What stands out worked out from the figures below

Sterling has the most kids (22.8% under 18).

Bethlehem has the most expensive homes ($411k 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	Sterling	Bethlehem
People
Population	3,629Highest	3,423Lowest
Median age	39.4±5.9Lowest 4% below CT	51.5±8.5Highest 25% above CT
	Bethlehem and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	22.8%±5.9Highest CT: 20.2%	16.3%±4Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Sterling and Bethlehem are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	13%±3.8Lowest CT: 18.5%	24.5%±5.3Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	18%Lowest CT: 42.5%	39.2%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 7.1%	4.5%±3.1Highest CT: 7.1%
	Bethlehem and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$102,695±$12kLowest 7% above CT	$108,929±$16kHighest 14% above CT
	Bethlehem and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$283,400±$17kLowest 23% below CT	$410,900±$36kHighest 12% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,127±$124 24% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,551Lowest 31% below CT	$5,932Highest 11% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	32%±18.1Lowest CT: 52.6%	69.7%±38.5Highest CT: 52.6%
	Bethlehem and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.3%Lowest CT: 10%	10.4%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.1%Highest CT: 66.5%	70.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	35 minHighest 34% above CT	29 minLowest 9% above CT
Work from home	11.6%±6.4Lowest CT: 16%	13.9%±5Highest CT: 16%
	Bethlehem and Sterling 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	#119 of 149 in CT	#82 of 149 in CT
School district	Sterling School District	Regional School District 14
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.