The Best Places to Live in Connecticut
Old Greenwich, Weatogue, and East Granby are among the best places to raise a family, live, and buy a home in Connecticut.
Written by Talullah Blanco
Reviewed by Melanie Reiff
Highly-rated public schools, an abundance of parks, and coffee shops make small suburban towns like East Granby, Avon, and Coventry Lake among the best places to live in
Connecticut
. According to U.S. News, Connecticut is among the best states to live in based on healthcare, education, and low crime rates. With a median household income of $78,444, Connecticut is also among the top 10 wealthiest states. Access to high-quality healthcare and excellent schools makes Connecticut a great place to raise a family.
At
Jerry
, the car and homeowners insurance
broker and super app
, we know there’s a lot to consider when choosing the place to call home. That’s why we’re going to help you find the best place for you to live in Connecticut.Let Jerry find you the best homeowners insurance policy for your needs
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What makes a good place to live?
Finding a place to live is more than just gas, grocery prices, and the cost of homeownership, it’s also based on personal preferences. From the weather and activities you enjoy to your choice of transportation, your personal preference will factor into where you decide to live.
We’ve done the research and compiled everything you need to know about eight Connecticut towns: Old Greenwich, Weatogue, Franklin,
Andover
, Harwinton, East Granby, Avon, and Coventry Lake. For all eight towns, we’ve taken note of the following factors:- Median household income
- Median home price
- Cost of living
- Quality of schools
- Crime rates
- Healthcare
- Average commute times
- FEMA risk index ratings
We've narrowed down the best places to live in Connecticut using these metrics. To help you find your future home, we divided our findings into three categories: the best places for families, the most affordable places, and the best places to buy a house.
The best places for families to live in Connecticut
When it comes to picking a place to raise a family, quality education, public safety, and active community life are of the utmost importance. When considering those factors, Old Greenwich and Weatogue were definite frontrunners.
Old Greenwich
Location: Fairfield County
Population: 6,844
Median household income: $222,794
Median home price: $1,561,200
A suburb of
New York City
, Old Greenwich is the perfect town for Manhattanites to raise a family. Greenwich Public Schools were given an A+ grade and ranked among the top five public school districts in the state. Old Greenwich's crime rates are 76% lower than the national average, and with a safety index of .9, it is the second safest city in Connecticut. Crimes have been dropping, and with just over 11 per 1,000 property crimes per year, you can expect lower home insurance rates if you live in Old Greenwich.
The Greenwich Parks and Recreation department hosts special events no matter the season. From breakfast with Santa or a Snow Sculpture Contest in the winter to the spring Kite Flying Festival and weekly
Concert Series
during the summer, your family will always have a community-centered event to attend in Old Greenwich.Weatogue
Location: Hartford County
Population: 2,738
Median household income: $133,393
Median home price: $322,200
Weatogue, a neighborhood located in
Simsbury
, is a suburb east of Hartford
that offers families a more rural alternative to the buzz of the nearby city. With four state and ten municipal parks, the town offers a plethora of hiking, picnicking, and biking opportunities for your family, including a 22-mile paved greenway system providing direct access to hundreds of acres of open space and wildlife management. Simsbury owns and operates the
Simsbury Farms Recreation Complex
, a 235-acre recreational facility that boasts a public golf course, swimming pool areas, covered outdoor skating rink, tennis and paddle courts, and lessons to use the amenities for adults and children.Not only will your family have an abundance of outdoor activities, but you’ll feel safe doing them. Weatogue is 74% safer than all U.S. cities, making it one of the safest places to raise your family. Just 15 per 1,000 residents are victims of a crime during a standard year.
You’ll also be pleased to find out your child will be attending top-rated public schools with a student-teacher ratio of 13 to 1 for grades K-12 and high state test scores in math and reading.
The most affordable places to live in Connecticut
Finding the right place to live means finding somewhere affordable. One of the biggest factors to consider when picking where to live is the cost of living. Connecticut’s overall cost of living is 107.8, which is more expensive than the national average of 100, and in cities with the best schools and lowest crime rates, the cost of living is even higher.
That’s why we’ve included the three most affordable places to live in Connecticut. We used the overall cost of living and average commute times (which indicates fuel costs) to determine relative affordability.
