City · Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut

New Britain, Connecticut

New Britain is a city in Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, part of the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area. It has 74,223 residents. New Britain, Connecticut has a quality-of-life score of 41 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #9,203 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Connecticut it ranks #153 of 160 cities and towns. It ranks best on mental health providers (high), public EV charging ports (high) and average weekly wage (high). It ranks worst on effective property tax rate (high), physical inactivity (high) and food insecurity (high).

41Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #9,203 of 15,651 cities and towns
Connecticut: #153 of 160 in CT
Population: 74,223 (2020-2024)
Land area: 13 mi²
Density: 5,540.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 0950370

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety66#5,267/15,637
Economy17#13,049/15,631
Housing8#13,804/14,977
Health43#8,941/15,609
Healthcare76#3,817/15,650
Environment30#10,807/15,453
Education37#9,872/15,649
Infrastructure44#8,724/15,650
Community60#6,332/15,651
Leisure & amenities82#2,793/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where New Britain, Connecticut ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Capitol Planning Region value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Mental health providers · high656 /100k
95/100Connecticut 514 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCapitol Planning Region value
Public EV charging ports · high15.9 /10k
91/100Connecticut 13.4 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyCapitol Planning Region value
Average weekly wage · high$1,628
90/100Connecticut $1,750United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCapitol Planning Region value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low6 mi
90/100Connecticut 8 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauCapitol Planning Region value
Public transit commuters · high3.5%
90/100Connecticut 3.3%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301
Flu vaccinations · high53.2%
89/100Connecticut 52.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)Capitol Planning Region value

Weaknesses

Effective property tax rate · high2.38%
3/100Connecticut 1.54%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Physical inactivity · high36.1%
7/100Connecticut 23.5%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · high31.1%
7/100Connecticut 15.7%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Time spent in the emergency room · high232 min
7/100Connecticut 190 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCapitol Planning Region value
Lack of reliable transportation · high15.2%
8/100Connecticut 8.8%United States 8.3%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Child care cost burden · high40.3%
8/100Connecticut 39.8%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)Capitol Planning Region value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

New homes permittedImproving
0.1 /1k (2021) → 0.3 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+166%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
72.3% (2015-2019) → 85.0% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
33.4% (2015-2019) → 24.0% (2020-2024)
−9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
49.9% (2015-2019) → 55.2% (2020-2024)
+5.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,499 (2015-2019) → $58,613 (2020-2024)
+26%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateImproving
21.7% (2015-2019) → 18.1% (2020-2024)
−3.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, New Britain, Connecticut improved on 5 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 7 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved5

Property tax−0.4 points2.80% → 2.38%
Child poverty−9.4 points33.4% → 24.0%
Broadband+13 points72.3% → 85.0%
Poverty−3.6 points21.7% → 18.1%
Household income+26%$46,499 → $58,613

Declined3

Uninsured+2 points6.2% → 8.2%
Rent / income+2.6 points29.9% → 32.5%
Price / income+0.4×3.5× → 3.8×

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of New Britain, Connecticut between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.6 min2015-2019	21.5 min2020-2024	+0.8 min	Within the margin of error	38%
Bachelor's degree or higher	19.9%2015-2019	19.6%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Broadband subscriptions	72.3%2015-2019	85.0%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	72%
Child poverty rate	33.4%2015-2019	24.0%2020-2024	−9.4 points	Improved	81%
Effective property tax rate	2.80%2015-2019	2.38%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Improved	86%
High school diploma or higher	80.6%2015-2019	83.5%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Home price to income ratio	3.5×2015-2019	3.8×2020-2024	+0.4×	Declined	57%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4552015-2019	0.4512020-2024	−0.004	Within the margin of error	54%
Median household income	$46,4992015-2019	$58,6132020-2024	+26%	Improved	46%
Poverty rate	21.7%2015-2019	18.1%2020-2024	−3.6 points	Improved	73%
Public transit commuters	3.3%2015-2019	3.5%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	97%
Rent as share of income	29.9%2015-2019	32.5%2020-2024	+2.6 points	Declined	35%
Rent-burdened households	49.9%2015-2019	55.2%2020-2024	+5.4 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Unemployment rate	8.0%2015-2019	7.9%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	53%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	6.2%2015-2019	8.2%2020-2024	+2 points	Declined	25%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like New Britain, Connecticut five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of New Britain, Connecticut in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, New Britain, Connecticut itself moved −2.7 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

74,223 residents (±58)

Men
Women

80 and over
70–79
60–69

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

28,974 households (±902)

New Britain, Connecticut
Connecticut share

Under $25k22%6,335
$25k–50k22%6,286
$50k–75k16%4,493

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

28,974 households (±902)

New Britain, Connecticut
Connecticut share

Own45%13,054
Rent55%15,920

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+5.0 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

35,303 workers (±1,424)

New Britain, Connecticut
Connecticut share

Drive alone73%25,632
Carpool11%3,956
Public transit3.5%1,230

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Capitol Planning Region, the county holding most of New Britain's residents.

