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Want to know where you can 'keep up with the Joneses' in Massachusetts? Take a quick second to tap or scroll your way to a list of the richest places in the Baked Bean State. That's right, the baked beans in this New England State are rich, the clam chowdah' here is rich, and if the Boston Tea Party hadn't happened, there would be even more Bay Staters who are rich. But all joking aside, Massachusetts has some pretty wealthy places; and lucky for you, HomeSnacks' created a list of the top ten richest places in The Bay State for 2021 and listed them below.
We suggest, however, that before you head down to our list, that you learn a little bit about how we identified Massachusetts' most affluent places. First, we looked at the things that the well-to-do find important: safety, posh neighborhoods, gold star schools, and fancy things to do.
We discovered a couple of things along the way. One, Harvard University in Cambridge is not only one of the best universities in the country, but it has produced more billionaires than the Massachusetts lottery. Secondly, those smart, wealthy Harvard graduates aren't leaving after graduation because Massachusetts is one of the fastest growing state in America. And third, many of Massachusetts richest places are also some of the state's safest.
However, if you truly want to live like the 'one percent' in Massachusetts' richest places, you're going to have to make at least $82,468/year. The state is after all one of the richest states in the country.
To see what Massachusetts cities made the cut, keep reading.
Here are the 10 richest places in Massachusetts for 2021:
There are many cities in Massachusetts that ooze obnoxious wealth, so to narrow down our list, we looked at the latest Census data from the American Community Survey for 53 Massachusetts cities with more than 12,000 residents.
So, what is the richest place in Massachusetts for 2021? According to the latest data, that would be, Newton.
To see a list of the other cities that made this list, take a look below. And if you have some time on your hands, see how the other 99% live in this state.
Rich people not your cup of tea? Feel free to check out some more reading about Massachusetts:
The 10 Richest Cities In Massachusetts For 2021
1. Newton
/10
Population: 88,593
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $151,068
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 4.3%
More on Newton: Real Estate | Photos
2. Melrose
/10
Population: 28,113
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $106,955
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 4.1%
More on Melrose: Real Estate | Photos
3. Newburyport
/10
Population: 18,077
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $109,839
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 5.9%
More on Newburyport: Real Estate | Photos
4. Braintree Town
/10
Population: 37,220
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 5)
Median Income: $96,522
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 4.6%
More on Braintree Town: Real Estate | Photos
5. Franklin Town
/10
Population: 33,256
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $122,607
Unemployment Rate: 4.1%
Poverty Rate: 4.0%
More on Franklin Town: Real Estate | Photos
6. Woburn
/10
Population: 40,304
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 1)
Median Income: $91,022
Unemployment Rate: 3.0%
Poverty Rate: 6.3%
More on Woburn: Real Estate | Photos
7. Watertown Town
/10
Population: 35,401
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 1)
Median Income: $101,103
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 7.6%
More on Watertown Town: Real Estate | Photos
8. Medford
/10
Population: 57,637
Rank Last Year: 8 (No Change)
Median Income: $96,455
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 8.8%
More on Medford: Real Estate | Photos
9. Waltham
/10
Population: 62,777
Rank Last Year: 14 (Up 5)
Median Income: $95,964
Unemployment Rate: 3.0%
Poverty Rate: 9.3%
More on Waltham: Real Estate | Photos
10. Amesbury Town
/10
Population: 17,434
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 3)
Median Income: $82,468
Unemployment Rate: 3.6%
Poverty Rate: 6.3%
More on Amesbury Town: Real Estate | Photos
How We Determined The Richest Places In Massachusetts For 2021
The first thing that comes to most people's minds when they think about determining the richest places is to simply identify personal incomes. After all, rich people have really high salaries.
However, we don't believe that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the "richest places". So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2015-2019 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income
- Unemployment Rate
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place really is. The unemployment rate tries to capture the prospects for more people to become rich. If more people are employed, the richer the future looks.
After we collected the data for all 53 places with more than 12,000 people in Massachusetts, we ranked each place from 1 to 53 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the richest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a "Rich Score" with the place having the lowest overall Rich Score, Newton, crowned the "Richest City In Massachusetts For 2021". You can download the data here.
