What stands out worked out from the figures below

Manchester has the most expensive homes ($366k median).

Bristol has the most homeowners (69.7%).

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	Bristol
People
Population	115,643Highest	3,273Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+5.5%Lowest NH: +4.6%	+6.2%Highest NH: +4.6%
Median age	38±1Lowest 12% below NH	42.7±5.7Highest about the NH average
	Bristol and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18%±1Lowest NH: 18.2%	24.3%±6.4Highest NH: 18.2%
	Bristol and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	15.5%±0.8Lowest NH: 20.1%	23.2%±4.9Highest NH: 20.1%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	34%Lowest NH: 40.6%	35.5%Highest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.4%±0.7Highest NH: 6%	3.6%±2Lowest NH: 6%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$81,007±$2kHighest 18% below NH	$78,438±$10kLowest 21% below NH
	Manchester and Bristol are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$365,600±$7kHighest 9% below NH	$258,300±$63kLowest 36% below NH
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,564±$37Highest 5% above NH	$1,310±$97Lowest 12% below NH
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,922Highest 11% below NH	$4,162Lowest 38% below NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	50%±3.6Highest NH: 48.2%	46.3%±14.2Lowest NH: 48.2%
	Manchester and Bristol are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	11.2%Highest NH: 7.2%	10.3%Lowest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	48.7%Lowest NH: 72.8%	69.7%Highest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1966Lowest 13 yrs older than NH	1977Highest 2 yrs older than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minLowest 10% below NH	28 minHighest 4% above NH
Work from home	14.1%±1.3Highest NH: 16.8%	11.8%±5.2Lowest NH: 16.8%
	Manchester and Bristol 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	#79 of 120 in NH
School district	Spark Academy of Advanced Technologies · Manchester School District	Newfound Area School District
High school in town	Manchester Memorial High School	Newfound Regional High School
Students per teacherat that high school	14.3Highest	11.5Lowest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	6 photos →	None yet

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.