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Thompson, Connecticut

Thompson is a small town of about 9,600 people in Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut. It has grown about 4% since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.1 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Providence, is about 26 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
9,566
up 4.2% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$291,900
Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region prices up 28% since 2022
Household income
$93,629
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Connecticut
97.9
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
6 miles
Putnam, CT
To Providence
26 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 2.1% below the U.S. average in the parts of Connecticut outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.1 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Thompson itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byDay Kimball Hospital in Putnam, about 6 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityProvidence is about 26 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Thompson meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$291,900U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 28%Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,012 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$93,629U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
84%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,822 a yearConnecticut: $6,643
Homes built before 1940
33%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
4%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
3%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
97.9U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Connecticut outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 28% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Connecticut outside metro areas, not Thompson alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
9,5662020: 9,184
Median age
54.1 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
24%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
11%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
22%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
5%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (22%); retail (20%); manufacturing (16%)
Unemployment rate
8%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
32 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
13%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
6%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Day Kimball Hospital, Putnam, CT, about 6 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

3 public schools in Thompson, run by Thompson School District.

Colleges in or next to town: Nichols College (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Connecticut's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
80%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
93%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
15°F
July average high
82°F
Days 90°F or hotter
8 a year
Nights at or below freezing
156 a year
Rain and melted snow
50.1 inches a year
Snow
38 inches a year
Elevation
527 feet

Weather station: W Thompson Lake (4 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Day Kimball Hospital, Worcester, Providence.

Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 4, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including North Grosvenordale Mill Historic Disrict and the Thompson Hill Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park13 miles
  • Roger Williams National Memorial26 miles
  • Springfield Armory National Historic Site37 miles
  • Minute Man National Historical Park41 miles
  • New England National Scenic Trail43 miles

Campus life. Check Nichols College's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Thompson's history on Wikipedia.

Know Thompson?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.