West Hartford, Connecticut
Area Profile
63,620 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for West Hartford, in Capitol Planning Region.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 13 sourcesEmployment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 5.9% and the Opportunity signal places West Hartford in the bottom 14%. The unemployment rate is published for Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains West Hartford, rather than for West Hartford alone.
Public schools test above most of the state: 63% of students met the mathematics standard, placing the area in the top 5% of published profiles for schools.
1,507 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 3% of the prior year — steady rather than turning. The permit count and 1 other measure here are published for Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains West Hartford, rather than for West Hartford alone.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment across Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains West Hartford, is 5.9% — higher than in all but 9% of the 4,226 measured US cities.
Employment across Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains West Hartford, fell 4.0% over the past year, to 481,793 employed residents.
67% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 95% of measured US cities.
Median household income of $129,890 is higher than in 92% of measured US cities.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsCapitol Planning Region, CT’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $74,926 | 54th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftCapitol Planning Region, CT’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $83,801 | 69th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$6,6912024 ACS 5-Year | $129,890 | Top 8%of 29,326 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$2,5202024 ACS 5-Year | $71,170 | Top 6%of 31,420 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 6.2% | Top 30%of 31,773 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±0.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 23.6 min | Top 33%of 31,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 66.6% | Top 5%of 31,919 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 65.3% | 19th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentCapitol Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026 | 481,793 | Top 16%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)Capitol Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026 | −3.4% | Bottom 9%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)Capitol Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026 | −4.0% | Bottom 3%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceCapitol Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026 | 512,218 | 85th percentileof 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 87.4% | Top 17%of 31,513 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Mean annual wageHartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $76,720 | Top 26%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Median annual wageHartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $59,940 | Top 20%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Public transit to work ±0.6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.4% | 87th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)Capitol Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026 | +1.4% | Bottom 1%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateCapitol Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026 | 5.9% | Bottom 9%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 22.5% | 89th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Median household income, successive ACS releases
Largest occupations — Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT
| Occupation | People employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 19,230 | $39,620 |
| Retail Salespersons | 14,380 | $35,720 |
| Registered Nurses | 13,850 | $101,470 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 13,530 | $40,730 |
| General and Operations Managers | 13,370 | $148,080 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 12,370 | $35,030 |
Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.
Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish a labor-market series for this place — true of a consolidated city-county, a city and county sharing one government, or a Puerto Rico municipio, regardless of population. This is the figure for Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains this city.
63% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 73% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 12.4 students for every full-time teacher across 16 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conard High School | West Hartford School District | 1,380 | 13.5 | 62% | 77% |
| Hall High School | West Hartford School District | 1,332 | 13.9 | 64% | 84% |
| Sedgwick Middle School | West Hartford School District | 874 | 11.5 | 52% | 67% |
| King Philip Middle School | West Hartford School District | 820 | 11.5 | 62% | 74% |
| Duffy School | West Hartford School District | 489 | 13.6 | 76% | 75% |
| Charter Oak International Academy | West Hartford School District | 486 | 11.6 | 50% | 61% |
| University of Hartford Magnet School | Capitol Region Education Council | 477 | 13.3 | 37% | 47% |
| Aiken School | West Hartford School District | 408 | 13.2 | 67% | 72% |
| Whiting Lane School | West Hartford School District | 379 | 10.5 | 67% | 82% |
| Norfeldt School | West Hartford School District | 362 | 12.5 | 82% | 87% |
| Wolcott School | West Hartford School District | 354 | 11.8 | 60% | 62% |
| Braeburn School | West Hartford School District | 347 | 12.4 | 72% | 77% |
30.1% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Connecticut’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →Prices for everything a household buys run about 3% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 103.3, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area is up 58% over five years, and up 5.8% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $9,598 a year in real estate taxes, about 2.34% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $2,331, some 33% above the $1,756 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $2,331 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $93,200 a year, about 72% of the median household income here of $129,890.
The typical renter household here spends 27% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,756 a month.
A median home at $411,000 costs 2.5 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $165,980, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.
Prices here run about 3% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.
Published for the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.
