What stands out worked out from the figures below

Stow has the most people working from home (17.7%).

Chatham has the highest household income ($66k).

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	Stow	Chatham
People
Population	535Highest	430Lowest
Median age	57±10.5Highest 47% above U.S.	48.3±8.6Lowest 24% above U.S.
	Stow and Chatham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	15.7%±5.7Lowest U.S.: 22%	21.4%±7.4Highest U.S.: 22%
	Chatham and Stow are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	37.9%±17.8Highest U.S.: 17.2%	26.5%±10Lowest U.S.: 17.2%
	Stow and Chatham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	33.4%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%	38.4%Highest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3%±1.2Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	5.8%±3.8Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Chatham and Stow are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$42,204±$22kLowest 48% below U.S.	$66,042±$19kHighest 18% below U.S.
	Chatham and Stow are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$326,400±$42kLowest about the U.S. average	$362,900±$42kHighest 9% above U.S.
	Chatham and Stow are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,304Lowest 6% above U.S.	$3,690Highest 18% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	20%±100Lowest U.S.: 51.1%	33.3%±100Highest U.S.: 51.1%
	Chatham and Stow are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.1% U.S.: 12.5%	8.1% U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	96.2%Highest U.S.: 65.2%	82.8%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1998Highest 18 yrs newer than U.S.	1979Lowest 1 yr older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	51 minHighest 95% above U.S.	36 minLowest 35% above U.S.
Work from home	17.7%±12Highest U.S.: 15.1%	7.3%±5.4Lowest U.S.: 15.1%
	Stow and Chatham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.