What stands out worked out from the figures below

Willimantic has the most kids (36.5% under 18).

Monson has the most people working from home (19.6%).

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	Monson
People
Population	200Lowest	596Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	-11.2% ME: +2.6%
Median age	38.5±11.9Lowest 14% below ME	47.4±13.1Highest 6% above ME
	Monson and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	36.5%±11.4Highest ME: 18.1%	20.3%±5.8Lowest ME: 18.1%
	Willimantic and Monson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	25.5%±16.2Lowest ME: 22.4%	31.4%±10.7Highest ME: 22.4%
	Monson and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	15.1%Lowest ME: 36.2%	18%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4%±6.9Highest ME: 5.8%	0.5%±2Lowest ME: 5.8%
	Willimantic and Monson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$63,472±$52kHighest 15% below ME	$56,017±$4kLowest 25% below ME
	Willimantic and Monson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$131,700±$21kLowest 56% below ME	$178,100±$71kHighest 40% below ME
	Monson and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$1,285Lowest 58% below ME	$1,664Highest 45% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	—	45.5%±59.6 ME: 48.4%
Below poverty line	32.5%Highest ME: 10.7%	14.9%Lowest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	92.2%Highest ME: 74.3%	82.9%Lowest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1986Highest 9 yrs newer than ME	1977Lowest same as ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	23 minLowest 6% below ME	30 minHighest 23% above ME
Work from home	13.8%±13.9Lowest ME: 15.9%	19.6%±17.7Highest ME: 15.9%
	Monson and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

ME 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.