What stands out worked out from the figures below

Durham has the highest household income ($159k).

Beacon Falls has the most affordable homes ($350k 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	Durham	Beacon Falls
People
Population	7,208Highest	6,147Lowest
Median age	45.5±2.8Lowest 11% above CT	48.4±3.8Highest 18% above CT
	Beacon Falls and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.4%±3.6Lowest CT: 20.2%	18%±4.8Highest CT: 20.2%
	Beacon Falls and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.4%±3.7Lowest CT: 18.5%	23.5%±4.4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Beacon Falls and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	47.9%Highest CT: 42.5%	44.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.6%±1.5Lowest CT: 7.1%	5.3%±3.2Highest CT: 7.1%
	Beacon Falls and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$158,857±$7kHighest 66% above CT	$101,516±$42kLowest 6% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$424,800±$23kHighest 16% above CT	$350,300±$34kLowest 5% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,154±$448Lowest 22% below CT	$1,921±$286Highest 29% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,998Highest 20% above CT	$6,534Lowest about the CT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44.9%±28.4Lowest CT: 52.6%	50.7%±30.4Highest CT: 52.6%
	Beacon Falls and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.4%Highest CT: 10%	2.1%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	93.2%Highest CT: 66.5%	85.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT	1985Highest 18 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	23 minLowest 13% below CT	33 minHighest 23% above CT
Work from home	20.5%±6.4Highest CT: 16%	20.3%±7.4Lowest CT: 16%
	Durham and Beacon Falls 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	#88 of 149 in CT	#77 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 13	Regional School District 16
High school in town	Coginchaug Regional High School	Woodland Regional High School
Students per teacherat that high school	8.9Lowest	11.2Highest
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.