What stands out worked out from the figures below

Burlington has the highest household income ($165k).

Hamden has the most renters (37.6% rent).

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	Burlington	Hamden
People
Population	9,680Lowest	61,045Highest
Median age	39.9±2.4Highest about the CT average	38.7±0.9Lowest 6% below CT
	Burlington and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	25.9%±3.3Highest CT: 20.2%	17%±1.5Lowest CT: 20.2%
Age 65+	13.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 18.5%	18.1%±1.3Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	50.8%Highest CT: 42.5%	47.8%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	7.5%±2Lowest CT: 7.1%	15%±1.1Highest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$165,120±$13kHighest 72% above CT	$98,306±$7kLowest about the CT average
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$418,700±$21kHighest 14% above CT	$298,200±$9kLowest 19% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,427±$671Lowest 4% below CT	$1,746±$50Highest 17% above CT
	Hamden and Burlington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,464Lowest 12% above CT	$7,784Highest 17% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	46.1%±15.9Lowest CT: 52.6%	50.9%±5.4Highest CT: 52.6%
	Hamden and Burlington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	2.1%Lowest CT: 10%	9.3%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	94.6%Highest CT: 66.5%	62.4%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1981Highest 14 yrs newer than CT	1964Lowest 3 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 9% above CT	22 minLowest 18% below CT
Work from home	25%±4.1Highest CT: 16%	16.3%±2.1Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#58 of 149 in CT	#122 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 10	Connecticut Technical Education and Career System · Area Cooperative Educational Services
High school in town	Lewis S. Mills High School	Hamden High School
Students per teacherat that high school	11.4Lowest	13.5Highest
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.