What stands out worked out from the figures below

Plainfield has the most people working from home (10%).

New Bedford has the most renters (59.7% rent).

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	Plainfield	New Bedford
People
Population	15,141Lowest	100,998Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	+6.3% U.S.: +7.4%
Median age	37±4.5 5% below U.S.	37±0.8 5% below U.S.
Kids under 18	19.4%±2.6Lowest U.S.: 22%	23.9%±1.2Highest U.S.: 22%
Age 65+	16.6%±2.4Highest U.S.: 17.2%	15.4%±0.9Lowest U.S.: 17.2%
	Plainfield and New Bedford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	15%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%	17%Highest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.6%±1.8Highest U.S.: 6.4%	4.1%±0.5Lowest U.S.: 6.4%
	Plainfield and New Bedford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$76,993±$8kHighest 5% below U.S.	$56,981±$3kLowest 29% below U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$272,100±$16kLowest 18% below U.S.	$357,300±$6kHighest 7% above U.S.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,204±$70Highest 15% below U.S.	$1,137±$26Lowest 20% below U.S.
	Plainfield and New Bedford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,209Lowest 35% above U.S.	$4,338Highest 39% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	39.8%±9.5Lowest U.S.: 51.1%	52.6%±3.2Highest U.S.: 51.1%
Below poverty line	8.7%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%	20.6%Highest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	73.6%Highest U.S.: 65.2%	40.3%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1971Highest 9 yrs older than U.S.	1938Lowest 42 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minHighest about the U.S. average	25 minLowest 6% below U.S.
Work from home	10%±4Highest U.S.: 15.1%	5.4%±0.9Lowest U.S.: 15.1%
	Plainfield and New Bedford 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	#131 of 149 in CT	#263 of 282 in MA
School district	Plainfield School District	New Bedford · Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical
High school in town	Plainfield High School	New Bedford High
Students per teacherat that high school	10.3Lowest	13.5Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

U.S. 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.