Capitol Planning Region has 23,642 employer establishments, 241 for every 10,000 residents (0.97× the US rate of 248; 0.98× Connecticut's), with 473,777 paid employees at an average annual pay of $72,492. The Census Bureau also counts 77,611 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 23,642; 77,611 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 241; US 248 · Connecticut 245
Paid employees: 473,777
Average annual pay: $72,492; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Capitol Planning Region by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	2,311	23.5	1.13×About typical	33,408	$81,007	4,741
Restaurants and other eating places	1,974	20.1	1.09×About typical	32,557	$24,709	415
Specialty trade contractors	1,381	14.1	0.91×About typical	14,109	$84,337	4,532
Full-service restaurants	870	8.9	1.15×About typical	16,471	$28,412	147
Offices of physicians	803	8.2	1.26×More than typical	14,947	$108,694	824
Limited-service restaurants	769	7.8	0.98×About typical	10,914	$22,366	199
Services to buildings and dwellings	757	7.7	1.14×About typical	7,108	$43,194	3,198
Lessors of real estate	687	7	0.57×Fewer than typical	3,876	$65,408	8,743
Personal care services	660	6.7	1.41×More than typical	2,852	$28,687	3,364
Building equipment contractors	631	6.4	1.07×About typical	7,729	$87,891	880
Offices of other health practitioners	611	6.2	1.02×About typical	3,980	$49,074	2,579
Legal services	548	5.6	1.04×About typical	4,413	$102,236	837

Rank places for an industry Open Capitol Planning Region

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 981,775 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $7.4M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in New Britain, Connecticut: $100 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $7.4M; +300% vs FY2025
Per resident: $100; US $1,994
Sole-source: 98%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Public Buildings Service$3.7M50%
U.S. Coast Guard$2.7M37%
Department of Veterans Affairs$509.9K6.9%
Defense Logistics Agency$226K3.0%
Agricultural Marketing Service$156.3K2.1%
Offices, Boards and Divisions$125.1K1.7%
Department of the Navy$9170.0%

Top recipients

CW RESOURCES, INC.$7.1M96%
DAIRY FARMERS OF AMERICA, INC.$156.3K2.1%
A1 LANGUAGE PROFESSIONALS LLC$125.1K1.7%
KAMAN MEASURING & MEMORY, LLC$27K0.4%

Spending by fiscal year

9.1KFY2018
22KFY2019
14.3KFY2020
134KFY2021
89.8KFY2022
506.3KFY2023
666.4KFY2024
1.9MFY2025

Top industries (NAICS)

Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$6.4M86%
Drycleaning and laundry services · 8123$510.1K6.9%
Other fabricated metal product manufacturing · 3329$224.1K3.0%
Dairy product manufacturing · 3115$156.3K2.1%
Legal services · 5411$125.1K1.7%
Support activities for air transportation · 4881

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in New Britain, Connecticut

SIX-MONTH EXTENSION$4.4M
CW RESOURCES, INC.· Capitol Planning Region, CT· Facilities & utilities· Jul 13, 2026 – Jul 13, 2026· 47PF5126F0028
JANITORIAL SERVICES AT USCGA.$3.2M
CW RESOURCES, INC.· Capitol Planning Region, CT· Facilities & utilities· Mar 31, 2026 – Jul 9, 2026· 70Z08426CDL950002
LAUNDRY SERVICES IDIQ CONTRACT$605.4K
CW RESOURCES, INC.· Capitol Planning Region, CT· Facilities & utilities· Mar 19, 2026 – Apr 28, 2026· 36C26326N0320
COMMODITIES FOR USG FOOD DONATIONS: 2000011152/4100033667/MILK SKIM FRESH CTR-64 FL OZ,MILK 1% FRESH CTR-128 FL OZ,MILK 1% FRESH CTR-64 FL OZ,MILK SKIM FRESH CTR # 128 FL OZ

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in New Britain, Connecticut, so they do not add up across cities.

New Britain, Connecticut's figures are part of those of Capitol Planning Region, CT ($4.1B in FY2026), never added to them: 0.2% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: New Britain is mostly in Capitol Planning Region.

See federal money in Capitol Planning Region

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

New Britain, Connecticut is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

Christopher MurphyD-

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Capitol Planning Region80100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT90

Other cities and towns in Capitol Planning Region

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0950370

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends