What stands out worked out from the figures below

Northfield has the most homeowners (73.5%).

Barre has the shortest commute (19 min average).

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	Northfield	Barre
People
Population	5,920Lowest	8,412Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-4.7%Highest VT: +2.8%	-6.2%Lowest VT: +2.8%
Median age	36.4±4.1Lowest 16% below VT	42.2±6.6Highest about the VT average
	Barre and Northfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	14.6%±3.7Highest VT: 17.9%	13.5%±3.8Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Northfield and Barre are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	20%±3.8Highest VT: 21.4%	19.4%±3.9Lowest VT: 21.4%
	Northfield and Barre are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	34.6%Lowest VT: 43.8%	36.1%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	15.1%±2.1Highest VT: 7%	3.4%±1.9Lowest VT: 7%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$71,768±$13kHighest 12% below VT	$65,625±$7kLowest 19% below VT
	Northfield and Barre are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$274,400±$21kHighest 13% below VT	$210,400±$15kLowest 34% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,018±$207Lowest 18% below VT	$1,093±$58Highest 11% below VT
	Barre and Northfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,878Lowest 3% below VT	$5,192Highest 3% above VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	63.3%±17.7Highest VT: 48.4%	34.4%±10.3Lowest VT: 48.4%
Below poverty line	12.5%Lowest VT: 10.1%	17.3%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	73.5%Highest VT: 73.2%	50.4%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1956Highest 20 yrs older than VT	1947Lowest 29 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minHighest 16% above VT	19 minLowest 21% below VT
Work from home	12.1%±4.3Highest VT: 16.9%	10.5%±4.1Lowest VT: 16.9%
	Northfield and Barre 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	#42 of 70 in VT	#19 of 70 in VT
School district	Paine Mountain Union School District #68	Barre Unified Union School District #97 · Central Vermont Career Center
High school in town	Northfield Middle/High School	Spaulding Union High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.0Lowest	10.7Highest
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.