Connecticut's rural areas and small towns in the northeast and northwest corners of the state contrast sharply with its industrial cities such as Stamford, Bridgeport, and New Haven, located along the coastal highways from the New York border to New London, then northward up the Connecticut River to Hartford.

Towns in Connecticut are allowed to adopt a city form of government without the need to re-incorporate as an inner-city. Connecticut state law also makes no distinction between a consolidated town/city and a regular town. Bolded city names indicate the state's largest cities, with the most populated being Bridgeport.

4 on the most expensive cities list. A report from the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA) referred to a study ranking Connecticut the ninth most expensive state in the country when it comes to the general cost of living.

According to a 2022 study from the U.S. Census Bureau, this state's local governments consist of 179 cities, towns, and villages, and 433 special districts. There are eight counties in Connecticut.