What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Manchester has the most renters (51.3% rent).

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	Madbury	Manchester
People
Population	2,203Lowest	115,643Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+8.3%Highest NH: +4.6%	+5.5%Lowest NH: +4.6%
Median age	37.7±2.1Lowest 13% below NH	38±1Highest 12% below NH
	Manchester and Madbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	29%±5.9Highest NH: 18.2%	18%±1Lowest NH: 18.2%
Age 65+	14.3%±2.6Lowest NH: 20.1%	15.5%±0.8Highest NH: 20.1%
	Manchester and Madbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	52.6%Highest NH: 40.6%	34%Lowest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.4%±1.8Lowest NH: 6%	6.4%±0.7Highest NH: 6%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$148,365±$30kHighest 50% above NH	$81,007±$2kLowest 18% below NH
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$476,900±$31kHighest 18% above NH	$365,600±$7kLowest 9% below NH
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,574±$759Highest 6% above NH	$1,564±$37Lowest 5% above NH
	Madbury and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$10,000+Highest at least 50% above NH	$5,922Lowest 11% below NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	16.7%±15.2Lowest NH: 48.2%	50%±3.6Highest NH: 48.2%
Below poverty line	4.9%Lowest NH: 7.2%	11.2%Highest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	82.9%Highest NH: 72.8%	48.7%Lowest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1984Highest 5 yrs newer than NH	1966Lowest 13 yrs older than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minHighest 5% below NH	24 minLowest 10% below NH
Work from home	14%±3.6Lowest NH: 16.8%	14.1%±1.3Highest NH: 16.8%
	Manchester and Madbury 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	—	#115 of 120 in NH
School district	Oyster River Coop School District	Spark Academy of Advanced Technologies · Manchester School District
High school in town	None in town	Manchester Memorial High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	14.3
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	None yet	6 photos →

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.