The figures above are measured against West Hartford’s median household income of $129,890, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of living indexthe Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area’s figure2023 | 103.3 | Bottom 38%of 3,700 | 2023 |
| Home price change (1 year)the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +5.8% | 87th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +57.7% | 93rd percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +88.4% | 44th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.12024 ACS 5-Year | 2.5 | Top 50%of 26,901 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 67.4% | 33rd percentileof 31,840 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±5022024 ACS 5-Year | 27,040 | 98th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $1,845 | Bottom 25%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $2,797 | Bottom 26%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $2,331 | Bottom 20%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$402024 ACS 5-Year | $1,756 | Bottom 13%of 23,217 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$10,0052024 ACS 5-Year | $411,000 | 83rd percentileof 29,111 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$2192024 ACS 5-Year | $9,598 | 99th percentileof 26,440 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$6,1052024 ACS 5-Year | $165,980 | Top 4%of 27,548 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.08%2024 ACS 5-Year | 2.34% | 96th percentileof 20,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 27.1% | Top 43%of 23,052 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±752024 ACS 5-Year | 94 | 89th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.3% | 55th percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 3.9% | 32nd percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±2422024 ACS 5-Year | 1,155 | 95th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
68% of the 1,507 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses. The multifamily share is published for Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains West Hartford, rather than for West Hartford alone.
Federal tax returns show Capitol Planning Region, which contains West Hartford, lost about 0.3% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $74,926, below the $83,801 of households that moved out.
At 1.5 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities. The permit rate is published for Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains West Hartford, rather than for West Hartford alone.
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT 3,216 people · 11% of arrivals
- South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT 2,229 people · 7.8% of arrivals
- Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT 1,847 people · 6.5% of arrivals
- Hampden County, MA 1,800 people · 6.3% of arrivals
- Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT 1,224 people · 4.3% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT 2,914 people · 9.5% of departures
- Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT 2,046 people · 6.7% of departures
- South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT 1,719 people · 5.6% of departures
- Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT 1,363 people · 4.5% of departures
- Hampden County, MA 1,231 people · 4.0% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Capitol Planning Region, CT. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
The Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey lists only jurisdictions that issue their own permits, and West Hartford, CT is not one. This is the figure for Capitol Planning Region, CT, which contains this city.
Weather & climate
5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 85°F and January a low of 20°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 42.8 inches.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 42.8" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 20°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 85°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 5 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 47°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and cold wave, with inland flooding alone responsible for 80% of it. cold wave is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Low or minimal exposure: ice storm, cold wave, lightning, winter weather, strong wind, hail, wildfire, drought, coastal flooding, avalanche, tsunami, volcanic activity.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.
West Hartford's police department reported 45 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 1,943.
Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.
Offenses are reported to the FBI by West Hartford’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around West Hartford (Capitol Planning Region) rather than West Hartford itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Death-certificate rates
- The CDC publishes these rates by county, and no county figure could be attached to this page.
- Air quality
- The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
8 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Bradley Intl at 12 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 94.2% | Top 28%of 31,711 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 12 mi | Top 34%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 8 | Top 7%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year | 4.0% | Top 31%of 31,711 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bradley Intl | BDL | 12 mi | 9,510 ft |
| Westfield-Barnes Rgnl | BAF | 27 mi | 9,000 ft |
| Westover ARB/Metro | CEF | 32 mi | 11,597 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Other cities in Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT
Same metropolitan area, measured the same way| City | County | Population | Area Score | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford | Capitol Planning Region | 121,127 | 42 | Hartford vs West Hartford |
| New Britain | Capitol Planning Region | 74,223 | 40 | New Britain vs West Hartford |
| East Hartford | Capitol Planning Region | 50,918 | 46 | East Hartford vs West Hartford |
| Middletown | Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region | 47,958 | 51 | |
| Manchester | Capitol Planning Region | 36,759 | 49 | |
| Newington | Capitol Planning Region | 30,896 | 58 | |
| Wethersfield | Capitol Planning Region | 27,250 | 56 | |
| Storrs | Capitol Planning Region | 15,207 | 48 | |
| Windsor Locks | Capitol Planning Region | 12,579 | 50 |
Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.
Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyCompare
Put West Hartford side by side with a similar place.
Moving to West Hartford from somewhere else?
You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.
Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Safety | Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency | 2025 calendar year |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Housing | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics | 2025 OEWS |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated September 26, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.
ZIP codes in West Hartford
4 ZIP areasEvery ZIP area in West Hartford with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track West Hartford closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.