Which Connecticut counties score best for off-grid living?

Of the 9 Connecticut counties we have scored, South Central Connecticut Planning Region scores highest at 92 and Western Connecticut Planning Region lowest at 86. Connecticut ranks 17th of 50 overall, at 89 out of 100 (Good with caveats). The counties score within a few points of each other on every dimension.

Updated 2026-09-27 · 9 counties · 203 spots of private rural land scored

Good with caveatsConnecticut ranks 17th of 50, 89 out of 100, in the Best States ranking: the typical parcel on the state's private rural land, with each scored spot weighted by the land it stands for. On a fresh draw of counties it would rank between #11 and #22. City counties with little private rural land have no page, and any parcel can be scored, free, below.

Every scored county in Connecticut, best score first


South Central Connecticut Planning Region → 1547 people / sq mi	92	24	19	13	15	13	8
Capitol Planning Region → 949 people / sq mi	90	24	18	13	14	12	9
Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region → 416 people / sq mi	90	24	18	13	14	12	9
Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region → 175 people / sq mi	90	24	19	13	14	12	8
Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region → 468 people / sq mi	90	24	18	13	14	12	9
Greater Bridgeport Planning Region → 2337 people / sq mi	89	24	18	13	13	12	9
Northwest Hills Planning Region → 144 people / sq mi	88	24	19	13	14	11	7
Naugatuck Valley Planning Region → 1105 people / sq mi	87	24	17	13	14	12	7
Western Connecticut Planning Region → 1173 people / sq mi	86	24	17	13	14	11	7

Score is out of 100: Water 25, Legal 20, Solar 15, Hazard 15, Food 15, Buildability 10. Green cells score 80% or better of their maximum; amber cells under 70%.

Where the good land is

93% of Connecticut's private rural land scores Good with caveats or better (80 or more). The strongest counties are South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Capitol Planning Region and Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The weakest are Western Connecticut Planning Region, Naugatuck Valley Planning Region and Northwest Hills Planning Region. Where the land falls short, it is most often on building (slope, septic and land price) and hazards (flood, fire, storms and earthquakes).

What separates them

The counties score within two points of each other on every dimension. Pick by the parcel, not the county.

The state's soft spot

Food is Connecticut's weakest dimension, at 12 of 15 for the state as a whole. Soil quality, frost-free growing days, and rainfall: what decides whether you can actually feed yourself and your animals. Getting a parcel here off-grid runs $34k to $77k by our estimates across these counties, before the house. The full Connecticut row in the Best States ranking has the state-wide spread and how the popular off-grid guides rank it.

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Before you buy in Connecticut

The scores read the physical land. Whether you may legally live on it is a separate question, and it changes at the county line: Is it legal to live off-grid in Connecticut? covers zoning, building code, septic, and wells for the state, with the counties that opt out. For the reason water carries a quarter of the score, how you get water on off-grid land is the read. And the five-point check is the order to do it in.

Good with caveatsConnecticut: 89 of 100, 17th of 50. A good state is not a good parcel. Score the one you are looking at, free, in about a minute.

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