County · Connecticut
South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut
South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut has a quality-of-life score of 74 out of 100 (high), ranking #819 of 3,143 US counties. Within Connecticut it ranks #7 of 9 counties. It ranks best on distance to an Amtrak station (low), firearm deaths (low) and distance to an airport (low). It ranks worst on high ozone days (high), child care cost burden (high) and effective property tax rate (high).
- Quality-of-life score
- #819 of 3,143 counties
- Connecticut
- #7 of 9 in CT
- Population
- 578,741 (2025)
- Land area
- 367 mi²
- Density
- 1,575.9 /mi²
- FIPS code
- 09170
Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 80 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.
Scores by category
Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US counties.
- Safety70#921/3,096
- Economy69#977/3,143
- Housing2#3,085/3,140
- Health87#407/3,144
- Healthcare93#222/3,143
- Environment17#2,578/3,108
- Education82#560/3,144
- Infrastructure95#163/3,144
- Community56#1,376/3,144
- Leisure & amenities90#325/3,143
Strengths · Weaknesses
Indicators where South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut ranks highest and lowest among US counties (score = percentile, 100 = best).
Strengths
- Distance to an Amtrak station · low3 mi99/100Connecticut 8 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau
- Firearm deaths · low4.0 /100k99/100Connecticut 4.5 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)Model-based estimateProvisional data
- Distance to an airport · low8 mi98/100Connecticut 18 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau
- Suicide rate · low9.6 /100k98/100Connecticut 10.1 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)Provisional data
- Public transit commuters · high3.0%
- Average weekly wage · high$1,539
Weaknesses
- High ozone days · high12 days1/100Connecticut 10 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)
- Child care cost burden · high48.2%1/100Connecticut 39.8%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)
- Effective property tax rate · high1.82%
- Days with unhealthy air · high3.6%4/100Connecticut 3.5%2025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)
- Time spent in the emergency room · high220 min5/100Connecticut 190 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
- Drug overdose deaths · high29.0 /100k6/100Connecticut 20.7 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionEstimated from related areas or data (see the source notes)Provisional data
Trends
The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.
- Drought exposureWorsening
0% (2021) → 24% (Nov 2025–Oct 2026)
+24 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
- Child care cost burdenWorsening
26.0% (2020 & 2021) → 48.2% (2023 & 2024)
+22 pts3 yearsUS 24.5% → 27.9%
- Distance to an airportImproving
35 mi (2020) → 8 mi (2025)
−76%5 yearsUS 33 mi → 33 mi
- Firearm deathsImproving
9.5 /100k (2021) → 4.0 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−58%5 yearsUS 14.7 /100k → 12.1 /100k
- Cost of buying a home todayWorsening
26.0% (Dec 2021) → 37.3% (Aug 2026)
+11 pts5 yearsUS 26.4% → 34.1%
- Homicide rateImproving
6.6 /100k (2021) → 3.1 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−53%5 yearsUS 7.8 /100k → 4.8 /100k
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.
Counties like South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut five years ago that improved
The places whose measures looked most like those of South Central Connecticut Planning Region, 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.
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).
Income
How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.
Homes
Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.
Getting to work
How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.
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 New Haven, CTLocal 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.
Federal contract spending
Federal grants & assistance
Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.
Public money & outcomes
Federal money per resident by fiscal year next to how the place changed, and, when its money jumped, how it compares with similar counties. A comparison, not cause and effect.
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.
Metro area
The metro or micro area South Central Connecticut Planning Region belongs to. A county is in at most one.
Cities and towns in South Central Connecticut Planning Region
Places whose residents live mostly in South Central Connecticut Planning Region, largest first.
Neighboring counties
Places that share a border, best score first.
Similar counties
Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).
- Capitol Planning Region, CT80Alike on Bachelor's+, Intl. migration, Property tax
- Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT67Alike on Infant care, Suicides, Preschool care
- Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT85Alike on Household income, Smoking, Buy effort
- Erie County, NY76Alike on Airport, Property tax, Transit use
- Mercer County, NJ73Alike on Preschool care, Price level, Housing problems
Data and sources
Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.
- Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
- PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
- Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
- Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
- Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
- Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
- National Risk IndexFederal Emergency Management Agency · release v1.20.0
- Health Professional Shortage AreasHealth Resources and Services Administration · release 2026-10-10
- Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
- Common Core of DataNational Center for Education Statistics · release 2024
- U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-10-06
- Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
- nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
- Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
- Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
- Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
- American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
- Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
- Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
- 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
- Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
- Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
- Air Quality Index Annual Summary by CountyU.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2025
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
- Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08