What stands out worked out from the figures below

Canton has the most affordable homes ($395k median).

Guilford has the most expensive homes ($516k median).

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	Canton	Guilford
People
Population	10,144Lowest	22,108Highest
Median age	45.3±5.2Lowest 10% above CT	51.1±1.9Highest 24% above CT
	Guilford and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	22.6%±4Highest CT: 20.2%	20.8%±2.4Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Canton and Guilford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	23.5%±4.2Lowest CT: 18.5%	26.6%±2.7Highest CT: 18.5%
	Guilford and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	57.2%Lowest CT: 42.5%	60.6%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.9%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%	3.7%±1Highest CT: 7.1%
	Guilford and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$117,991±$20kLowest 23% above CT	$137,816±$11kHighest 44% above CT
	Guilford and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$395,300±$24kLowest 8% above CT	$515,800±$40kHighest 41% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,403±$358Lowest 6% below CT	$1,717±$128Highest 15% above CT
	Guilford and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,232Lowest 9% above CT	$8,744Highest 32% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	59.9%±28.9Highest CT: 52.6%	47.4%±9Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Canton and Guilford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.7%Highest CT: 10%	2.8%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	83.7% CT: 66.5%	83.7% CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT	1974Lowest 7 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 9% above CT	26 minLowest about the CT average
Work from home	24.8%±6.1Highest CT: 16%	21.7%±3.3Lowest CT: 16%
	Canton and Guilford 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	#22 of 149 in CT	#15 of 149 in CT
School district	Canton School District	Guilford School District
High school in town	Canton High School	Guilford High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.6Lowest	11.8Highest
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.