What stands out worked out from the figures below

Thompson has the most affordable homes ($292k median).

Canton has the most kids (22.6% under 18).

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	Thompson	Canton
People
Population	9,337Lowest	10,144Highest
Median age	54.1±2.2Highest 32% above CT	45.3±5.2Lowest 10% above CT
Kids under 18	11.4%±2.8Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.6%±4Highest CT: 20.2%
Age 65+	24.4%±4.3Highest CT: 18.5%	23.5%±4.2Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Thompson and Canton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	21.9%Lowest CT: 42.5%	57.2%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.9%±1.3 CT: 7.1%	2.9%±1.4 CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$93,629±$18kLowest about the CT average	$117,991±$20kHighest 23% above CT
	Canton and Thompson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$291,900±$24kLowest 20% below CT	$395,300±$24kHighest 8% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,012±$344Lowest 32% below CT	$1,403±$358Highest 6% below CT
	Canton and Thompson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,822Lowest 42% below CT	$7,232Highest 9% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	54%±18.7Lowest CT: 52.6%	59.9%±28.9Highest CT: 52.6%
	Canton and Thompson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.9%Highest CT: 10%	5.7%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	84.3%Highest CT: 66.5%	83.7%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1963Lowest 4 yrs older than CT	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	32 minHighest 20% above CT	29 minLowest 9% above CT
Work from home	13.1%±4.4Lowest CT: 16%	24.8%±6.1Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#130 of 149 in CT	#22 of 149 in CT
School district	Thompson School District	Canton School District
High school in town	Tourtellotte Memorial High School	Canton High School
Students per teacherat that high school	7.9Lowest	9.6Highest
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.