What stands out worked out from the figures below

Milton has grown the fastest since 2010 (+3.6%).

Northfield has the most affordable homes ($274k 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	Milton	Northfield
People
Population	10,769Highest	5,920Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+3.6%Highest VT: +2.8%	-4.7%Lowest VT: +2.8%
Median age	41.6±2.5Highest 3% below VT	36.4±4.1Lowest 16% below VT
	Milton and Northfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.6%±3.4Highest VT: 17.9%	14.6%±3.7Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Milton and Northfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	16%±2.6Lowest VT: 21.4%	20%±3.8Highest VT: 21.4%
	Northfield and Milton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	33.1%Lowest VT: 43.8%	34.6%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.5%±1.3Lowest VT: 7%	15.1%±2.1Highest VT: 7%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$118,977±$10kHighest 47% above VT	$71,768±$13kLowest 12% below VT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$372,500±$20kHighest 18% above VT	$274,400±$21kLowest 13% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,536±$257Highest 24% above VT	$1,018±$207Lowest 18% below VT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,610Highest 11% above VT	$4,878Lowest 3% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	53.1%±20.6Lowest VT: 48.4%	63.3%±17.7Highest VT: 48.4%
	Northfield and Milton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.6%Lowest VT: 10.1%	12.5%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	86.9%Highest VT: 73.2%	73.5%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1985Highest 9 yrs newer than VT	1956Lowest 20 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minHighest 18% above VT	27 minLowest 16% above VT
Work from home	14.6%±2.9Highest VT: 16.9%	12.1%±4.3Lowest VT: 16.9%
	Milton and Northfield 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	#56 of 70 in VT	#42 of 70 in VT
School district	Milton School District	Paine Mountain Union School District #68
High school in town	Milton Senior High School	Northfield Middle/High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.3Lowest	10.0Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

VT 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.