What stands out worked out from the figures below

Wallingford has the most kids (18.8% under 18).

Newington has the most affordable homes ($310k median).

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	Newington
People
Population	44,362Highest	30,896Lowest
Median age	42.6±1.8Lowest 4% above CT	45.3±1.7Highest 10% above CT
	Newington 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%	16.3%±1.6Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Wallingford and Newington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.2%±1.7 CT: 18.5%	21.2%±1.6 CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.4%Highest CT: 42.5%	40%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6%±1Lowest CT: 7.1%	6.6%±1.1Highest CT: 7.1%
	Newington and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$104,773±$5kHighest 9% above CT	$102,884±$6kLowest 7% above CT
	Wallingford and Newington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$353,100±$8kHighest 4% below CT	$310,400±$9kLowest 15% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,374±$84Lowest 8% below CT	$1,524±$107Highest about the CT average
	Newington and Wallingford 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	$6,321Highest 5% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.9%±8.9Highest CT: 52.6%	40.9%±2.1Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Wallingford and Newington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.4%Lowest CT: 10%	6.4%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	72.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	78.2%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1972Highest 5 yrs newer than CT	1967Lowest same as CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minHighest 8% below CT	21 minLowest 19% below CT
Work from home	13.3%±2Lowest CT: 16%	14.4%±2.3Highest CT: 16%
	Newington 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	#87 of 149 in CT
School district	Wallingford School District	Newington School District
High school in town	Lyman Hall High School	Newington High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.5Lowest	13.9Highest
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.