Bethel Among CT's Best Places to Raise a Family: Study

BETHEL, CT — Bethel ranks No. 44 among places to raise a family in the Nutmeg State, according to a new study. Just in time for Father’s Day, Niche.com took a look at the best places to raise a family in states across the country. According to its rankings for Connecticut, Fairfield and Hartford counties dominate the top 100. New Canaan and Weston take the top two spots; followed by Simsbury, Old Greenwich and the Simsbury village of Weatogue.

In the national rankings, Devon, Pennsylvania earned top honors for the second straight year. No Connecticut communities cracked the top 25. (To receive free news alerts from your hometown in Connecticut click here.)

The lists were created using information about public schools, crime rates, cost of living and family friendly amenities. Data was pulled from the U.S. Census, FBI, BLS, CDC and other sources, according to Niche.

Here's the top 100 places in Connecticut to raise a family:

1. New Canaan
2. Weston
3. Simsbury
4. Old Greenwich
5. Weatogue
6. Riverside
7. Ridgefield
8. Westport
9. Darien
10. Glastonbury
11. West Simsbury
12. Greenwich
13. Avon
14. Cos Cob
15. Wilton
16. Glastonbury Center
17. Woodbridge
18. Mansfield Center
19. West Hartford
20. Fairfield
21. Newtown
22. Madison
23. Pemberwick
24. Tariffville
25. Easton
26. Redding
27. Orange
28. Farmington
29. Granby
30. Canton
31. Cheshire
32. Guilford
33. North Granby
34. Southport
35. Byram
36. Trumbull
37. Glenville
38. East Granby
39. South Windsor
40. Monroe
41. Rocky Hill
42. Middlebury
43. Southbury
44. Bethel
45. Bethany
46. Brookfield
47. Bolton
48. Collinsville
49. Georgetown
50. Old Mystic
51. East Hampton
52. Newington
53. Marlborough
54. Old Lyme
55. Salem
56. Lyme
57. Essex
58. Hebron
59. Higganum
60. Litchfield
61. Southington
62. Wallingford
63. Cromwell
64. East Lyme
65. Canton Valley
66. Salmon Brook
67. Haddam
68. Noank
69. Woodbury
70. Suffield Depot
71. Durham
72. Berlin
73. New Milford
74. Andover
75. New Hartford
76. Suffield
77. Waterford
78. Ellington
79. Niantic
80. Pomfret
81. Wethersfield
82. Old Saybrook
83. New Fairfield
84. North Haven
85. Windsor
86. Lake Pocotopaug
87. Branford
88. Ledyard
89. Groton
90. Burlington
91. Colchester
92. Stonington
93. Woodmont
94. Wolcott
95. Barkhamsted
96. Prospect
97. Portland
98. Kensington
99. Chester
100. East Haddam

Do you agree with the rankings? Let us know in the comments section below.

Brian McCready, Patch Staff contributed to this report

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