The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In Connecticut For 2022


We used data and science to determine the places in Connecticut everyone wants to move to today.

Editor’s Note: Data has been updated for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the fastest growing cities in Connecticut.

Is being in an area that's growing quickly a good thing or a bad thing?

Depends on who you ask. Some want bigger, more exciting cities like Bridgeport and New Haven, while others want peace and quiet like in Groton and Derby, thank you very much.

But today we're going to put opinions aside and just look at the cold hard facts -- over the past five years, which cities in Connecticut have the grown the fastest.

After getting knee deep in the Census's American Community Survey, we emerged with this set of cities in the Constitution State that have people climbing over each other to get in.

These are the 10 fastest growing cities in Connecticut for 2022 according to the most recent census data:

The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In Connecticut For 2022

  1. Stamford
  2. Danbury
  3. Shelton
  4. Norwalk
  5. Milford
  6. Bridgeport
  7. New Haven
  8. New Britain
  9. Bristol
  10. West Haven

What's the fastest growing city in Connecticut for 2022? Based on the most recent ACS data, Stamford ranks as the fastest growing city in Connecticut. If you happen to be a resident of Stamford, you're probably not too surprised to find it on our list.

If you're surprised--and you're wondering why these places are kind of a big deal--keep reading. We'll tell you what makes each of these 10 places in Connecticut are growing like weeds.

And if you already knew these places were happening, check out the best places to live in Connecticut or the Fastest Growing States In America.

For more Connecticut state reading:

The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In Connecticut For 2022

1. Stamford

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 130,057
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Population 2010: 120,907
Percent Growth 7.6%
Absolute Growth: 9,150
More on Stamford: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Stamford, CT

Source: Public domain

2. Danbury

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 84,650
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Population 2010: 79,371
Percent Growth 6.7%
Absolute Growth: 5,279
More on Danbury: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Danbury, CT

3. Shelton

Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 41,162
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Population 2010: 39,061
Percent Growth 5.4%
Absolute Growth: 2,101
More on Shelton: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Shelton, CT

4. Norwalk

Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10

Population: 88,755
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Population 2010: 84,611
Percent Growth 4.9%
Absolute Growth: 4,144
More on Norwalk: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Norwalk, CT

5. Milford

Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 52,902
Rank Last Year: 5 (No Change)
Population 2010: 51,019
Percent Growth 3.7%
Absolute Growth: 1,883
More on Milford: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Milford, CT

6. Bridgeport

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 145,014
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Population 2010: 142,576
Percent Growth 1.7%
Absolute Growth: 2,438
More on Bridgeport: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Bridgeport, CT

7. New Haven

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 130,381
Rank Last Year: 7 (No Change)
Population 2010: 128,885
Percent Growth 1.2%
Absolute Growth: 1,496
More on New Haven: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

New Haven, CT

8. New Britain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 72,543
Rank Last Year: 8 (No Change)
Population 2010: 72,954
Percent Growth -0.6%
Absolute Growth: -411
More on New Britain: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

New Britain, CT

9. Bristol

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 60,039
Rank Last Year: 9 (No Change)
Population 2010: 60,466
Percent Growth -0.7%
Absolute Growth: -427
More on Bristol: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

Bristol, CT

10. West Haven

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 54,666
Rank Last Year: 10 (No Change)
Population 2010: 55,070
Percent Growth -0.7%
Absolute Growth: -404
More on West Haven: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos

West Haven, CT

Source: Public domain

Methodology: How We Measured The Fastest Growing Cities In the Constitution State for 2022

To figure out which cities are growing the most, we simply had to look at the growth rates for cities sine the beginning of the decade, according to the American Community Survey put out by the census every year. Specifically:

  • Current Population
  • Population in 2010
  • Growth rate from 2010 to Current (The latest available data which came out in Dec 2018)

We ranked all 21 Connecticut cities with a population over 5,000 people from highest growth rate to lowest.

The city with the highest growth rate during this time was crowned the fastest growing city in the Constitution State.

And for those of you who are a little rusty with their statistics, you can calculate the growth rate by the following formula:

[Current Population - Population 2010] / [Population 2010]

Here's a graph of the cities in Connecticut with the largest percent increase in population:
Fastest Growing Cities in Connecticut Graph For 2022

Click to enlarge

Summary: These Places Grew Up So Fast In Connecticut, You Know?

So there you have it, the fastest growing cities in Connecticut are led by Stamford which has been growing at a blistering pace this decade relative to other cities and towns around the state.

It'll be interesting to see if these places can keep growing at the same rate over the next couple of years. We'll be here to let you know!

These places have been growing (or shrinking) the slowest (fastest):

  1. Groton
  2. Torrington
  3. Derby

For more Connecticut reading, check out:

Detailed List Of Fastest Growing Places In Connecticut For 2022

Rank City Growth Population Population 2010
1 Stamford 7.6% 130,057 120,907
2 Danbury 6.7% 84,650 79,371
3 Shelton 5.4% 41,162 39,061
4 Norwalk 4.9% 88,755 84,611
5 Milford 3.7% 52,902 51,019
6 Bridgeport 1.7% 145,014 142,576
7 New Haven 1.2% 130,381 128,885
8 New Britain -0.6% 72,543 72,954
9 Bristol -0.7% 60,039 60,466
10 West Haven -0.7% 54,666 55,070

How Is The Area In ?

About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.