What stands out worked out from the figures below

Willimantic has the most affordable homes ($191k median).

Bethlehem has the highest household income ($109k).

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	Willimantic	Bethlehem
People
Population	18,096Highest	3,423Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+2.3% CT: +0.9%	—
Median age	31.3±2.7Lowest 24% below CT	51.5±8.5Highest 25% above CT
Kids under 18	20.6%±2.5Highest CT: 20.2%	16.3%±4Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Willimantic and Bethlehem are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	11%±1.7Lowest CT: 18.5%	24.5%±5.3Highest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	24.2%Lowest CT: 42.5%	39.2%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	19.1%±2.1Highest CT: 7.1%	4.5%±3.1Lowest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$45,962±$7kLowest 52% below CT	$108,929±$16kHighest 14% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$190,900±$17kLowest 48% below CT	$410,900±$36kHighest 12% above CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,063±$68Lowest 29% below CT	$1,127±$124Highest 24% below CT
	Bethlehem and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,678Lowest 30% below CT	$5,932Highest 11% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	55.9%±8.1Lowest CT: 52.6%	69.7%±38.5Highest CT: 52.6%
	Bethlehem and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	23.4%Highest CT: 10%	10.4%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	34.9%Lowest CT: 66.5%	70.2%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1953Lowest 14 yrs older than CT	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	23 minLowest 12% below CT	29 minHighest 9% above CT
Work from home	6.2%±2Lowest CT: 16%	13.9%±5Highest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	—	#82 of 149 in CT
School district	—	Regional School District 14
High school in town	—	None in town
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.