What stands out worked out from the figures below

Plainfield has the youngest population (median age 37).

Watertown has the highest household income ($102k).

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	Watertown
People
Population	15,141Lowest	22,253Highest
Median age	37±4.5Lowest 10% below CT	46.3±2.9Highest 13% above CT
Kids under 18	19.4%±2.6Highest CT: 20.2%	17.7%±2.6Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Plainfield and Watertown 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%	23.3%±2.8Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	15%Lowest CT: 42.5%	38.6%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.6%±1.8Highest CT: 7.1%	4.2%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Plainfield and Watertown 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	$101,691±$7kHighest 6% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$272,100±$16kLowest 26% below CT	$333,500±$16kHighest 9% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,204±$70Lowest 19% below CT	$1,275±$227Highest 14% below CT
	Watertown and Plainfield 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	$6,014Highest 9% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	39.8%±9.5Lowest CT: 52.6%	56.6%±13.3Highest CT: 52.6%
	Watertown 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%	4.3%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	1969Lowest 2 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minHighest about the CT average	24 minLowest 10% below CT
Work from home	10%±4Lowest CT: 16%	10.1%±2.3Highest CT: 16%
	Watertown 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	#126 of 149 in CT
School district	Plainfield School District	Watertown School District
High school in town	Plainfield High School	Watertown 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.