What stands out worked out from the figures below

Plainfield has the most affordable homes ($272k median).

Portland has the most people working from home (18.5%).

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	Portland
People
Population	15,141Highest	9,434Lowest
Median age	37±4.5Lowest 10% below CT	41.6±2Highest about the CT average
	Portland and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.4%±2.6Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.3%±3.7Highest CT: 20.2%
	Portland and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	16.6%±2.4Lowest CT: 18.5%	18.7%±2.9Highest CT: 18.5%
	Portland and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	15%Lowest CT: 42.5%	52.1%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.6%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%	7.6%±2.9Highest CT: 7.1%
	Portland and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$76,993±$8kLowest 20% below CT	$118,929±$15kHighest 24% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$272,100±$16kLowest 26% below CT	$337,400±$36kHighest 8% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,204±$70Highest 19% below CT	$1,129±$62Lowest 24% below CT
	Plainfield and Portland are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,209Lowest 37% below CT	$6,461Highest about the CT average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	39.8%±9.5Lowest CT: 52.6%	48.1%±20.8Highest CT: 52.6%
	Portland and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.7%Highest CT: 10%	3.9%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	73.6%Lowest CT: 66.5%	83.9%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1971Highest 4 yrs newer than CT	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minLowest about the CT average	28 minHighest 7% above CT
Work from home	10%±4Lowest CT: 16%	18.5%±4.8Highest CT: 16%
	Portland and Plainfield 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	#61 of 149 in CT
School district	Plainfield School District	Portland School District
High school in town	Plainfield High School	Portland High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.3Lowest	10.6Highest
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.