What stands out worked out from the figures below

Salisbury has the most people working from home (28%).

Bourne has the most affordable homes ($576k median).

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	Salisbury	Bourne
People
Population	4,224Lowest	20,323Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	+3.5% U.S.: +7.4%
Median age	44.2±9.9Lowest 14% above U.S.	52±1.8Highest 34% above U.S.
	Bourne and Salisbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.2%±6.9Highest U.S.: 22%	14.7%±2.3Lowest U.S.: 22%
	Salisbury and Bourne are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	28.1%±5.1Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	29.8%±3.1Highest U.S.: 17.2%
	Bourne and Salisbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	58.8%Highest U.S.: 35.7%	46%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.9%±2.1Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	6.6%±1.6Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Bourne and Salisbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$124,256±$26kHighest 54% above U.S.	$91,058±$7kLowest 13% above U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$763,700±$121kHighest 130% above U.S.	$575,600±$28kLowest 73% above U.S.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,846±$736Highest 31% above U.S.	$1,379±$300Lowest about the U.S. average
	Salisbury and Bourne are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,125Highest 64% above U.S.	$4,485Lowest 44% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	23.2%±11.8Lowest U.S.: 51.1%	62.8%±5.5Highest U.S.: 51.1%
Below poverty line	4.2%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%	6.2%Highest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	68.2%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%	75.8%Highest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1967Lowest 13 yrs older than U.S.	1975Highest 5 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	20 minLowest 25% below U.S.	26 minHighest about the U.S. average
Work from home	28%±8Highest U.S.: 15.1%	14.9%±3.1Lowest U.S.: 15.1%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#19 of 149 in CT	#206 of 282 in MA
School district	Salisbury School District	Bourne · Upper Cape Cod Regional Vocational Technical
High school in town	None in town	Upper Cape Cod Vocational Technical
Students per teacherat that high school	—	9.8
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.