Franklin
Location: New London County
Population: 1,778
Median household income: $96,719
Median home price: $246,900
Franklin is a rural community town focused on preserving its agricultural roots. The overall cost of living in Franklin is 105.1, which is slightly more expensive than the national average but still one of the most affordable places to live in Connecticut.
With most of the industry located on the south end of town, the average commute time in Franklin is 28.6 minutes. You can expect to spend an additional $355 per month on car insurance.
Andover
Location: Tolland County
Population: 3,203
Median household income: $105,328
Median home price: $273,900
Stone walls, historic homes, and farmlands aplenty,
Andover
is bursting with New England charm. The cost of living in this small rural town is 107.2—just under the state average. You can expect to spend 30 minutes commuting and $351 per month on car insurance.
Long commutes have nothing on Andover’s Hop River State Park Trail, a 20-mile-long trail that links towns and offers hiking, biking, horseback riding, and cross country skiing during the winters.
Harwinton
Location: Litchfield County
Population: 5,456
Median household income: $111,202
Median home price: $310,300
You can find both 18th- and 20th-century homes featured in Harwinton’s two historical districts, helping maintain its rural charm. The overall cost of living in this charming farm town is 105.8, which is still slightly more than the national average but less than the rest of the state.
The average commute is 29 minutes and is on the rise. However, when you aren’t commuting, you can enjoy nearly 200 acres of open space, including hiking trails and wildlife observation areas.
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Best places to buy a house in Connecticut
You’ll want to consider the housing market and climate of the city you are looking for a place to buy a home. To find out the best places to buy a house in Connecticut, we took a look at Realtor.com’s summaries of the housing market and the FEMA Risk Index.
East Granby
Location: Hartford County
Population: 5,304
Median household income: $104,336
Median home price: $284,300
While the median home listing price is $300,000 and the housing market trending up 6.5% each year in East Granby, it has excellent public schools and low crime rates. This bodes well for homeowners with and without children since quality education increases home value, and low crime rates reduce homeowners insurance.
Tornadoes and drought are a relatively high risk for homeowners in East Granby, increasing Hartford County’s risk index to 14.94, which is still considered relatively moderate compared to the rest of the U.S.
If you move to East Granby, you can enjoy exploring the town’s natural areas, including rapids on the Farmington River, the Farmington Greenway, and East Granby farms—a 450-acre park.
Avon
Location: Hartford County
Population: 18,312
Median household income: $131,130
Median home price: $383,200
Originally a part of
Farmington
, Avon was incorporated as a separate town in 1830 and named after the Avon River in England. Today, it’s the biggest town on our list, and the median listing home price is $400,000 on average. Located in Hartford County, Avon’s FEMA risk score is 14.95, and homeowners should be prepared for tornado and drought risks. However, natural disasters in Avon are still relatively moderate compared to the rest of the nation, and the cost of damage can be curtailed with the right homeowners insurance.
Coventry Lake
Location: Tolland County
Population: 2,530
Median household income: $89,554
Median home price: $192,200
Coventry Lake was the birthplace of Nathan Hale, an American Patriot, soldier, and spy for the Continental Army during the American Revolution. You’ll find the Captain Nathan Hale Monument, a 45-foot obelisk in the town. However, the town’s centerpiece is Lake Wangumbaug, which has two public beaches where you can swim and relax every summer.
With a median listing price of $219,700 and a very low FEMA risk score of 3.66, Lake Coventry is a homebuyer’s paradise for young professionals. Not to mention the first-rate public schools—what more could you ask for?
How to find affordable homeowners and car insurance in Connecticut
Wherever you decide to live,
Jerry
can help you find the lowest rates by bundling your homeowners and car insurance policies. Jerry is the easiest and most effective way to find a home, car, or renters insurance policy that is customized for you.
After providing you with a comprehensive cross-analysis of the best policies across providers, Jerry will handle the phone calls, paperwork, and renewals for your top pick so that you don’t have to. They even help cancel your old policy!
Jerry users save an average of $800+ per year on their car insurance alone.
“Jerryhad a super simple app that was easy to navigate. And their terrific customer service made everything even easier. Plus I saved $700 in a single year.” —Lucia M.
Let Jerry find you the best homeowners insurance policy for your needs
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Save an average of 18% by bundling your home and auto insurance
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