Lowest 14% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	51%±11.5Highest CT: 52.6%	35.9%±13.1Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Bethel and Brookfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.1%Highest CT: 10%	4.1%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	75.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%	86.5%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Lowest 7 yrs newer than CT	1978Highest 11 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	33 minHighest 23% above CT	28 minLowest 6% above CT
Work from home	17.5%±2.9Highest CT: 16%	16.3%±3Lowest CT: 16%
	Bethel and Brookfield 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	#100 of 149 in CT	#67 of 149 in CT
School district	Bethel School District	Brookfield School District
High school in town	Bethel High School	Brookfield High School
Students per teacherat that high school	13.6Highest	12.7Lowest
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.