You can learn more about the top ten below or skip to the end to see the rankings for all 53 places.
There You Have It - The Wealthiest Places In Massachusetts For 2021
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the richest places in Massachusetts, we weren't sure what we'd encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Massachusetts.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very top of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you're curious enough, here are the poorest cities in Massachusetts, according to data:
Poorest: Springfield
2nd Poorest: Lawrence
3rd Poorest: Fall River
For more Massachusetts reading, check out:
- Worst Places To Live In Massachusetts
- Cheapest Places To Live In Massachusetts
- Safest Places In Massachusetts
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In Massachusetts
| Rank | City | RichScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Newton | 1.67 |
| 2 | Melrose | 3.0 |
| 3 | Newburyport | 6.33 |
| 4 | Braintree Town | 6.67 |
| 5 | Franklin Town | 7.67 |
| 6 | Woburn | 8.0 |
| 7 | Watertown Town | 8.67 |
| 8 | Medford | 9.33 |
| 9 | Waltham | 11.33 |
| 10 | Amesbury Town | 11.67 |
| 11 | Marlborough | 12.0 |
| 12 | Somerville | 13.33 |
| 13 | Beverly | 14.33 |
| 14 | Winthrop Town | 15.67 |
| 15 | Agawam Town | 16.33 |
| 16 | Peabody | 17.0 |
| 17 | Weymouth Town | 18.33 |
| 18 | Cambridge | 18.33 |
| 19 | Barnstable Town | 18.67 |
| 20 | Attleboro | 19.0 |
| 21 | Westfield | 19.33 |
| 22 | Gloucester | 22.0 |
| 23 | Quincy | 22.33 |
| 24 | Northampton | 25.33 |
| 25 | Methuen Town | 25.67 |
| 26 | Haverhill | 27.33 |
| 27 | Salem | 27.33 |
| 28 | Everett | 29.67 |
| 29 | Malden | 31.67 |
| 30 | Revere | 32.33 |
| 31 | Gardner | 32.33 |
| 32 | Easthampton Town | 32.33 |
| 33 | Greenfield Town | 32.67 |
| 34 | Palmer Town | 33.0 |
| 35 | West Springfield Town | 33.67 |
| 36 | Leominster | 34.33 |
| 37 | Chelsea | 35.33 |
| 38 | Pittsfield | 37.0 |
| 39 | Boston | 37.67 |
| 40 | Taunton | 38.33 |
| 41 | Chicopee | 38.67 |
| 42 | Lynn | 40.0 |
| 43 | Lowell | 40.0 |
| 44 | Brockton | 41.33 |
| 45 | Fitchburg | 42.67 |
| 46 | Worcester | 42.67 |
| 47 | North Adams | 43.0 |
| 48 | New Bedford | 46.67 |
| 49 | Southbridge Town | 48.67 |
| 50 | Holyoke | 49.0 |
| 51 | Fall River | 49.33 |
| 52 | Lawrence | 51.0 |
| 53 | Springfield | 51.0 |
Umm where is Wellesley, dover and Weston, all these towns are filled with junkies
I can’t imagine anyone who lives in the greater Boston area will take this list seriously. Woburn is #5? C’mon. North Adams is #48, while at the very same time holds the #1 spot on the “Worst Places to Live” list by this same team of “statisticians.” (https://www.roadsnacks.net/places-in-massachusetts-that-need-a-hug/). Even forgetting about the uber-rich Dover, Weston, et al, towns like Sudbury and Andover aren’t even on the list, but Chelsea and Methuen are. Chelsea?! Ridiculous.
NW of Boston: Lexington, Lincoln, Concord
W of Boston: Chestnut Hill, Brookline, Wellesley, Weston, Dover, Sherborn, Westwood
N of Boston: Beverly, Beverly Farms, Wenham, Hamilton, Manchester-By-The-Sea, Magnolia
SE of Boston: Hingham, Cohasset, Duxbury, Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket
Worst list of richest towns in Massachusetts ever. It’s like they picked towns in Massachusetts at random and picked much more of the least richest town by accident.