What stands out worked out from the figures below

Southington has the most people working from home (17.3%).

Plainville has the most affordable homes ($254k 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	Southington	Plainville
People
Population	43,803Highest	17,551Lowest
Median age	45±1.4Highest 9% above CT	44.3±1.5Lowest 8% above CT
	Southington and Plainville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.7%±1.4Highest CT: 20.2%	15.6%±2.3Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Southington and Plainville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21%±1.6Highest CT: 18.5%	20.1%±2.8Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Southington and Plainville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	43.4%Highest CT: 42.5%	30%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.3%±1.1Highest CT: 7.1%	6.2%±1.6Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Southington and Plainville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$124,309±$9kHighest 30% above CT	$84,343±$7kLowest 12% below CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$373,800±$10kHighest about the CT average	$254,000±$14kLowest 31% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,472±$77Highest about the CT average	$1,126±$147Lowest 24% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,206Highest 7% below CT	$4,798Lowest 28% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	43.9%±8.6Highest CT: 52.6%	40.3%±12.4Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Southington and Plainville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.9%Lowest CT: 10%	6.5%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.1%Highest CT: 66.5%	67.7%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Highest 7 yrs newer than CT	1971Lowest 4 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minHighest 9% below CT	21 minLowest 20% below CT
Work from home	17.3%±2.9Highest CT: 16%	10.7%±2Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#51 of 149 in CT	#89 of 149 in CT
School district	Southington School District	Judicial Centers · Plainville School District
High school in town	Southington High School	Plainville High School
Students per teacherat that high school	12.8Highest	11.4Lowest
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.