What stands out worked out from the figures below

Old Bennington has the highest household income ($169k).

Westminster has the most affordable homes ($314k 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	Old Bennington	Westminster
People
Population	182Lowest	497Highest
Median age	45±21.3Highest 4% above VT	43.3±11.5Lowest about the VT average
	Old Bennington and Westminster are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	22.5%±12Lowest VT: 17.9%	28.4%±7.1Highest VT: 17.9%
	Westminster and Old Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	30.8%±8Highest VT: 21.4%	19.7%±11.4Lowest VT: 21.4%
	Old Bennington and Westminster are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	84.9%Highest VT: 43.8%	45.4%Lowest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0%±7.8Lowest VT: 7%	2.2%±3.5Highest VT: 7%
	Westminster and Old Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$168,750±$53kHighest 108% above VT	$81,000±$22kLowest about the VT average
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$445,500±$105kHighest 41% above VT	$313,600±$39kLowest about the VT average
	Old Bennington and Westminster are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,063±$1kHighest 14% below VT	$749±$315Lowest 39% below VT
	Old Bennington and Westminster are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,690Highest 72% above VT	$4,480Lowest 11% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	40%±100Highest VT: 48.4%	6.1%±43.8Lowest VT: 48.4%
	Old Bennington and Westminster are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	0%Lowest VT: 10.1%	2.2%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	93.8%Highest VT: 73.2%	80.1%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1938 38 yrs older than VT	1938 38 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minLowest 20% above VT	30 minHighest 26% above VT
Work from home	46.7%±3.9Highest VT: 16.9%	23.1%±15.9Lowest VT: 16.9%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	—	#53 of 70 in VT
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.