What stands out worked out from the figures below

Columbia has the most affordable homes ($362k median).

Durham has the shortest commute (23 min average).

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	Columbia	Durham
People
Population	5,300Lowest	7,208Highest
Median age	51.3±10.3Highest 25% above CT	45.5±2.8Lowest 11% above CT
	Columbia and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	13.7%±4.3Lowest CT: 20.2%	16.4%±3.6Highest CT: 20.2%
	Durham and Columbia are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	24.9%±5.4Highest CT: 18.5%	17.4%±3.7Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Columbia and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	34.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	47.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.8%±2.5Highest CT: 7.1%	3.6%±1.5Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Columbia and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$127,000±$30kLowest 33% above CT	$158,857±$7kHighest 66% above CT
	Durham and Columbia are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$361,500±$16kLowest about the CT average	$424,800±$23kHighest 16% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$966±$304Lowest 35% below CT	$1,154±$448Highest 22% below CT
	Durham and Columbia are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,228Lowest 21% below CT	$7,998Highest 20% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	17.6%±16.2Lowest CT: 52.6%	44.9%±28.4Highest CT: 52.6%
	Durham and Columbia are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	6.1%Highest CT: 10%	3.4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	83.3%Lowest CT: 66.5%	93.2%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	32 minHighest 21% above CT	23 minLowest 13% below CT
Work from home	21.6%±6Highest CT: 16%	20.5%±6.4Lowest CT: 16%
	Columbia and Durham 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	#114 of 149 in CT	#88 of 149 in CT
School district	Columbia School District	Regional School District 13
High school in town	None in town	Coginchaug Regional High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	8.9
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.