What stands out worked out from the figures below

Washington has the most kids (19% under 18).

Bridgewater has the highest household income ($159k).

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	Washington	Bridgewater
People
Population	3,676Highest	1,658Lowest
Median age	49.9±5.5Lowest 21% above CT	55.9±4.4Highest 36% above CT
	Bridgewater and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19%±4.7Highest CT: 20.2%	14.4%±2.9Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Washington and Bridgewater are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	26.9%±5.3Lowest CT: 18.5%	37%±6.6Highest CT: 18.5%
	Bridgewater and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	53.7%Lowest CT: 42.5%	59.3%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.4%±3.3Lowest CT: 7.1%	6.8%±5.3Highest CT: 7.1%
	Bridgewater and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$101,549±$16kLowest 6% above CT	$159,365±$5kHighest 66% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$660,200±$130kLowest 80% above CT	$693,000±$75kHighest 89% above CT
	Bridgewater and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,204±$264Lowest 19% below CT	$1,467±$233Highest about the CT average
	Bridgewater and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,709Lowest 29% below CT	$6,869Highest 3% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	26.1%±24Lowest CT: 52.6%	47.8%±43Highest CT: 52.6%
	Bridgewater and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	9%Highest CT: 10%	3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	79%Lowest CT: 66.5%	92.1%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1971Lowest 4 yrs newer than CT	1975Highest 8 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	26 minLowest 4% below CT	29 minHighest 11% above CT
Work from home	20.1%±9Lowest CT: 16%	25.2%±5Highest CT: 16%
	Bridgewater and Washington 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	#17 of 149 in CT	—
School district	Regional School District 12	Regional School District 12
High school in town	Shepaug Valley School	None in town
Students per teacherat that high school	9.1	—
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.