What stands out worked out from the figures below

Madison has the most people working from home (30.2%).

Brooklyn has the most affordable homes ($315k 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	Madison	Brooklyn
People
Population	17,616Highest	8,517Lowest
Median age	51.9±1.9Highest 26% above CT	45.6±2.5Lowest 11% above CT
Kids under 18	18.1%±2.2Lowest CT: 20.2%	20.6%±4.6Highest CT: 20.2%
	Brooklyn and Madison are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	25.2%±2.4Highest CT: 18.5%	17.6%±2.9Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	72.4%Highest CT: 42.5%	23.9%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.9%±1.5Highest CT: 7.1%	5.4%±1.7Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Madison and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$167,442±$16kHighest 75% above CT	$96,207±$15kLowest about the CT average
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$583,900±$30kHighest 59% above CT	$315,200±$28kLowest 14% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,025±$741Highest 36% above CT	$1,125±$98Lowest 24% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,843Highest 33% above CT	$4,538Lowest 32% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44%±12.3Highest CT: 52.6%	38.5%±19.3Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Madison and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.6%Highest CT: 10%	2.3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	90.4%Highest CT: 66.5%	81.7%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT	1978Highest 11 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	30 minHighest 12% above CT	27 minLowest about the CT average
Work from home	30.2%±5.3Highest CT: 16%	10.7%±5.4Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#7 of 149 in CT	#113 of 149 in CT
School district	Madison School District	Brooklyn School District
High school in town	Daniel Hand High School	None in town
Students per teacherat that high school	9.8	—
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.