CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

41.45° N · 72.82° W · GEOID 0978880

Wallingford Center

South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut · part of the New Haven, CT metro

ConnecticutWallingford Center, CTWallingford CenterWallingford Center

The short answer

Wallingford Center is home to 18,208 people. Median household income is $89,959 a year and median rent is $1,336 a month, 17.8% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $319,200, about 3.5x annual median household income.

What sets Wallingford Center apart is how far household money goes. Money left after rent is $73,500, against $61,300 in its closest peers. Also notable: OpenStreetMap shows 2.2 libraries per 10,000 residents, more than in 89% of places its size.

78OF 100

CTXCitytistics Index

Strong

Wallingford Center scores better than 78% of the 6,612 places we rate, and ranks 14th of 65 in Connecticut.

How the CTX is built

Category ratings · 0 to 100, typical place 50

Affordability 20%64
Economy 20%58
Safety 20%n/a
Amenities 15%66
Education 10%58
Commute 10%53
Growth 5%n/a

Not rated: safety, growth, for want of data (the city police department does not report a full year to the FBI). The other weights are spread over the categories rated.

Median gross rent
$1,336
2% below the median place
Median household income
$89,959
12% above the median place
Median home value
$319,200
0% below the median place
Unemployment
4.7%
5% below the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Wallingford Center

  • HousingHomeowners pay a median of about 1.6% of home value a year in property tax, more than in 80% of the 2,101 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track.
  • Affordability41% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 80% of the 2,222 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track.
01

Moving to Wallingford Center

South Central Connecticut Planning Region loses about 4.2 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in20,174
Moved out22,074
Net−1,900

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Within Connecticut, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within ConnecticutOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$75K
Leavers$83K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of South Central Connecticut Planning Region; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
3.6% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 1.4% from another state.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into South Central Connecticut Planning Region report $74,700 a year in income on average; those leaving, $82,900, so leavers earn more than newcomers.
Income you would need
$53,400 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,336 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $2,228 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $319,200.
Getting to work
25 minutes each way on average; 12.9% work from home; 3.0% take transit.
If it is close but not quite
Morrisville, PA matches it on character for less of your income. Compare the two
Moved here in the past year1
3.6%
37% below the median place
Moved from another state1
1.4%
30% below the median place
Income of households moving out6
$82,911
18% above the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureWallingford CenterAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year13.6%37% below
Moved from another state11.4%30% below
Net movers per 1,000 people6County figure-4.2below (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in6County figure$74,7256% above
Income of households moving out6County figure$82,91118% above
02

What it costs to live here

Owning with a mortgage costs about $892 a month more than the median rent, a wider gap than in 83% of the 2,298 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track.

Wallingford Center17.8%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$53,440
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
17.8%
13% below the median place
Home price to income
3.5x
7% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
18%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$73,600
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Wallingford Center, $1,336 a month, and local prices for everything else (100.5 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Wallingford Center, but easier on the budget

Places that match Wallingford Center on character (size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, remote work and climate) but where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income. Cost was left out of the match on purpose.

PlaceMatchRent to incomeMore left a year
Morrisville, PA9412.6% vs 17.8%$13,100Compare
Whitinsville, MA9114.9% vs 17.8%$7,900Compare
Milan, MI9114.4% vs 17.8%$11,700Compare
Tell City, IN8914.9% vs 17.8%n/aCompare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Wallingford Center.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Wallingford Center? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Median year built1
1960
1% below the median place
Renters paying 30%+1
40.8%
19% below the median place
Property tax rate1
1.6%
81% above the median place
All 15 cost and housing measures
MeasureWallingford CenterAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,3362% below
Rent to income117.8%13% below
Property tax rate11.6%81% above
Home price to income13.5x7% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure104.64% above
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$2,09129% above
Property tax paid (median)1$5,26461% above
Median home value1$319,2000% below
Home prices, 1-year change4County figure6.3%98% above
Home prices, 5-year change4County figure60.9%18% above
Homeownership160.4%9% below
Renters paying 30%+140.8%19% below
Owner costs with a mortgage1$2,22819% above
Vacant homes15.2%27% below
Median year built119601% below
03

Work and pay

Poverty rate is 7.1%, 34% below the median place.

Poverty rate1
7.1%
34% below the median place
Income per person1
$49,570
24% above the median place
Median household income1
$89,959
12% above the median place

More on work and pay, against the typical place

Unemployment4.7% −5%
Mean commute25 min −1%
Works from home12.9% +4%
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureWallingford CenterAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$89,95912% above
Income per person1$49,57024% above
Unemployment14.7%5% below
Average annual pay5County figure$80,01521% above
Pay growth, 1 year5County figure6.0%62% above
Jobs5County figure278,57285% above
Poverty rate17.1%34% below
Mean commute125 min1% below
Works from home112.9%4% above
Commutes by transit1County figure3.0%249% above
04

Who lives here

Households average 2.17 people, smaller than than in 87% of the 2,300 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track.

