What stands out worked out from the figures below

Dummer has the highest household income ($91k).

Stow has the most people working from home (17.7%).

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	Dummer	Stow
People
Population	299Lowest	535Highest
Median age	53.6±6.4Lowest 38% above U.S.	57±10.5Highest 47% above U.S.
	Stow and Dummer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.4%±5.1Highest U.S.: 22%	15.7%±5.7Lowest U.S.: 22%
	Dummer and Stow are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.4%±4.6Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	37.9%±17.8Highest U.S.: 17.2%
	Stow and Dummer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	16.9%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%	33.4%Highest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0%±5.7Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	3%±1.2Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Stow and Dummer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$91,250±$21kHighest 13% above U.S.	$42,204±$22kLowest 48% below U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$242,200±$51kLowest 27% below U.S.	$326,400±$42kHighest about the U.S. average
	Stow and Dummer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$2,898Lowest 7% below U.S.	$3,304Highest 6% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	0%±100Lowest U.S.: 51.1%	20%±100Highest U.S.: 51.1%
	Stow and Dummer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	9%Highest U.S.: 12.5%	8.1%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	94.2%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%	96.2%Highest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1977Lowest 3 yrs older than U.S.	1998Highest 18 yrs newer than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest 5% below U.S.	51 minHighest 95% above U.S.
Work from home	6.8%±4.4Lowest U.S.: 15.1%	17.7%±12Highest U.S.: 15.1%
	Stow and Dummer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
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U.S. 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.