Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Prospect grades B+ overall, 70th among Connecticut's 151 graded towns. The median household earns $126K. Residents are healthier than 89% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. The trade-off is money: homes are expensive, about $468K for a typical one and 5.4 times the Waterbury metro’s $86K median household income. On hazard risk, just 5 of Connecticut’s 175 towns do better. Prospect has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Prospect Green Historic District and David Hotchkiss House. Only 9 of Connecticut’s 175 towns score lower on the outdoors.
Where Prospect beats most towns.
Census counts: 651 in 1830, a low of 266 in 1920, 9,401 in 2020. The archive holds 23 old photos and papers going back to 2007 and 4 maps from 1955 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Connecticut), ordered by how far Prospect is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Prospect. Close and well known come first.
13 mi Stadium & arenaYale Bowl
10 mi Theme parkLake Compounce
24 mi Stadium & arenaPeoplesBank Arena
4 mi Theme parkHoly Land USA
25 mi LakeCandlewood Lake
26 mi Stadium & arenaPratt & Whitney StadiumYale Bowl: Kenneth Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lake Compounce: Wildcat1 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · PeoplesBank Arena: PeoplesBank Arena, CC BY 2.5 · Holy Land USA: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Candlewood Lake: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Pratt & Whitney Stadium: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Prospect, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Prospect.
Within Connecticut it is healthier than 50% of the 154 graded towns: Connecticut sets a high bar. Its widest gap with Connecticut is food insecurity: 8.2% of its 7,575 adults worry about having enough food, against 14.9% statewide.
13% of adults say their health is fair or poor in Prospect, where Connecticut’s towns sit at 14% and U.S. towns at 19%. Prospect beats the Connecticut average on 10 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 15% of adults report frequent mental distress in Prospect.
| Prospect | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 14% | 19% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 15% | 17% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 9.2% | 9.4% | 12% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.9% | 9.7% | 14% |
| What stands out | Prospect | CT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.2% | 14.9% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.8% | 10% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.3% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Regional School District 16. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prospect Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 572 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CT on state tests and graduation
Most working residents leave Prospect for work: only 7% work in town. 3.2% of residents live below the poverty line in Prospect, below both Connecticut’s towns (5.8%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Since 2013, Prospect has added 262 jobs, to 1,943 in 2023.
| Prospect | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $126,000 | $109,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 3.2% | 5.8% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 10% | 16% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The FEMA risk score in Prospect is 28 of 100. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Prospect since 2011.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Prospect has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Prospect’s July high is 82°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
12 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. Among 155 Connecticut towns, just 5 have a lower share of conserved land than Prospect. Kathan Woods, at 82 acres with 1.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Prospect | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 3.1% | 14% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kathan Woods | 1.9 mi | 82 |
| 2. Hotchkiss Field | 0.8 mi | 20 |
| 3. Roaring Brook Park | 0.3 mi | 14 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Adults 18 to 34 are 15% of residents (22% statewide); people 65 and older are 25% of residents (19% statewide). 40% of Prospect adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. Prospect has grown 2.9% since 2020, to 9,638 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Prospect | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 25% | 20% | 18% |
| Median age | 46.8 years | 44.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 40% | 45% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 21% | 19% | 22% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.5 points. Across Connecticut, 50.9% of residents are women.
| Prospect | CT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.8% | 10.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.6% | 9.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.4% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.7% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.4% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 15.8% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.8% | 14.2% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.3% | 10.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 12.2% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.7% | 8.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.7% | 25.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 16% | 16.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.2% | 7.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.5% | 23.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 20.9% | 19.2% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Typical home values rose 7.1% in the year to September 2026. Only 7 of the 155 Connecticut towns we compare have a higher share of households owning their home than Prospect.
| Prospect | Connecticut towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 94% | 81% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,800 a month | $1,448 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
7 within 15 miles of the center of Prospect
About 4 of every 100 Prospect residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Connecticut.
Where Prospect’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
2 places in Prospect on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Prospect.
Town in Connecticut, United States
Prospect is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. It is a suburb of the nearby city of Waterbury to its north, and is on the north-eastern fringes of the New York metropolitan area. The population was estimated to be 9,401 in 2020. Prospect is part of the Waterbury NECTA and of the historical New Haven County. Prospect is also a member of the regional health district Chesprocott, along with Cheshire and Wolcott. Prospect was incorporated as a town in 1827 from the South Farms part of Waterbury and the West Rocks part of Cheshire. Prospect is an exurban town, with residents often traveling to other major cities and employment centers across the state.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Prospect.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Prospect grades B+ overall, better than 67% of U.S. towns and #70 of 151 in Connecticut. It grades A for health and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
3 notable people were born here, including David Francis Bacon and Vincent Ingala.
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