What stands out worked out from the figures below

Washington has the most expensive homes ($660k median).

Sterling has the most affordable homes ($283k 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	Washington	Sterling
People
Population	3,676Highest	3,629Lowest
Median age	49.9±5.5Highest 21% above CT	39.4±5.9Lowest 4% below CT
	Washington and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19%±4.7Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.8%±5.9Highest CT: 20.2%
	Sterling and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	26.9%±5.3Highest CT: 18.5%	13%±3.8Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	53.7%Highest CT: 42.5%	18%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.4%±3.3Highest CT: 7.1%	3.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Washington and Sterling 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	$102,695±$12kHighest 7% above CT
	Sterling and Washington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$660,200±$130kHighest 80% above CT	$283,400±$17kLowest 23% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,204±$264 19% below CT	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,709Highest 29% below CT	$4,551Lowest 31% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	26.1%±24Lowest CT: 52.6%	32%±18.1Highest CT: 52.6%
	Sterling 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%	8.3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	79%Lowest CT: 66.5%	81.1%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1971Lowest 4 yrs newer than CT	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	26 minLowest 4% below CT	35 minHighest 34% above CT
Work from home	20.1%±9Highest CT: 16%	11.6%±6.4Lowest CT: 16%
	Washington and Sterling 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	#119 of 149 in CT
School district	Regional School District 12	Sterling School District
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.