What stands out worked out from the figures below

Waterford has the youngest population (median age 46).

Berlin has the most people working from home (14.4%).

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	Waterford	Berlin
People
Population	19,673Lowest	20,361Highest
Median age	46±2.4Lowest 12% above CT	48.7±3Highest 18% above CT
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.1%±2.5Lowest CT: 20.2%	19.4%±2.7Highest CT: 20.2%
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22.6%±2.1Lowest CT: 18.5%	23.5%±3.1Highest CT: 18.5%
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	40.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	44.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.6%±1.5Lowest CT: 7.1%	7.2%±1.5Highest CT: 7.1%
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$104,820±$9kLowest 9% above CT	$113,598±$11kHighest 19% above CT
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$355,900±$14kLowest about the CT average	$374,600±$13kHighest about the CT average
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,651±$153Highest 11% above CT	$1,402±$88Lowest 6% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,876Lowest 27% below CT	$7,291Highest 10% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44.4%±12Lowest CT: 52.6%	63.4%±11.3Highest CT: 52.6%
	Berlin and Waterford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.6%Highest CT: 10%	3.4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	79.7%Lowest CT: 66.5%	82.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1968Lowest 1 yr newer than CT	1972Highest 5 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minHighest 18% below CT	21 minLowest 21% below CT
Work from home	10.2%±2.2Lowest CT: 16%	14.4%±4.6Highest CT: 16%
	Berlin and Waterford 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	#80 of 149 in CT	#73 of 149 in CT
School district	Learn · Waterford School District	Berlin School District
High school in town	Waterford High School	Berlin High School
Students per teacherat that high school	11.1Lowest	11.5Highest
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.