Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 61/100
C
Median home value$933,800
Boston $646,300
Median rent$2,082/mo
Boston $2,023/mo
Cost-burdened households25%
Boston 36%
Arlington
Middlesex County46,350 residentsArlington
74
B
Suburbgrade score
6th of 60 Boston suburbs. Strong on schools and amenities, held back by commute & transport.
74
Boston median 61
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Arlington yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 74 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Arlington is like to live in, by category
Bars show Arlington against Boston. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 92/100
A
Within-state proficiency93rd pct
Boston median 47th pct
Student–teacher ratio12.6
Boston median 11.8
Graduation rate96%
Boston median 91%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 73/100
B
Housing cost index119
Boston 100
Eff. tax rate0.98%
Boston 1.01%
Local sales tax6.25%
Boston median 6.25%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 53/100
C−
Mean commute32.2 min
Boston 30.3 min
Under 30 minutes44%
Boston 52%
Transit stops / sq mi25
Boston median 8.1 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 85/100
A−
Restaurants & cafés110
Boston median 51 · within 2 miles
Groceries6
Boston median 4 · within 2 miles
Parks149
Boston median 65 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 79/100
B+
Median household income$150,701
Boston $115,863
Unemployment2.9%
Boston 4.9%
Professional occupations77%
Boston 54%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Arlington yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Arlington on commute & transport
Arlington's weakest grade is C−. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbCommuteOverall
Cambridge4 mi from ArlingtonB 74 B Waltham4 mi from ArlingtonB 65 C+ Newton6 mi from ArlingtonB− 75 B Brookline7 mi from ArlingtonB− 77 B Watertown3 mi from ArlingtonB− 68 B− Woburn5 mi from ArlingtonC+ 63 C+ Mean commute: ACS 2020–24 · Commuting under 30 minutes: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Arlington
Is Arlington, MA a good place to live?
Arlington scores 74 out of 100, 6th of 60 Boston suburbs. It is strongest on schools and weakest on commute & transport. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Arlington expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $933,800, 44% above the Boston median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.98%. $2,082/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Arlington?
Schools grade A. The districts serving Arlington sit at the 93rd pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 96% graduation rate and a 12.6 student–teacher ratio. Arlington is served by Arlington. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Arlington?
The mean commute is 32.2 min, with 44% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 34% working from home. Transit density is 25 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Arlington?
Within two miles there are 6 groceries, 110 restaurants and cafés and 149 parks, which grades A− on amenities.
Are the homes in Arlington old or new?
The median home in Arlington was built in 1945 — older than the Boston median of 1964. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 45% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.