What stands out worked out from the figures below

Colebrook has the most homeowners (91.6%).

Chester has the most people working from home (18.3%).

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	Colebrook	Chester
People
Population	1,494Lowest	3,825Highest
Median age	52.1±5Lowest 27% above CT	54±3.4Highest 31% above CT
	Chester and Colebrook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.9%±3.9Highest CT: 20.2%	17.5%±4.9Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Colebrook and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	26%±4.2Lowest CT: 18.5%	26.8%±4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Chester and Colebrook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	36.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	47.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.4%±1.8Highest CT: 7.1%	4%±2.9Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Colebrook and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$111,250±$17kHighest 16% above CT	$109,191±$18kLowest 14% above CT
	Colebrook and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$342,800±$19kLowest 7% below CT	$442,200±$25kHighest 21% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,333±$626Lowest 10% below CT	$1,549±$247Highest 4% above CT
	Chester and Colebrook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,211Lowest 7% below CT	$6,364Highest 4% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.1%±55Lowest CT: 52.6%	57.4%±22.1Highest CT: 52.6%
	Chester and Colebrook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.3%Lowest CT: 10%	11.8%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	91.6%Highest CT: 66.5%	73.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1960Lowest 7 yrs older than CT	1969Highest 2 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	34 minHighest 29% above CT	28 minLowest 7% above CT
Work from home	7%±3.8Lowest CT: 16%	18.3%±5.6Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	—	#8 of 149 in CT
School district	Colebrook School District	Chester School District
High school in town	None in town	None in town
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.