What stands out worked out from the figures below

Norfolk has the most affordable homes ($431k median).

Bridgewater has the highest household income ($159k).

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	Norfolk	Bridgewater
People
Population	1,723Highest	1,658Lowest
Median age	48.2±7.4Lowest 17% above CT	55.9±4.4Highest 36% above CT
	Bridgewater and Norfolk are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	15.8%±4.8Highest CT: 20.2%	14.4%±2.9Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Norfolk and Bridgewater are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	28.8%±3.7Lowest CT: 18.5%	37%±6.6Highest CT: 18.5%
	Bridgewater and Norfolk are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	48.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	59.3%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.1%±1.1Lowest CT: 7.1%	6.8%±5.3Highest CT: 7.1%
	Bridgewater and Norfolk are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$91,548±$16kLowest 4% below CT	$159,365±$5kHighest 66% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$430,900±$54kLowest 17% above CT	$693,000±$75kHighest 89% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,190±$116Lowest 20% below CT	$1,467±$233Highest about the CT average
	Bridgewater and Norfolk are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,065Lowest 9% below CT	$6,869Highest 3% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	27.3%±17Lowest CT: 52.6%	47.8%±43Highest CT: 52.6%
	Bridgewater and Norfolk are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	7.5%Highest CT: 10%	3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.1%Lowest CT: 66.5%	92.1%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1938Lowest 29 yrs older than CT	1975Highest 8 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minLowest 3% above CT	29 minHighest 11% above CT
Work from home	23.3%±4.7Lowest CT: 16%	25.2%±5Highest CT: 16%
	Bridgewater and Norfolk are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
School district	Norfolk School District	Regional School District 12
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.