What stands out worked out from the figures below

Bridgewater has the most affordable homes ($218k median).

Windham has the most people working from home (20.5%).

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	Bridgewater	Windham
People
Population	980Highest	594Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-3.5% VT: +2.8%	—
Median age	57.1±8Highest 32% above VT	44.2±7.4Lowest about the VT average
	Bridgewater and Windham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	12.8%±5.8Lowest VT: 17.9%	17.5%±7.9Highest VT: 17.9%
	Windham and Bridgewater are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	30.2%±0.7Highest VT: 21.4%	23.2%±8.1Lowest VT: 21.4%
	Bridgewater and Windham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.3%Lowest VT: 43.8%	48.1%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.8%±3.8Highest VT: 7%	0.8%±1.1Lowest VT: 7%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$70,272±$3kLowest 13% below VT	$94,500±$12kHighest 16% above VT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$218,300±$55kLowest 31% below VT	$353,900±$20kHighest 12% above VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$850±$778 31% below VT	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,418Lowest 32% below VT	$5,951Highest 18% above VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	59.7%±39.1Highest VT: 48.4%	41.2%±94Lowest VT: 48.4%
	Bridgewater and Windham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	14.8%Highest VT: 10.1%	9.9%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	85.4%Highest VT: 73.2%	82.9%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Lowest same as VT	1982Highest 6 yrs newer than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minLowest about the VT average	27 minHighest 14% above VT
Work from home	10.5%±6.6Lowest VT: 16.9%	20.5%±5.6Highest VT: 16.9%
	Windham and Bridgewater are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.