What stands out worked out from the figures below

Franklin has the most affordable homes ($326k median).

Salem has the most people working from home (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	Franklin	Salem
People
Population	2,004Lowest	4,282Highest
Median age	40.3±4.3Lowest about the CT average	40.9±5.4Highest about the CT average
	Salem and Franklin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	27.2%±5.9Highest CT: 20.2%	23.2%±5.1Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Franklin and Salem are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.4%±1.9Lowest CT: 18.5%	19.7%±4.7Highest CT: 18.5%
	Salem and Franklin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	27.8%Lowest CT: 42.5%	50.6%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.2%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%	5.8%±3.3Highest CT: 7.1%
	Salem and Franklin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$105,000±$10kLowest 10% above CT	$123,245±$8kHighest 29% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$326,200±$20kLowest 11% below CT	$403,600±$33kHighest 10% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$767±$529Lowest 48% below CT	$1,440±$150Highest 3% below CT
	Salem and Franklin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,934Lowest 41% below CT	$6,668Highest about the CT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	19.5%±18.4Lowest CT: 52.6%	32.1%±26Highest CT: 52.6%
	Salem and Franklin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.7%Highest CT: 10%	6.2%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	84.1%Lowest CT: 66.5%	86.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1973Lowest 6 yrs newer than CT	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minLowest about the CT average	32 minHighest 19% above CT
Work from home	6.8%±2.4Lowest CT: 16%	18%±9.6Highest CT: 16%
	Salem and Franklin 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	—	#11 of 149 in CT
School district	Franklin School District	Salem School District
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.