What stands out worked out from the figures below

Union has the most expensive homes ($330k median).

Stafford has the most kids (21.5% 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	Union	Stafford
People
Population	944Lowest	11,511Highest
Median age	49.9±4.3Highest 21% above CT	46.7±4.8Lowest 14% above CT
	Union and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.9%±4.3Lowest CT: 20.2%	21.5%±3.1Highest CT: 20.2%
	Stafford and Union are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	24.5%±2.6Highest CT: 18.5%	22%±3Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Union and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	24%Lowest CT: 42.5%	28.5%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5%±3.3Highest CT: 7.1%	3.5%±1.3Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Union and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$88,958±$14kLowest 7% below CT	$93,235±$16kHighest about the CT average
	Stafford and Union are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$330,400±$26kHighest 10% below CT	$263,800±$22kLowest 28% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,086±$85 27% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,793Lowest 28% below CT	$5,131Highest 23% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	90%±64.7Highest CT: 52.6%	41.5%±12.2Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Union and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.7%Lowest CT: 10%	7.4%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	92.9%Highest CT: 66.5%	79.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT	1970Lowest 3 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	32 minHighest 20% above CT	26 minLowest about the CT average
Work from home	9%±3.7Lowest CT: 16%	11%±3.5Highest CT: 16%
	Stafford and Union 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	—	#96 of 149 in CT
School district	Union School District	Stafford School District
High school in town	None in town	Stafford High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	9.8
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.