Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 42/100
D−
Median home value$499,700
Boston $646,300
Median rent$1,749/mo
Boston $2,023/mo
Cost-burdened households33%
Boston 36%
Methuen
Essex County53,475 residentsMethuen
55
C−
Suburbgrade score
39th of 60 Boston suburbs. Strongest on cost of living, held back by housing & affordability.
55
Boston median 61
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Methuen yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 55 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 Methuen is like to live in, by category
Bars show Methuen against Boston. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 49/100
D+
Within-state proficiency20th pct
Boston median 47th pct
Student–teacher ratio12.8
Boston median 11.8
Graduation rate88%
Boston median 91%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 74/100
B
Housing cost index84
Boston 100
Eff. tax rate0.98%
Boston 1.01%
Local sales tax6.25%
Boston median 6.25%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 50/100
D+
Mean commute27.7 min
Boston 30.3 min
Under 30 minutes61%
Boston 52%
Transit stops / sq mi1.0
Boston median 8.1 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 69/100
B−
Restaurants & cafés56
Boston median 51 · within 2 miles
Groceries4
Boston median 4 · within 2 miles
Parks44
Boston median 65 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 51/100
D+
Median household income$113,310
Boston $115,863
Unemployment5.8%
Boston 4.9%
Professional occupations40%
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 Methuen 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 Methuen on housing & affordability
Methuen's weakest grade is D−. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
Lexington21 mi from MethuenB+ 75 B Winchester20 mi from MethuenB 73 B Lynnfield16 mi from MethuenB− 67 C+ Belmont24 mi from MethuenB− 73 B Reading15 mi from MethuenC+ 69 B− Wilmington12 mi from MethuenC+ 64 C+ Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Methuen
Is Methuen, MA a good place to live?
Methuen scores 55 out of 100, 39th of 60 Boston suburbs. It is strongest on cost of living and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Methuen expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $499,700, 23% below the Boston median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.98%. $1,749/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Methuen?
Schools grade D+. The districts serving Methuen sit at the 20th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 88% graduation rate and a 12.8 student–teacher ratio. Methuen is served by Methuen. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Methuen?
The mean commute is 27.7 min, with 61% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 12% working from home. Transit density is 1.0 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Methuen?
Within two miles there are 4 groceries, 56 restaurants and cafés and 44 parks, which grades B− on amenities.
Are the homes in Methuen old or new?
The median home in Methuen was built in 1968 — close to 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. 67% 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.