What stands out worked out from the figures below

Prospect has the most kids (21.4% under 18).

Middlefield has the oldest population (median age 51.6).

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	Prospect	Middlefield
People
Population	9,458Highest	4,243Lowest
Median age	46.8±3.9Lowest 14% above CT	51.6±1.9Highest 26% above CT
	Middlefield and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	21.4%±4.1Highest CT: 20.2%	13.9%±4.1Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Prospect and Middlefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	24.5%±4.3Lowest CT: 18.5%	25.5%±7.2Highest CT: 18.5%
	Middlefield and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.3%Lowest CT: 42.5%	41.5%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.5%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%	5.7%±2.4Highest CT: 7.1%
	Middlefield and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$126,394±$18kHighest 32% above CT	$99,837±$20kLowest 4% above CT
	Prospect and Middlefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$355,400±$21kLowest 3% below CT	$376,000±$27kHighest about the CT average
	Middlefield and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,800±$433Lowest 21% above CT	$3,501Highest 135% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,504Lowest about the CT average	$6,853Highest 3% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	45.3%±31.8Lowest CT: 52.6%	85.4%±52.1Highest CT: 52.6%
	Middlefield and Prospect are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	3.2%Lowest CT: 10%	8.1%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	93.5%Highest CT: 66.5%	86.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Highest 7 yrs newer than CT	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minHighest 4% above CT	25 minLowest 6% below CT
Work from home	10.1%±3.2Lowest CT: 16%	10.9%±4.1Highest CT: 16%
	Middlefield and Prospect 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	#50 of 149 in CT	#65 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 16	Regional School District 13
High school in town	None in town	None in town
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.