What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Washington has the most expensive homes ($660k 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	Washington
People
Population	7,208Highest	3,676Lowest
Median age	45.5±2.8Lowest 11% above CT	49.9±5.5Highest 21% above CT
	Washington 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%	19%±4.7Highest CT: 20.2%
	Washington 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%	26.9%±5.3Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	47.9%Lowest CT: 42.5%	53.7%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.6%±1.5Lowest CT: 7.1%	6.4%±3.3Highest CT: 7.1%
	Washington 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	$101,549±$16kLowest 6% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$424,800±$23kLowest 16% above CT	$660,200±$130kHighest 80% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,154±$448Lowest 22% below CT	$1,204±$264Highest 19% below CT
	Washington and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,998Highest 20% above CT	$4,709Lowest 29% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44.9%±28.4Highest CT: 52.6%	26.1%±24Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Durham and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.4%Lowest CT: 10%	9%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	93.2%Highest CT: 66.5%	79%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT	1971Lowest 4 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	23 minLowest 13% below CT	26 minHighest 4% below CT
Work from home	20.5%±6.4Highest CT: 16%	20.1%±9Lowest CT: 16%
	Durham and Washington 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	#17 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 13	Regional School District 12
High school in town	Coginchaug Regional High School	Shepaug Valley School
Students per teacherat that high school	8.9Lowest	9.1Highest
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.