What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Plainfield has the most affordable homes ($272k 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	Plainfield
People
Population	17,616Highest	15,141Lowest
Median age	51.9±1.9Highest 26% above CT	37±4.5Lowest 10% below CT
Kids under 18	18.1%±2.2Lowest CT: 20.2%	19.4%±2.6Highest CT: 20.2%
	Plainfield 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%	16.6%±2.4Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	72.4%Highest CT: 42.5%	15%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.9%±1.5Highest CT: 7.1%	5.6%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Madison and Plainfield 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	$76,993±$8kLowest 20% below CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$583,900±$30kHighest 59% above CT	$272,100±$16kLowest 26% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,025±$741Highest 36% above CT	$1,204±$70Lowest 19% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,843Highest 33% above CT	$4,209Lowest 37% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44%±12.3Highest CT: 52.6%	39.8%±9.5Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Madison and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.6%Lowest CT: 10%	8.7%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	90.4%Highest CT: 66.5%	73.6%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT	1971Lowest 4 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%±4Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#7 of 149 in CT	#131 of 149 in CT
School district	Madison School District	Plainfield School District
High school in town	Daniel Hand High School	Plainfield High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.8Lowest	10.3Highest
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.