Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 40/100
D−
Median home value$731,700
Boston $646,300
Median rent$2,147/mo
Boston $2,023/mo
Cost-burdened households43%
Boston 36%
Boston
Suffolk County666,442 residentsBoston
53
C−
Suburbgrade score
44th of 60 Boston suburbs. Strongest on cost of living, held back by schools.
53
Boston median 61
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Boston yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 53 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 Boston is like to live in, by category
Bars show Boston against Boston. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 39/100
D−
Within-state proficiency19th pct
Boston median 47th pct
Student–teacher ratio10.0
Boston median 11.8
Graduation rate73%
Boston median 91%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 77/100
B
Housing cost index104
Boston 100
Eff. tax rate0.67%
Boston 1.01%
Local sales tax6.25%
Boston median 6.25%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 51/100
D+
Mean commute30.3 min
Boston 30.3 min
Under 30 minutes49%
Boston 52%
Transit stops / sq mi14
Boston median 8.1 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 69/100
B−
Restaurants & cafés156
Boston median 51 · within 2 miles
Groceries3
Boston median 4 · within 2 miles
Parks80
Boston median 65 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 50/100
D+
Median household income$97,344
Boston $115,863
Unemployment6.1%
Boston 4.9%
Professional occupations57%
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 Boston 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 Boston on schools
Boston's weakest grade is D−. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbSchoolsOverall
Lexington13 mi from BostonA+ 75 B Wellesley14 mi from BostonA+ 76 B Belmont9 mi from BostonA+ 73 B Winchester10 mi from BostonA+ 73 B Newton10 mi from BostonA+ 75 B Needham12 mi from BostonA+ 73 B Within-state proficiency: EDFacts SY2021–22 · Graduation rate: EDFacts ACGR SY2018–19
Common questions about living in Boston
Is Boston, MA a good place to live?
Boston scores 53 out of 100, 44th of 60 Boston suburbs. It is strongest on cost of living and weakest on schools. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Boston expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $731,700, 13% above the Boston median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.67%. $2,147/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Boston?
Schools grade D−. The districts serving Boston sit at the 19th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 73% graduation rate and a 10.0 student–teacher ratio. Boston is served by Boston. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Boston?
The mean commute is 30.3 min, with 49% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 21% working from home. Transit density is 14 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Boston?
Within two miles there are 3 groceries, 156 restaurants and cafés and 80 parks, which grades B− on amenities.
Are the homes in Boston old or new?
The median home in Boston was built in 1947 — 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. 18% 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.