What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Thomaston has the highest household income ($103k).

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	Portland	Thomaston
People
Population	5,944Lowest	7,492Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-0.8% CT: +0.9%	—
Median age	41.2±2.6Lowest about the CT average	41.5±7.7Highest about the CT average
	Thomaston and Portland are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.2%±4.8Lowest CT: 20.2%	20.5%±5.2Highest CT: 20.2%
	Thomaston and Portland are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	19.3%±3.3Highest CT: 18.5%	18.6%±3.6Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Portland and Thomaston are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	46.1%Highest CT: 42.5%	34%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	9.3%±4.7Highest CT: 7.1%	5.5%±2.1Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Portland and Thomaston are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$89,401±$21kLowest 7% below CT	$103,218±$15kHighest 8% above CT
	Thomaston and Portland are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$282,300±$13kLowest 23% below CT	$282,600±$23kHighest 23% below CT
	Thomaston and Portland are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,122±$59Highest 25% below CT	$1,037±$147Lowest 30% below CT
	Portland and Thomaston are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,597Lowest 16% below CT	$5,915Highest 11% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	49.7%±21.2Lowest CT: 52.6%	57.9%±22Highest CT: 52.6%
	Thomaston and Portland are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.7%Highest CT: 10%	2.3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	77%Lowest CT: 66.5%	77.7%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1955Lowest 12 yrs older than CT	1961Highest 6 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	31 minHighest 15% above CT	27 minLowest about the CT average
Work from home	18.5%±5.6Highest CT: 16%	7.6%±3.7Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#61 of 149 in CT	#106 of 149 in CT
School district	—	Thomaston School District
High school in town	—	Thomaston High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	10.7
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.