What stands out worked out from the figures below

Windsor Locks has the most affordable homes ($259k median).

Colchester has the highest household income ($122k).

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	Windsor Locks	Colchester
People
Population	12,579Lowest	15,648Highest
Median age	41.4±2.6Lowest about the CT average	43.5±3.8Highest 6% above CT
	Colchester and Windsor Locks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	18.6%±3.4Lowest CT: 20.2%	20.7%±2.8Highest CT: 20.2%
	Colchester and Windsor Locks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	18.2%±2.7Lowest CT: 18.5%	20.3%±2.4Highest CT: 18.5%
	Colchester and Windsor Locks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	28.6%Lowest CT: 42.5%	49.7%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.9%±1.8Highest CT: 7.1%	4.6%±1.3Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Windsor Locks and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$81,205±$13kLowest 15% below CT	$122,390±$14kHighest 28% above CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$258,800±$14kLowest 29% below CT	$366,800±$16kHighest about the CT average
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,394±$187Lowest 6% below CT	$1,474±$153Highest about the CT average
	Colchester and Windsor Locks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,688Lowest 44% below CT	$6,212Highest 6% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	58.2%±16.8Highest CT: 52.6%	44.4%±10.4Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Windsor Locks and Colchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	10.9%Highest CT: 10%	3.9%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	77.1%Highest CT: 66.5%	76.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1961Lowest 6 yrs older than CT	1984Highest 17 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minLowest 17% below CT	30 minHighest 14% above CT
Work from home	17.7%±3.7Lowest CT: 16%	18.4%±3.8Highest CT: 16%
	Colchester and Windsor Locks 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	#109 of 149 in CT	#64 of 149 in CT
School district	Windsor Locks School District	Colchester School District
High school in town	Windsor Locks High School	Bacon Academy
Students per teacherat that high school	8.9Lowest	9.8Highest
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.