What stands out worked out from the figures below

Whitingham has grown the fastest since 2010 (-1%).

Bennington has the most people working from home (15.1%).

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	Whitingham	Bennington
People
Population	1,368Lowest	15,249Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-1%Highest VT: +2.8%	-2.7%Lowest VT: +2.8%
Median age	46.4±7.1Highest 8% above VT	44.7±2.3Lowest 4% above VT
	Whitingham and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.8%±4.5Highest VT: 17.9%	17.7%±2.3Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Whitingham and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	31.1%±2.3Highest VT: 21.4%	25.2%±2.8Lowest VT: 21.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	32.8%Lowest VT: 43.8%	36.9%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.2%±1.9Lowest VT: 7%	5.8%±1.6Highest VT: 7%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$70,625±$11kHighest 13% below VT	$59,446±$7kLowest 27% below VT
	Whitingham and Bennington are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$262,300±$30kHighest 17% below VT	$213,300±$15kLowest 33% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$673±$150Lowest 45% below VT	$1,133±$63Highest 8% below VT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,055Highest about the VT average	$4,513Lowest 10% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	62.7%±47.3Lowest VT: 48.4%	68.8%±14.1Highest VT: 48.4%
	Bennington and Whitingham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	15.5%Highest VT: 10.1%	13.2%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	85.2%Highest VT: 73.2%	58.4%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Highest 2 yrs older than VT	1961Lowest 15 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	38 minHighest 62% above VT	17 minLowest 27% below VT
Work from home	9.7%±5.2Lowest VT: 16.9%	15.1%±4.4Highest VT: 16.9%
	Bennington and Whitingham 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	—	#58 of 70 in VT
School district	Twin Valley Unified School District #75	Southwest Tech · Southwest Vermont Union Elementary School District #87
High school in town	Twin Valley Middle High School	Mt. Anthony Senior Union High School
Students per teacherat that high school	7.8Lowest	14.7Highest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

VT 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.