Gayest places in Massachusetts research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to research the cities in Massachusetts with the highest percent of same-sex households for 2026. The data comes from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year vintage, which counts same-sex married spouses and same-sex unmarried partners at the city level.
2.8% gay households · #1 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Hampshire County, Massachusetts
The city of Northampton ) is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of Northampton was 28,549.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.3% gay households · #2 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Essex County, Massachusetts
Salem is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the United States, located on Massachusetts’ North Shore. It is a New England bedrock of history and is considered one of the most significant seaports in Puritan American history.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.2% gay households · #3 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning, spawning what became known as the Waltham-Lowell system of labor and production. The city is now a center for research and higher education, home to Brandeis University and Bentley University. The population was 60,636 at the census in 2010.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.0% gay households · #4 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and part of the Boston metropolitan area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.0% gay households · #5 gayest in Massachusetts
Palmer is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 12,140 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Palmer adopted a home rule charter in 2004 with a council-manager form of government. Palmer is one of fourteen Massachusetts municipalities that have applied for, and been granted, city forms of government but wish to retain “The town of- in their official names.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.0% gay households · #6 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Woburn is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 38,120 at the 2010 census. Woburn is located 9 miles north of Boston, Massachusetts.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.9% gay households · #7 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2010 United States Census, the population was at 59,450 people. In 2009, Malden was named the “Best Place to Raise Your Kids” in Massachusetts by Bloomberg Businessweek.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.9% gay households · #8 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Essex County, Massachusetts
Coordinates: 423329N 705248W 42.558; -70.880
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.9% gay households · #9 gayest in Massachusetts
Winthrop is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,497 at the 2010 census. Winthrop is an ocean-side suburban community in Greater Boston situated at the north entrance to Boston Harbor, close to Logan International Airport. It is located on a peninsula, 1.6 square miles in area, connected to Revere by a narrow isthmus and to East Boston by a bridge over the harbor inlet to the Belle Isle Marsh Reservation. Settled in 1630, Winthrop is one of the oldest communities in the United States. It is also one of the smallest and most densely populated municipalities in Massachusetts. It is one of the four cities in Suffolk County. It is the southernmost part of the North Shore, with a 7-mile shoreline that provides views of the Atlantic Ocean to the east and of the Boston skyline to the west.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.9% gay households · #10 gayest in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Somerville is a city located directly to the northwest of Boston, in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As of 2010, the United States Census lists the city with a total population of 75,754 people, making it the most densely populated municipality in New England. As of 2010, it was the 16th most densely populated incorporated municipality in the country. Somerville was established as a town in 1842, when it was separated from Charlestown. In 2006, the town was named the best-run city in Massachusetts by the Boston Globe. In 1972, in 2009, and again in 2015, the city received the All-America City Award.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
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Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Massachusetts’s statewide median.
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Where Massachusetts’s LGBTQ households are
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the gayest places in Massachusetts for 2026
In order to rank the gayest cities in Massachusetts, we used Saturday Night Science and the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the U.S. Census. We looked at:
- Percentage of all households that are unmarried, same-sex partners
We limited the analysis to non-CDPs that have over 1,000 households.
We ranked each place from 1 to 48 with the city containing the highest percentage of unmarried, same-sex partner households being the most gay.
In the end, Northampton ended up being the most gay place with 2.8% gay households.
Skip to the end to see the list of all the places in the state from gayest to straightest.
We updated this report for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the gayest places in Massachusetts.
The full plate
Gayest Places In Massachusetts
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Households | LGBTQ Households | % Gay Households |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northampton | 13,467 | 376 | 2.8% |
| 2 | Salem | 20,267 | 469 | 2.3% |
| 3 | Waltham | 25,498 | 558 | 2.2% |
| 4 | Cambridge | 49,444 | 1,004 | 2.0% |
| 5 | Palmer Town | 5,496 | 109 | 2.0% |
| 6 | Woburn | 16,432 | 322 | 2.0% |
| 7 | Malden | 26,042 | 506 | 1.9% |
| 8 | Beverly | 16,980 | 328 | 1.9% |
| 9 | Winthrop Town | 7,899 | 152 | 1.9% |
| 10 | Somerville | 35,715 | 679 | 1.9% |
| 11 | Boston | 283,374 | 5,344 | 1.9% |
| 12 | Fall River | 41,991 | 767 | 1.8% |
| 13 | Melrose | 12,401 | 215 | 1.7% |
| 14 | Medford | 24,339 | 398 | 1.6% |
| 15 | Haverhill | 26,545 | 430 | 1.6% |
| 16 | Weymouth Town | 25,759 | 401 | 1.6% |
| 17 | Revere | 22,178 | 344 | 1.6% |
| 18 | Newburyport | 8,107 | 120 | 1.5% |
| 19 | Taunton | 24,063 | 341 | 1.4% |
| 20 | Holyoke | 15,618 | 217 | 1.4% |
| 21 | Quincy | 45,285 | 600 | 1.3% |
| 22 | Pittsfield | 19,510 | 242 | 1.2% |
| 23 | Worcester | 79,501 | 960 | 1.2% |
| 24 | Lawrence | 31,142 | 374 | 1.2% |
| 25 | Lynn | 36,414 | 437 | 1.2% |
| 26 | Fitchburg | 16,659 | 195 | 1.2% |
| 27 | Springfield | 57,772 | 616 | 1.1% |
| 28 | Everett | 17,466 | 186 | 1.1% |
| 29 | Lowell | 43,183 | 445 | 1.0% |
| 30 | Gloucester | 13,444 | 138 | 1.0% |
| 31 | Newton | 32,194 | 330 | 1.0% |
| 32 | Barnstable Town | 21,413 | 213 | 1.0% |
| 33 | Attleboro | 17,933 | 167 | 0.9% |
| 34 | Westfield | 15,822 | 143 | 0.9% |
| 35 | Chicopee | 24,424 | 220 | 0.9% |
| 36 | Franklin Town | 12,370 | 107 | 0.9% |
| 37 | New Bedford | 42,271 | 359 | 0.8% |
| 38 | Peabody | 22,390 | 188 | 0.8% |
| 39 | Leominster | 18,483 | 155 | 0.8% |
| 40 | Chelsea | 13,716 | 110 | 0.8% |
| 41 | Braintree Town | 14,432 | 112 | 0.8% |
| 42 | Marlborough | 16,665 | 127 | 0.8% |
| 43 | North Adams | 5,948 | 45 | 0.8% |
| 44 | West Springfield Town | 12,732 | 96 | 0.8% |
| 45 | Agawam Town | 11,979 | 86 | 0.7% |
| 46 | Southbridge Town | 7,260 | 47 | 0.6% |
| 47 | Gardner | 8,940 | 43 | 0.5% |
| 48 | Brockton | 36,042 | 173 | 0.5% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. Places with over 1,000 households.
Summary
There You Have It – The Most LGBT Friendly Cities In Massachusetts For 2026
If you’re looking at the number of gay households in Massachusetts, this is an accurate list.
The gayest cities in Massachusetts are Northampton, Salem, Waltham, Cambridge, Palmer Town, Woburn, Malden, Beverly, Winthrop Town, and Somerville. Not sold on Massachusetts? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