Household size1
2.2
13% below the median place
Born abroad1
15.7%
77% above the median place
No health insurance1
4.8%
25% below the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Homes with broadband90.9% −1%
High school or higher90.7% −2%
Bachelor's or higher35.9% +12%
Median age39.6 +2%
All 8 people measures
MeasureWallingford CenterAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population118,2082530th largest
Median age139.62% above
Bachelor's or higher135.9%12% above
High school or higher190.7%2% below
Household size12.213% below
Born abroad115.7%77% above
No health insurance14.8%25% below
Homes with broadband190.9%1% below
05

Life in Wallingford Center

The nearest National Park Service site is Weir Farm National Historical Park, about 36 miles away.

Its history on Wikipedia

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents15.4 +51%
Playgrounds per 10k13.7 +46%
Grocery stores per 10k3.3 +56%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k25.8 2.3×
Libraries per 10k2.2 2.5×
Named paths and bike trails0 km −95%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.6 2.6×

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

National Park Service sites nearby

  • Weir Farm National Historical Park 36 miles
  • Sagamore Hill National Historic Site 53 miles
  • Fire Island National Seashore 53 miles

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars25.1 +21%
Shops32.6 +8%
Arts, recreation and fitness4.8 +17%
Doctors' offices and clinics23.9 +18%
Child care centers2.7 +17%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Nearest National Park Service site9
35.5
15% above the median place
Public schools10
150
above the median place (median 9)
Public school students10
72,909
above the median place (median 4,897)
All 17 schools and local life measures
MeasureWallingford CenterAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools10County figure150above (median 9)
Public school students10County figure72,909above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher10County figure12.320% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k7County figure25.121% above
Shops per 10k7County figure32.68% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7County figure4.817% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k7County figure23.918% above
Child care centers per 10k7County figure2.717% above
Parks per 10k815.451% above
Playgrounds per 10k813.746% above
Grocery stores per 10k83.356% above
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k825.8131% above
Libraries per 10k82.2153% above
Named paths and bike trails80.195% below
Transit stops per sq mi80.6162% above
Nearest National Park Service site935.515% above
National Park Service sites within 60 miles94100% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Hurricane risk is 97.0, 37% above the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Wallingford Center. Larger places are fetched first.

Hurricane risk11
97.0
37% above the median place
Wildfire risk11
41.2
33% below the median place
Natural hazard risk11
95.1
3% above the median place
All 7 weather and risk measures
MeasureWallingford CenterAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Natural hazard risk11County figure95.13% above
Hurricane risk11County figure97.037% above
Tornado risk11County figure78.04% below
Wildfire risk11County figure41.233% below
Heat wave risk11County figure85.45% below
Median air quality index12Metro figure430% above
Good air days12Metro figure67.1%2% below
08

Wallingford Center in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 18% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 18% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases. On projected 2030 affordability, Wallingford Center does better than 65% of places. Its projected home value growth beats 15%.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,336/mo (2024)$1,710/mo$1,400 to $2,090/mo+4.2%
Median household income$89,959 (2024)$114,500$96,500 to $135,500+4.1%
Median home value$319,200 (2024)$446,000$324,000 to $614,000+5.7%

The median home would be worth 3.9 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.5 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Wallingford Center

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Maplewood, MN$1,406$91,394Compare
Central, LA$1,309$89,554Compare
Mounds View, MN$1,245$90,009Compare
Atoka, TN$1,237$89,663Compare
Atoka, TNMounds View, MNCentral, LAMaplewood, MNWallingford Center, CTWallingford CenterMaplewoodCentralMounds ViewAtokaWallingford CenterMaplewoodCentralMounds ViewAtoka

Places built like Wallingford Center

Its statistical peers: the closest matches on size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, origin and remote work, in the same part of the country. Cost and outcomes are left out of the match, so the table shows how Wallingford Center performs against places like it.

PlaceRent to incomeIncome growthPop. change
Wallingford Center, CT17.8%6.0%/yrn/a
West Springfield Town, MA19.8%5.5%/yr-0.0%Compare
Somersworth, NH23.8%2.2%/yr2.6%Compare
Manchester, CT22.4%3.5%/yrn/aCompare
Whitinsville, MA14.9%4.4%/yrn/aCompare
Gardner, MA19.7%6.3%/yr1.0%Compare
Derby, CT21.9%7.1%/yr4.8%Compare

Common questions

Is Wallingford Center a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Its Citytistics Index is 78 out of 100, better than 78% of the places we rate and 14th of 65 in Connecticut. Homeowners pay a median of about 1.6% of home value a year in property tax, more than in 80% of the 2,101 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track. 41% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 80% of the 2,222 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track. On cost, space and class size it scores 50 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Wallingford Center expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 17.8% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $319,200.

What salary do you need to live in Wallingford Center?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $53,440 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Wallingford Center?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Maplewood, MN, Central, LA, Mounds View, MN and Atoka, TN.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  7. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  8. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  9. National Park Service sites · Wikidata (CC0), units operated by the National Park Service · Retrieved 2026-11
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  12. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Wallingford Center with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Wallingford Center itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/wallingford-center-connecticut

Citytistics. “Wallingford Center, Connecticut.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/wallingford-center-connecticut/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.