What stands out worked out from the figures below

Colchester has the most renters (23.5% rent).

Canton has the most people working from home (24.8%).

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	Colchester	Canton
People
Population	15,648Highest	10,144Lowest
Median age	43.5±3.8Lowest 6% above CT	45.3±5.2Highest 10% above CT
	Canton and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	20.7%±2.8Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.6%±4Highest CT: 20.2%
	Canton and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	20.3%±2.4Lowest CT: 18.5%	23.5%±4.2Highest CT: 18.5%
	Canton and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	49.7%Lowest CT: 42.5%	57.2%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.6%±1.3Highest CT: 7.1%	2.9%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Colchester and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$122,390±$14kHighest 28% above CT	$117,991±$20kLowest 23% above CT
	Colchester and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$366,800±$16kLowest about the CT average	$395,300±$24kHighest 8% above CT
	Canton and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,474±$153Highest about the CT average	$1,403±$358Lowest 6% below CT
	Colchester and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,212Lowest 6% below CT	$7,232Highest 9% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44.4%±10.4Lowest CT: 52.6%	59.9%±28.9Highest CT: 52.6%
	Canton and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.9%Lowest CT: 10%	5.7%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	76.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%	83.7%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1984Highest 17 yrs newer than CT	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	30 minHighest 14% above CT	29 minLowest 9% above CT
Work from home	18.4%±3.8Lowest CT: 16%	24.8%±6.1Highest CT: 16%
	Canton and Colchester 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	#64 of 149 in CT	#22 of 149 in CT
School district	Colchester School District	Canton School District
High school in town	Bacon Academy	Canton High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.8Highest	9.6Lowest
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.