What stands out worked out from the figures below

Wallingford has the highest household income ($105k).

Plainfield has the most affordable homes ($272k 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	Plainfield
People
Population	44,362Highest	15,141Lowest
Median age	42.6±1.8Highest 4% above CT	37±4.5Lowest 10% below CT
	Wallingford and Plainfield 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%	19.4%±2.6Highest CT: 20.2%
	Plainfield and Wallingford 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%	16.6%±2.4Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.4%Highest CT: 42.5%	15%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6%±1Highest CT: 7.1%	5.6%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Wallingford and Plainfield 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	$76,993±$8kLowest 20% below CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$353,100±$8kHighest 4% below CT	$272,100±$16kLowest 26% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,374±$84Highest 8% below CT	$1,204±$70Lowest 19% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,963Highest 10% below CT	$4,209Lowest 37% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.9%±8.9Highest CT: 52.6%	39.8%±9.5Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Wallingford and Plainfield 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%	8.7%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	72.8%Lowest CT: 66.5%	73.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1972Highest 5 yrs newer than CT	1971Lowest 4 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minLowest 8% below CT	27 minHighest about the CT average
Work from home	13.3%±2Highest CT: 16%	10%±4Lowest CT: 16%
	Wallingford and Plainfield 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	#131 of 149 in CT
School district	Wallingford School District	Plainfield School District
High school in town	Lyman Hall High School	Plainfield High School
Students per teacherat that high school	10.5Highest	10.3Lowest
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.