What stands out worked out from the figures below

Waterbury has the most affordable homes ($209k median).

Cheshire has the highest household income ($147k).

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	Waterbury	Cheshire
People
Population	114,869Highest	29,040Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+3.7% CT: +0.9%	—
Median age	37.8±1.3Lowest 8% below CT	44.9±1.4Highest 9% above CT
Kids under 18	23.2%±1.2Highest CT: 20.2%	21.9%±2.3Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Waterbury and Cheshire are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	15.3%±0.9Lowest CT: 18.5%	21.3%±1.8Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	17.3%Lowest CT: 42.5%	60.7%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.8%±0.7Highest CT: 7.1%	4.5%±1.1Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Waterbury and Cheshire are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$51,886±$2kLowest 46% below CT	$146,528±$12kHighest 53% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$208,500±$6kLowest 43% below CT	$440,000±$17kHighest 20% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,225±$38Lowest 18% below CT	$1,398±$116Highest 6% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,449Lowest 18% below CT	$7,755Highest 17% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	58.6%±4.2Highest CT: 52.6%	44.9%±6.3Lowest CT: 52.6%
Below poverty line	24.7%Highest CT: 10%	5%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	47.2%Lowest CT: 66.5%	86.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1959Lowest 8 yrs older than CT	1974Highest 7 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minLowest 6% above CT	29 minHighest 9% above CT
Work from home	8.3%±1.3Lowest CT: 16%	19.1%±2.7Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#144 of 149 in CT	#18 of 149 in CT
School district	Connecticut Technical Education and Career System · Area Cooperative Educational Services	Cheshire School District
High school in town	Crosby High School	Cheshire High School
Students per teacherat that high school	17.0Highest	11.6Lowest
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.