What stands out worked out from the figures below

Middlefield has the most homeowners (86.5%).

Chester has the most people working from home (18.3%).

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	Middlefield	Chester
People
Population	4,243Highest	3,825Lowest
Median age	51.6±1.9Lowest 26% above CT	54±3.4Highest 31% above CT
	Chester and Middlefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	13.9%±4.1Lowest CT: 20.2%	17.5%±4.9Highest CT: 20.2%
	Chester and Middlefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	25.5%±7.2Lowest CT: 18.5%	26.8%±4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Chester and Middlefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	41.5%Lowest CT: 42.5%	47.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.7%±2.4Highest CT: 7.1%	4%±2.9Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Middlefield and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$99,837±$20kLowest 4% above CT	$109,191±$18kHighest 14% above CT
	Chester and Middlefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$376,000±$27kLowest about the CT average	$442,200±$25kHighest 21% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$3,501Highest 135% above CT	$1,549±$247Lowest 4% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,853Highest 3% above CT	$6,364Lowest 4% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	85.4%±52.1Highest CT: 52.6%	57.4%±22.1Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Middlefield and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.1%Lowest CT: 10%	11.8%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	86.5%Highest CT: 66.5%	73.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT	1969Highest 2 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest 6% below CT	28 minHighest 7% above CT
Work from home	10.9%±4.1Lowest CT: 16%	18.3%±5.6Highest CT: 16%
	Chester and Middlefield 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	#65 of 149 in CT	#8 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 13	Chester School District
High school in town	None in town	None in town
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.