What stands out worked out from the figures below

Waterville Valley has the most expensive homes ($563k median).

Sutton has the most kids (20.5% under 18).

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	Waterville Valley	Sutton
People
Population	290Lowest	2,239Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	+7.7% NH: +4.6%
Median age	61.6±16.5Highest 42% above NH	48.1±4.1Lowest 11% above NH
	Waterville Valley and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	8.6%±11.6Lowest NH: 18.2%	20.5%±3.8Highest NH: 18.2%
	Sutton and Waterville Valley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	43.1%±9.7Highest NH: 20.1%	21.6%±5.9Lowest NH: 20.1%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	71.6%Highest NH: 40.6%	44.3%Lowest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.3%±4.3Lowest NH: 6%	4.9%±3.6Highest NH: 6%
	Sutton and Waterville Valley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$105,625±$50kLowest 7% above NH	$130,313±$31kHighest 32% above NH
	Sutton and Waterville Valley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$562,500±$193kHighest 40% above NH	$362,600±$16kLowest 10% below NH
	Waterville Valley and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,150±$382Lowest 23% below NH	$1,656±$614Highest 11% above NH
	Sutton and Waterville Valley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,745Lowest 14% below NH	$7,652Highest 15% above NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	33.3%±100Highest NH: 48.2%	27.6%±47.2Lowest NH: 48.2%
	Waterville Valley and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	6.9%Highest NH: 7.2%	4.8%Lowest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.5%Lowest NH: 72.8%	95.7%Highest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1984Highest 5 yrs newer than NH	1971Lowest 8 yrs older than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	14 minLowest 48% below NH	29 minHighest 10% above NH
Work from home	19.7%±12.6Highest NH: 16.8%	14.8%±5.6Lowest NH: 16.8%
	Waterville Valley and Sutton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
School district	Waterville Valley School District	Kearsarge Regional School District
High school in town	None in town	Kearsarge Regional High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	10.4
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

NH 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.