What stands out worked out from the figures below

Wallingford has the most affordable homes ($353k median).

Oxford has the most expensive homes ($472k 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	Oxford
People
Population	44,362Highest	12,991Lowest
Median age	42.6±1.8Lowest 4% above CT	45.2±5.7Highest 10% above CT
	Oxford and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.8%±1.9Lowest CT: 20.2%	21.3%±4.7Highest CT: 20.2%
	Oxford and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.2%±1.7Lowest CT: 18.5%	22.9%±3.2Highest CT: 18.5%
	Oxford and Wallingford 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%	46.3%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6%±1Highest CT: 7.1%	3.6%±1.4Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Wallingford and Oxford 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	$128,953±$23kHighest 35% above CT
	Oxford and Wallingford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$353,100±$8kLowest 4% below CT	$472,400±$20kHighest 29% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,374±$84Lowest 8% below CT	$1,415±$87Highest 5% below CT
	Oxford 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	$6,442Highest 3% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.9%±8.9Highest CT: 52.6%	23.3%±15.8Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Wallingford and Oxford 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%	4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	72.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	90.4%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1972Lowest 5 yrs newer than CT	1986Highest 19 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minLowest 8% below CT	30 minHighest 14% above CT
Work from home	13.3%±2Lowest CT: 16%	14.4%±3.7Highest CT: 16%
	Oxford 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	#78 of 149 in CT
School district	Wallingford School District	Oxford School District
High school in town	Lyman Hall High School	Oxford High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.5Highest	10.1Lowest
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.