What stands out worked out from the figures below

Chester has the most people working from home (16.4%).

Roxbury has the most affordable homes ($323k 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	Chester	Roxbury
People
Population	5,300Highest	299Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+9.7% NH: +4.6%	—
Median age	47.2±3.8Highest 9% above NH	43.2±17.7Lowest about the NH average
	Chester and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.6%±3.7Highest NH: 18.2%	14.7%±11.5Lowest NH: 18.2%
	Chester and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.4%±4 NH: 20.1%	17.4%±10.8 NH: 20.1%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	41.1%Highest NH: 40.6%	30.6%Lowest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.4%±2.1Lowest NH: 6%	13.4%±15.8Highest NH: 6%
	Roxbury and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$142,212±$19kHighest 44% above NH	$69,226±$14kLowest 30% below NH
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$552,300±$42kHighest 37% above NH	$323,100±$219kLowest 20% below NH
	Chester and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,464Highest 27% above NH	$5,787Lowest 13% below NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	19%±72.7Highest NH: 48.2%	0%±100Lowest NH: 48.2%
	Chester and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4%Highest NH: 7.2%	3.7%Lowest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	97.7%Highest NH: 72.8%	95.5%Lowest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1991Highest 12 yrs newer than NH	1969Lowest 10 yrs older than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	35 minHighest 31% above NH	21 minLowest 22% below NH
Work from home	16.4%±5.1Highest NH: 16.8%	0.7%±1.4Lowest NH: 16.8%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#90 of 120 in NH	—
School district	Chester School District	—
High school in town	None in town	—
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	None yet	None yet

NH 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.