What stands out worked out from the figures below

Smyrna has the shortest commute (15 min average).

Merrill has the most people working from home (13.2%).

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	Smyrna	Merrill
People
Population	380Highest	372Lowest
Median age	31±9.6Lowest 31% below ME	33.2±9.9Highest 26% below ME
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	33.2%±5.5Lowest ME: 18.1%	41.7%±11Highest ME: 18.1%
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	10.8%±4.3Lowest ME: 22.4%	14%±5.8Highest ME: 22.4%
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	17.7%Lowest ME: 36.2%	22.3%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.3%±2.9 ME: 5.8%	0.3%±3.1 ME: 5.8%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$57,750±$19kLowest 23% below ME	$65,536±$8kHighest 12% below ME
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$117,100±$10kLowest 61% below ME	$131,600±$21kHighest 56% below ME
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$425±$63 63% below ME	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$1,200Lowest 60% below ME	$1,449Highest 52% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	0%±100Lowest ME: 48.4%	60%±100Highest ME: 48.4%
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	15.8%Highest ME: 10.7%	5.6%Lowest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	95.4%Highest ME: 74.3%	91.2%Lowest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1977Lowest same as ME	1987Highest 10 yrs newer than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	15 minLowest 37% below ME	29 minHighest 19% above ME
Work from home	6.4%±6.1Lowest ME: 15.9%	13.2%±6.6Highest ME: 15.9%
	Merrill and Smyrna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

ME 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.