What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Chester has the most expensive homes ($442k 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	Deep River	Chester
People
Population	4,458Highest	3,825Lowest
Median age	46.2±5.6Lowest 12% above CT	54±3.4Highest 31% above CT
	Chester and Deep River are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.6%±4.7Lowest CT: 20.2%	17.5%±4.9Highest CT: 20.2%
	Chester and Deep River are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22.1%±4.1Lowest CT: 18.5%	26.8%±4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Chester and Deep River are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	44.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	47.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.8%±2.2Lowest CT: 7.1%	4%±2.9Highest CT: 7.1%
	Chester and Deep River are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$90,253±$19kLowest 6% below CT	$109,191±$18kHighest 14% above CT
	Chester and Deep River are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$362,200±$26kLowest about the CT average	$442,200±$25kHighest 21% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,221±$185Lowest 18% below CT	$1,549±$247Highest 4% above CT
	Chester and Deep River are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,092Lowest 8% below CT	$6,364Highest 4% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	58.2%±22.9Highest CT: 52.6%	57.4%±22.1Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Deep River and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.2%Lowest CT: 10%	11.8%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	69.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%	73.2%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Highest 7 yrs newer than CT	1969Lowest 2 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minLowest 9% below CT	28 minHighest 7% above CT
Work from home	15.2%±5.6Lowest CT: 16%	18.3%±5.6Highest CT: 16%
	Chester and Deep River 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	#70 of 149 in CT	#8 of 149 in CT
School district	Deep River School District · Regional School District 04	Chester School District
High school in town	Valley Regional High School	None in town
Students per teacherat that high school	9.3	—
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.