What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Ridgefield has the most expensive homes ($836k 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	Ridgefield
People
Population	10,144Lowest	25,109Highest
Median age	45.3±5.2Highest 10% above CT	45.1±1.4Lowest 10% above CT
	Canton and Ridgefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	22.6%±4Lowest CT: 20.2%	24.8%±2.3Highest CT: 20.2%
	Ridgefield and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	23.5%±4.2Highest CT: 18.5%	18.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Canton and Ridgefield 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%	72.6%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.9%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%	4.5%±1.4Highest CT: 7.1%
	Ridgefield 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	$179,219±$12kHighest 87% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$395,300±$24kLowest 8% above CT	$836,200±$26kHighest 128% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,403±$358Lowest 6% below CT	$2,026±$200Highest 36% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,232Lowest 9% above CT	$10,000+Highest at least 51% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	59.9%±28.9Highest CT: 52.6%	53.3%±12Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Canton and Ridgefield 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%	3.5%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	83.7%Highest CT: 66.5%	83.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT	1972Lowest 5 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minLowest 9% above CT	33 minHighest 25% above CT
Work from home	24.8%±6.1Lowest CT: 16%	29.7%±3.7Highest CT: 16%
	Ridgefield and Canton 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	#4 of 149 in CT
School district	Canton School District	Ridgefield School District
High school in town	Canton High School	Ridgefield High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.6Lowest	11.4Highest
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.