What stands out worked out from the figures below

Hamden has the most people working from home (16.3%).

Thomaston has the most homeowners (77.7%).

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	Hamden	Thomaston
People
Population	61,045Highest	7,492Lowest
Median age	38.7±0.9Lowest 6% below CT	41.5±7.7Highest about the CT average
	Thomaston and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17%±1.5Lowest CT: 20.2%	20.5%±5.2Highest CT: 20.2%
	Thomaston and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.1%±1.3Lowest CT: 18.5%	18.6%±3.6Highest CT: 18.5%
	Thomaston and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	47.8%Highest CT: 42.5%	34%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	15%±1.1Highest CT: 7.1%	5.5%±2.1Lowest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$98,306±$7kLowest about the CT average	$103,218±$15kHighest 8% above CT
	Thomaston and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$298,200±$9kHighest 19% below CT	$282,600±$23kLowest 23% below CT
	Hamden and Thomaston are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,746±$50Highest 17% above CT	$1,037±$147Lowest 30% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,784Highest 17% above CT	$5,915Lowest 11% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	50.9%±5.4Lowest CT: 52.6%	57.9%±22Highest CT: 52.6%
	Thomaston and Hamden are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	9.3%Highest CT: 10%	2.3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	62.4%Lowest CT: 66.5%	77.7%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1964Highest 3 yrs older than CT	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minLowest 18% below CT	27 minHighest about the CT average
Work from home	16.3%±2.1Highest CT: 16%	7.6%±3.7Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#122 of 149 in CT	#106 of 149 in CT
School district	Connecticut Technical Education and Career System · Area Cooperative Educational Services	Thomaston School District
High school in town	Hamden High School	Thomaston High School
Students per teacherat that high school	13.5Highest	10.7Lowest
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.