What stands out worked out from the figures below

Winchester has the most affordable homes ($243k median).

Ware has the most people working from home (12.3%).

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	Winchester	Ware
People
Population	4,212Lowest	10,048Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-4.4%Lowest U.S.: +7.4%	+2%Highest U.S.: +7.4%
Median age	42.6±4.5Lowest 10% above U.S.	43.1±4.7Highest 11% above U.S.
	Ware and Winchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.9%±4.7Lowest U.S.: 22%	19.1%±3.5Highest U.S.: 22%
	Ware and Winchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.9%±3.9Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	20.6%±3.4Highest U.S.: 17.2%
	Ware and Winchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	20.3%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%	24%Highest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.4%±1.8Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	4.4%±2.2Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Ware and Winchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$67,723±$11kHighest 16% below U.S.	$67,475±$15kLowest 16% below U.S.
	Winchester and Ware are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$242,900±$20kLowest 27% below U.S.	$289,700±$28kHighest 13% below U.S.
	Ware and Winchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,209±$143Highest 14% below U.S.	$1,043±$109Lowest 26% below U.S.
	Winchester and Ware are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,314Highest 70% above U.S.	$4,237Lowest 36% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	45%±17.7Lowest U.S.: 51.1%	64.3%±16.2Highest U.S.: 51.1%
	Ware and Winchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	14.1%Highest U.S.: 12.5%	11.8%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	72.7%Highest U.S.: 65.2%	72.3%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1977Highest 3 yrs older than U.S.	1960Lowest 20 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 9% above U.S.	28 minLowest 8% above U.S.
Work from home	4.3%±2.4Lowest U.S.: 15.1%	12.3%±3.8Highest U.S.: 15.1%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#120 of 120 in NH	#267 of 282 in MA
School district	Winchester School District	Ware
High school in town	None in town	Ware Junior/Senior High School
Students per teacherat that high school	—	11.1
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	None yet	None yet

U.S. 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.