What stands out worked out from the figures below

Burlington has the most people working from home (25%).

Putnam has the most renters (40.2% 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	Putnam
People
Population	9,680Highest	9,292Lowest
Median age	39.9±2.4Lowest about the CT average	43.7±3Highest 6% above CT
	Putnam and Burlington 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%	18.6%±3.6Lowest CT: 20.2%
Age 65+	13.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 18.5%	18.5%±3.1Highest CT: 18.5%
	Putnam and Burlington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	50.8%Highest CT: 42.5%	20%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	7.5%±2Highest CT: 7.1%	3.9%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$165,120±$13kHighest 72% above CT	$70,561±$7kLowest 26% below CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$418,700±$21kHighest 14% above CT	$269,200±$11kLowest 27% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,427±$671Highest 4% below CT	$1,149±$44Lowest 23% below CT
	Burlington and Putnam are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,464Highest 12% above CT	$3,860Lowest 42% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	46.1%±15.9Highest CT: 52.6%	37.7%±11.6Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Burlington and Putnam 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%	11.5%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	94.6%Highest CT: 66.5%	59.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1981Highest 14 yrs newer than CT	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 9% above CT	25 minLowest 6% below CT
Work from home	25%±4.1Highest CT: 16%	9%±2.8Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#58 of 149 in CT	#128 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 10	Putnam School District
High school in town	Lewis S. Mills High School	Putnam High School
Students per teacherat that high school	11.4Highest	9.5Lowest
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.