What stands out worked out from the figures below

Voluntown has the most homeowners (83.5%).

Bethlehem has the most people working from home (13.9%).

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	Voluntown	Bethlehem
People
Population	2,604Lowest	3,423Highest
Median age	48.3±1.7Lowest 18% above CT	51.5±8.5Highest 25% above CT
	Bethlehem and Voluntown are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.4%±3.5Highest CT: 20.2%	16.3%±4Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Voluntown and Bethlehem are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.6%±3Lowest CT: 18.5%	24.5%±5.3Highest CT: 18.5%
	Bethlehem and Voluntown are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	26.7%Lowest CT: 42.5%	39.2%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.4%±1.6Lowest CT: 7.1%	4.5%±3.1Highest CT: 7.1%
	Bethlehem and Voluntown are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$101,964±$25kLowest 6% above CT	$108,929±$16kHighest 14% above CT
	Bethlehem and Voluntown are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$356,100±$16kLowest about the CT average	$410,900±$36kHighest 12% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,166±$191Highest 22% below CT	$1,127±$124Lowest 24% below CT
	Voluntown and Bethlehem are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,955Lowest 25% below CT	$5,932Highest 11% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.9%±24.3Lowest CT: 52.6%	69.7%±38.5Highest CT: 52.6%
	Bethlehem and Voluntown are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	7.3%Lowest CT: 10%	10.4%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	83.5%Highest CT: 66.5%	70.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1983Highest 16 yrs newer than CT	1976Lowest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	31 minHighest 18% above CT	29 minLowest 9% above CT
Work from home	8.9%±5.4Lowest CT: 16%	13.9%±5Highest CT: 16%
	Bethlehem and Voluntown 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	#53 of 149 in CT	#82 of 149 in CT
School district	Voluntown 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.