What stands out worked out from the figures below

West Hartford has the most people working from home (22.5%).

Plainfield has the most affordable homes ($272k 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	Plainfield
People
Population	63,620Highest	15,141Lowest
Median age	40.8±1.4Highest about the CT average	37±4.5Lowest 10% below CT
	West Hartford and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	21.5%±1.4Highest CT: 20.2%	19.4%±2.6Lowest CT: 20.2%
	West Hartford and Plainfield 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%±2.4Lowest CT: 18.5%
	West Hartford and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	66.6%Highest CT: 42.5%	15%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.9%±0.7Highest CT: 7.1%	5.6%±1.8Lowest CT: 7.1%
	West Hartford and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$129,890±$7kHighest 36% above CT	$76,993±$8kLowest 20% below CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$411,000±$10kHighest 12% above CT	$272,100±$16kLowest 26% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,756±$40Highest 18% above CT	$1,204±$70Lowest 19% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$9,598Highest 44% above CT	$4,209Lowest 37% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	42.5%±5.7Highest CT: 52.6%	39.8%±9.5Lowest CT: 52.6%
	West Hartford and Plainfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	6.3%Lowest CT: 10%	8.7%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	67.4%Lowest CT: 66.5%	73.6%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1954Lowest 13 yrs older than CT	1971Highest 4 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minLowest 16% below CT	27 minHighest about the CT average
Work from home	22.5%±1.9Highest CT: 16%	10%±4Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#32 of 149 in CT	#131 of 149 in CT
School district	West Hartford School District	Plainfield School District
High school in town	Conard High School	Plainfield High School
Students per teacherat that high school	13.5Highest	10.3Lowest
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.