What stands out worked out from the figures below

Columbia has the most people working from home (21.6%).

Prospect has the most kids (21.4% under 18).

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	Prospect
People
Population	5,300Lowest	9,458Highest
Median age	51.3±10.3Highest 25% above CT	46.8±3.9Lowest 14% above CT
	Columbia and Prospect 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%	21.4%±4.1Highest CT: 20.2%
	Prospect 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%	24.5%±4.3Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Columbia and Prospect 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%	40.3%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.8%±2.5Highest CT: 7.1%	3.5%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Columbia and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$127,000±$30kHighest 33% above CT	$126,394±$18kLowest 32% above CT
	Columbia and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$361,500±$16kHighest about the CT average	$355,400±$21kLowest 3% below CT
	Columbia and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$966±$304Lowest 35% below CT	$1,800±$433Highest 21% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,228Lowest 21% below CT	$6,504Highest about the CT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	17.6%±16.2Lowest CT: 52.6%	45.3%±31.8Highest CT: 52.6%
	Prospect 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%	3.2%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	83.3%Lowest CT: 66.5%	93.5%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1984Highest 17 yrs newer than CT	1974Lowest 7 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	32 minHighest 21% above CT	28 minLowest 4% above CT
Work from home	21.6%±6Highest CT: 16%	10.1%±3.2Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#114 of 149 in CT	#50 of 149 in CT
School district	Columbia School District	Regional School District 16
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.