What stands out worked out from the figures below

West Hartford has the most affordable homes ($411k median).

Fairfield has the most expensive homes ($781k 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	West Hartford	Fairfield
People
Population	63,620Highest	63,416Lowest
Median age	40.8±1.4Highest about the CT average	40.1±0.9Lowest about the CT average
	West Hartford and Fairfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	21.5%±1.4Lowest CT: 20.2%	24%±1.3Highest CT: 20.2%
	Fairfield and West Hartford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	19.7%±1.1Highest CT: 18.5%	16.6%±1Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	66.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	71.1%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.9%±0.7Lowest CT: 7.1%	11%±0.7Highest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$129,890±$7kLowest 36% above CT	$172,432±$8kHighest 80% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$411,000±$10kLowest 12% above CT	$780,500±$32kHighest 113% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,756±$40Lowest 18% above CT	$2,185±$134Highest 47% above CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$9,598Lowest 44% above CT	$10,000+Highest at least 51% above CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.5%±5.7Lowest CT: 52.6%	53.5%±7.7Highest CT: 52.6%
	Fairfield and West Hartford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	6.3%Highest CT: 10%	4.7%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	67.4%Lowest CT: 66.5%	83.3%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1954Lowest 13 yrs older than CT	1960Highest 7 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minLowest 16% below CT	33 minHighest 24% above CT
Work from home	22.5%±1.9Lowest CT: 16%	28.4%±1.9Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#32 of 149 in CT	#21 of 149 in CT
School district	West Hartford School District	Fairfield School District
High school in town	Conard High School	Fairfield Ludlowe High School
Students per teacherat that high school	13.5Highest	11.1Lowest
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.