What stands out worked out from the figures below

Montville has the shortest commute (25 min average).

Chaplin has the most people working from home (18.1%).

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	Montville	Chaplin
People
Population	17,950Highest	2,070Lowest
Median age	42.8±4.1Lowest 4% above CT	43.7±4.8Highest 6% above CT
	Chaplin and Montville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.2%±2.8Highest CT: 20.2%	15.7%±4.2Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Montville and Chaplin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17%±2.1Lowest CT: 18.5%	20.9%±4.4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Chaplin and Montville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	25.5%Highest CT: 42.5%	25.4%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6%±1.6Lowest CT: 7.1%	10.1%±6.2Highest CT: 7.1%
	Chaplin and Montville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$96,454±$11kLowest about the CT average	$97,846±$14kHighest about the CT average
	Chaplin and Montville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$285,600±$13kHighest 22% below CT	$255,200±$24kLowest 30% below CT
	Montville and Chaplin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,187±$99Lowest 20% below CT	$1,473±$275Highest about the CT average
	Chaplin and Montville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,565Highest 31% below CT	$4,524Lowest 32% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	41.4%±8.8Highest CT: 52.6%	33.6%±27.7Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Montville and Chaplin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	7.8%Highest CT: 10%	5.4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	82.9%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1971Lowest 4 yrs newer than CT	1979Highest 12 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest 5% below CT	32 minHighest 22% above CT
Work from home	5.5%±2.2Lowest CT: 16%	18.1%±10Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#95 of 149 in CT	—
School district	Montville School District	Chaplin School District · Regional School District 11
High school in town	Montville High School	Parish Hill High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.2Highest	7.5Lowest
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.