What stands out worked out from the figures below

Wallingford has the most renters (27.2% rent).

Durham has the most people working from home (20.5%).

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	Wallingford	Durham
People
Population	44,362Highest	7,208Lowest
Median age	42.6±1.8Lowest 4% above CT	45.5±2.8Highest 11% above CT
	Durham and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.8%±1.9Highest CT: 20.2%	16.4%±3.6Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Wallingford and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.2%±1.7Highest CT: 18.5%	17.4%±3.7Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Wallingford and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.4%Lowest CT: 42.5%	47.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6%±1Highest CT: 7.1%	3.6%±1.5Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Wallingford and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$104,773±$5kLowest 9% above CT	$158,857±$7kHighest 66% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$353,100±$8kLowest 4% below CT	$424,800±$23kHighest 16% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,374±$84Highest 8% below CT	$1,154±$448Lowest 22% below CT
	Wallingford and Durham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,963Lowest 10% below CT	$7,998Highest 20% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.9%±8.9Lowest CT: 52.6%	44.9%±28.4Highest CT: 52.6%
	Durham and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.4%Highest CT: 10%	3.4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	72.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	93.2%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1972Lowest 5 yrs newer than CT	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minHighest 8% below CT	23 minLowest 13% below CT
Work from home	13.3%±2Lowest CT: 16%	20.5%±6.4Highest CT: 16%
	Durham and Wallingford 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	#108 of 149 in CT	#88 of 149 in CT
School district	Wallingford School District	Regional School District 13
High school in town	Lyman Hall High School	Coginchaug Regional High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.5Highest	8.9Lowest
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.