State comparison
New Hampshire vs Connecticut: which state is better to live in?
New Hampshire costs a median household about $3,700 a year less in state and local taxes than Connecticut, mostly because it has no income tax.
New Hampshire
Low tax burden · COL index 114
Wins 10 categories
Connecticut
High tax burden · COL index 114
Wins 6 categories
Taxes: New Hampshire vs Connecticut
New Hampshire has no state income tax. Connecticut has a graduated income tax topping out at 6.99%, which works out to 4.5% on a median income of $74,580, or $3,352 a year. New Hampshire wins on income tax at 2026 rates.
Property tax is 1.86% of home value a year in New Hampshire and 1.79% in Connecticut (Tax Foundation, 2023); on each state's median home that is $8,184 against $7,071, so Connecticut has the lower rate.
New Hampshire has no sales tax; combined state and local sales tax averages 6.35% in Connecticut.
Add it up for a household earning $74,580 (the 2022 national median) and owning the median home: $8,184 a year in New Hampshire, $11,843 in Connecticut. New Hampshire is cheaper on total state and local tax.
Housing and cost of living
New Hampshire's cost of living index is 114 and Connecticut's is 114, where 100 is the national average; the two are level.
The median home costs $440K in New Hampshire and $395K in Connecticut (Zillow, 2024), a $45K gap in Connecticut's favor. A two-bedroom rents for about $1,750 a month in New Hampshire and $1,800 in Connecticut.
Home insurance averages $950 a year in New Hampshire and $1,600 in Connecticut, so New Hampshire is cheaper to insure.
Safety
Violent crime runs 167 incidents per 100,000 residents in New Hampshire and 203 in Connecticut (FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2023); New Hampshire is the safer state by that measure, with a rate 22% lower. Property crime is 1,150 per 100,000 in New Hampshire against 1,380 in Connecticut, again favoring New Hampshire.
Health
Life expectancy is 79.7 years in New Hampshire and 79.8 in Connecticut (County Health Rankings, 2024), a 0.1-year edge for Connecticut. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks New Hampshire's health system 6th of 50 and Connecticut's 3rd, so Connecticut scores better on care.
6.3% of New Hampshire residents have no health insurance against 5.9% in Connecticut, which favors Connecticut. Both states expanded Medicaid.
Schools
Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks New Hampshire's K-12 schools 5th in the country and Connecticut's 3rd, 2 places apart in Connecticut's favor. New Hampshire runs a school-choice voucher program; Connecticut does not.
Laws and politics
In the 2024 presidential election New Hampshire was a swing state decided by 2 points and Connecticut went to Harris by 12 points.
New Hampshire has permitless carry and a Giffords gun-law grade of F; Connecticut has may-issue carry permits and a grade of A, so Connecticut regulates guns more tightly and New Hampshire is the friendlier state for gun owners.
Abortion is legal with limits in New Hampshire and protected by state law in Connecticut, and marijuana is legal for adults in both as of 2026. The minimum wage is $7.25 an hour in New Hampshire and $15.69 in Connecticut.
Climate and risk
Natural disaster risk is low in New Hampshire (blizzard, flood) and moderate in Connecticut (hurricane, flood, blizzard), so New Hampshire is the lower-risk state. Annual average air quality index is 27 in New Hampshire and 32 in Connecticut (under 50 is good), favoring New Hampshire.
Tax figures use a household earning the national median income and owning each state's median home, at tax year 2026 rates, last checked against state sources on 2026-09-14. The table below has every number.
Taxes
Housing & Cost of Living
Crime & Safety
Healthcare
Education
Childcare
Utilities & Daily Costs
Social Policy
Category wins
10
New Hampshire
6
Connecticut
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Score For My Profile →Questions people ask
Is New Hampshire or Connecticut better to live in?
New Hampshire wins more of the measures that decide a move. New Hampshire on taxes ($8,184 a year for a median household against $11,843); New Hampshire on safety (167 violent crimes per 100,000 against 203); Connecticut on schools (ranked 3rd against 5th).
Which is cheaper, New Hampshire or Connecticut?
Day-to-day costs are level: both states sit at a cost of living index of 114. The median home is $440K in New Hampshire and $395K in Connecticut (2024). On state and local taxes New Hampshire saves a median household about $3,700 a year.
Does New Hampshire or Connecticut have lower taxes?
New Hampshire. A household earning $74,580 pays about $8,184 a year in New Hampshire ($0 income tax, $8,184 property tax on the median home and $0 in sales tax) and $11,843 in Connecticut ($3,352 income tax, $7,071 property tax on the median home and $1,421 in sales tax), at 2026 rates.
Which is safer, New Hampshire or Connecticut?
New Hampshire, on the FBI's 2023 figures. Violent crime is 167 per 100,000 residents in New Hampshire and 203 in Connecticut; property crime is 1,150 against 1,380.
Which has better schools, New Hampshire or Connecticut?
Connecticut. Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks New Hampshire 5th of 50 for K-12 and Connecticut 3rd. New Hampshire also offers school-choice vouchers.
Is New Hampshire or Connecticut better for retirees?
New Hampshire is friendlier to retirees on paper. New Hampshire does not tax Social Security, exempts pensions and has no estate or inheritance tax; Connecticut taxes Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has an estate tax. Property tax on a median home is $8,184 a year in New Hampshire and $7,071 in Connecticut.