What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Sterling has the most affordable homes ($283k 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	Sterling
People
Population	17,616Highest	3,629Lowest
Median age	51.9±1.9Highest 26% above CT	39.4±5.9Lowest 4% below CT
Kids under 18	18.1%±2.2Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.8%±5.9Highest CT: 20.2%
	Sterling 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%	13%±3.8Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	72.4%Highest CT: 42.5%	18%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.9%±1.5Highest CT: 7.1%	3.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Madison and Sterling 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	$102,695±$12kLowest 7% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$583,900±$30kHighest 59% above CT	$283,400±$17kLowest 23% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,025±$741 36% above CT	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,843Highest 33% above CT	$4,551Lowest 31% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44%±12.3Highest CT: 52.6%	32%±18.1Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Madison and Sterling 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%	8.3%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	90.4%Highest CT: 66.5%	81.1%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	30 minLowest 12% above CT	35 minHighest 34% above CT
Work from home	30.2%±5.3Highest CT: 16%	11.6%±6.4Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#7 of 149 in CT	#119 of 149 in CT
School district	Madison School District	Sterling 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.