Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 57/100
C−
Median home value$1,092,100
Boston $646,300
Median rent$2,787/mo
Boston $2,023/mo
Cost-burdened households37%
Boston 36%
Cambridge
Middlesex County118,796 residentsCambridge
74
B
Suburbgrade score
5th of 60 Boston suburbs. Strong on amenities and cost of living, held back by housing & affordability.
74
Boston median 61
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Cambridge 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 Cambridge is like to live in, by category
Bars show Cambridge against Boston. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 75/100
B
Within-state proficiency68th pct
Boston median 47th pct
Student–teacher ratio9.3
Boston median 11.8
Graduation rate88%
Boston median 91%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 76/100
B
Housing cost index131
Boston 100
Eff. tax rate0.46%
Boston 1.01%
Local sales tax6.25%
Boston median 6.25%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 74/100
B
Mean commute25.8 min
Boston 30.3 min
Under 30 minutes60%
Boston 52%
Transit stops / sq mi43
Boston median 8.1 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 100/100
A+
Restaurants & cafés690
Boston median 51 · within 2 miles
Groceries44
Boston median 4 · within 2 miles
Parks351
Boston median 65 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 71/100
B−
Median household income$130,748
Boston $115,863
Unemployment3.4%
Boston 4.9%
Professional occupations80%
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 Cambridge 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 Cambridge on housing & affordability
Cambridge's weakest grade is C−. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
Wellesley10 mi from CambridgeA− 76 B Lexington7 mi from CambridgeB+ 75 B Winchester5 mi from CambridgeB 73 B Needham9 mi from CambridgeB 73 B Lynnfield12 mi from CambridgeB− 67 C+ Newton6 mi from CambridgeB− 75 B Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Cambridge
Is Cambridge, MA a good place to live?
Cambridge scores 74 out of 100, 5th of 60 Boston suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Cambridge expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $1,092,100, 69% above the Boston median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.46%. $2,787/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Cambridge?
Schools grade B. The districts serving Cambridge sit at the 68th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 88% graduation rate and a 9.3 student–teacher ratio. Cambridge is served by Cambridge. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Cambridge?
The mean commute is 25.8 min, with 60% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 31% working from home. Transit density is 43 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Cambridge?
Within two miles there are 44 groceries, 690 restaurants and cafés and 351 parks, which grades A+ on amenities.
Are the homes in Cambridge old or new?
The median home in Cambridge was built in 1950 — 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. 16% 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.