What stands out worked out from the figures below

Palmer Town has the most affordable homes ($271k median).

Sutton has the most people working from home (22.7%).

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	Palmer Town	Sutton
People
Population	12,381Highest	9,452Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+2.5%Lowest MA: +7.4%	+4.4%Highest MA: +7.4%
Median age	47.8±5.6Highest 20% above MA	44.3±2.5Lowest 11% above MA
	Palmer Town and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	15.1%±3.1Lowest MA: 19.4%	19.6%±3.3Highest MA: 19.4%
	Sutton and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	20.9%±4.2Highest MA: 17.9%	18.8%±3.2Lowest MA: 17.9%
	Palmer Town and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	23.5%Lowest MA: 47.3%	52.8%Highest MA: 47.3%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.4%±1.5Lowest MA: 7.9%	3.9%±1.8Highest MA: 7.9%
	Sutton and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$78,480±$8kLowest 25% below MA	$147,125±$25kHighest 42% above MA
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$271,400±$21kLowest 52% below MA	$523,100±$47kHighest 7% below MA
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,075±$103Lowest 39% below MA	$1,190±$401Highest 32% below MA
	Sutton and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,540Lowest 24% below MA	$6,763Highest 13% above MA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	52.9%±10.6Highest MA: 51.8%	47.5%±24.4Lowest MA: 51.8%
	Palmer Town and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.3%Highest MA: 10%	5.8%Lowest MA: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	71.5%Lowest MA: 62.5%	89.7%Highest MA: 62.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1962Lowest 2 yrs older than MA	1981Highest 17 yrs newer than MA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	31 minHighest 8% above MA	30 minLowest about the MA average
Work from home	7.3%±2.7Lowest MA: 18.6%	22.7%±4.1Highest MA: 18.6%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#252 of 282 in MA	#105 of 282 in MA
School district	Palmer · Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical	Sutton
High school in town	Pathfinder Vocational Technical	Sutton High School
Students per teacherat that high school	9.9Lowest	12.6Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

MA 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.