What stands out worked out from the figures below

Brookfield has the most expensive homes ($480k median).

Cheshire has the most people working from home (19.1%).

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	Brookfield	Cheshire
People
Population	17,706Lowest	29,040Highest
Median age	44.3±1.8Lowest 8% above CT	44.9±1.4Highest 9% above CT
	Cheshire and Brookfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	22.7%±3Highest CT: 20.2%	21.9%±2.3Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Brookfield and Cheshire are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.8%±2.8Lowest CT: 18.5%	21.3%±1.8Highest CT: 18.5%
	Cheshire and Brookfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	58.3%Lowest CT: 42.5%	60.7%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.3%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%	4.5%±1.1Highest CT: 7.1%
	Cheshire and Brookfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$148,360±$11kHighest 55% above CT	$146,528±$12kLowest 53% above CT
	Brookfield and Cheshire are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$479,700±$24kHighest 31% above CT	$440,000±$17kLowest 20% above CT
	Brookfield and Cheshire are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,892±$183Highest 27% above CT	$1,398±$116Lowest 6% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,594Lowest 14% above CT	$7,755Highest 17% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	35.9%±13.1Lowest CT: 52.6%	44.9%±6.3Highest CT: 52.6%
	Cheshire and Brookfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.1%Lowest CT: 10%	5%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	86.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%	86.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1978Highest 11 yrs newer than CT	1974Lowest 7 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minLowest 6% above CT	29 minHighest 9% above CT
Work from home	16.3%±3Lowest CT: 16%	19.1%±2.7Highest CT: 16%
	Cheshire 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	#67 of 149 in CT	#18 of 149 in CT
School district	Brookfield School District	Cheshire School District
High school in town	Brookfield High School	Cheshire High School
Students per teacherat that high school	12.7Highest	11.6Lowest
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.