What stands out worked out from the figures below

Manchester has the most people working from home (14.3%).

Prospect has the most homeowners (93.5%).

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	Manchester	Prospect
People
Population	59,635Highest	9,458Lowest
Median age	37±1.2Lowest 10% below CT	46.8±3.9Highest 14% above CT
Kids under 18	20%±1.6Lowest CT: 20.2%	21.4%±4.1Highest CT: 20.2%
	Prospect and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	15.5%±1.2Lowest CT: 18.5%	24.5%±4.3Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.5%Highest CT: 42.5%	40.3%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.5%±0.7Highest CT: 7.1%	3.5%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Manchester and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$86,840±$4kLowest 9% below CT	$126,394±$18kHighest 32% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$247,100±$6kLowest 33% below CT	$355,400±$21kHighest 3% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,519±$66Lowest about the CT average	$1,800±$433Highest 21% above CT
	Prospect and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,652Lowest 15% below CT	$6,504Highest about the CT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	48.1%±6.1Highest CT: 52.6%	45.3%±31.8Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Manchester and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	10.8%Highest CT: 10%	3.2%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	56.9%Lowest CT: 66.5%	93.5%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1962Lowest 5 yrs older than CT	1974Highest 7 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	23 minLowest 15% below CT	28 minHighest 4% above CT
Work from home	14.3%±1.9Highest CT: 16%	10.1%±3.2Lowest CT: 16%
	Manchester and Prospect 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	#135 of 149 in CT	#50 of 149 in CT
School district	Connecticut Technical Education and Career System · Odyssey Community School District	Regional School District 16
High school in town	Manchester High School	None in town
Students per teacherat that high school	11.1	—
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.