What stands out worked out from the figures below

Laconia has the shortest commute (17 min average).

Madbury has the highest household income ($148k).

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	Laconia	Madbury
People
Population	17,085Highest	2,203Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+5.8%Lowest NH: +4.6%	+8.3%Highest NH: +4.6%
Median age	45.3±3.9Highest 5% above NH	37.7±2.1Lowest 13% below NH
Kids under 18	18.4%±2.9Lowest NH: 18.2%	29%±5.9Highest NH: 18.2%
Age 65+	22.8%±2.7Highest NH: 20.1%	14.3%±2.6Lowest NH: 20.1%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	27.2%Lowest NH: 40.6%	52.6%Highest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.1%±1.1Lowest NH: 6%	3.4%±1.8Highest NH: 6%
	Madbury and Laconia are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$73,218±$12kLowest 26% below NH	$148,365±$30kHighest 50% above NH
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$340,300±$16kLowest 15% below NH	$476,900±$31kHighest 18% above NH
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,224±$107Lowest 18% below NH	$1,574±$759Highest 6% above NH
	Madbury and Laconia are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,484Lowest 33% below NH	$10,000+Highest at least 50% above NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	54.5%±10.2Highest NH: 48.2%	16.7%±15.2Lowest NH: 48.2%
Below poverty line	12.6%Highest NH: 7.2%	4.9%Lowest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	64.2%Lowest NH: 72.8%	82.9%Highest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Lowest 5 yrs older than NH	1984Highest 5 yrs newer than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	17 minLowest 36% below NH	25 minHighest 5% below NH
Work from home	13.5%±3.8Lowest NH: 16.8%	14%±3.6Highest NH: 16.8%
	Madbury and Laconia 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	#105 of 120 in NH	—
School district	Laconia School District	Oyster River Coop School District
High school in town	Laconia High School	None in town
Students per teacherat that high school	10.0	—
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	None yet	None yet

NH 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.