menu
Data on this report is based on areas within the legal city boundary, outlined in black on the map. Any additional neighborhoods shown on the map are associated with the city by name and are included for reference only.

Boston, MA
Real Estate & Demographic Data






Boston profile


Living in Boston



Boston is a very large coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 650,706 people and 206 constituent neighborhoods, Boston is the largest community in Massachusetts. Boston has an unusually large stock of pre-World War II architecture, making it one of the older and more historic cities.

Housing costs in Boston are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in Massachusetts.

Also of interest is that Boston has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 12.30% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

In addition, Boston also has a very large population of students, making it a major college town. As often the case, having so many students around has a strong influence on the local culture. In fact, Boston is one of only a few big cities that are also major college towns, making it one of the nation's prominent intellectual centers. In addition, the presence of thousands of college students gives Boston a sophisticated style, and provides lots of diversions and entertainment for students. Being a big "college town" not only means that Boston has a burgeoning arts, music, and nightclub scene, but the innovation sector of the local economy receives a great boost from both the intellectual output of the faculty and the thousands of enthusiastic students who graduate every spring.

This makes it a good place to live for young singles in their 20s and 30s and who have undergraduate or graduate degrees and are starting their professional careers. Although Boston is a large city, this demographic is significant enough that young professionals will find many others like themselves here, with really good opportunities for friendships, recreation, romance, and more.

Boston is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.

One downside of living in Boston is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Boston, the average commute to work is 32.09 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the city, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative. In addition, it is also a pedestrian-friendly city. Many of Boston’s neighborhoods are dense enough and have amenities close enough together that people find it feasible to get around on foot.

Boston is a big city, and with that comes lots of benefits. One benefit is that most big cities have public transit, but Boston really shines when it comes to the extensiveness and use of its public transit system. More than most large American cities, Boston citizens use public transit daily to get to and from work. And while there are transportation options, most people in Boston ride the subway. Whereas in some cities one is destined to sit in traffic every morning to get to work and every evening to get home, in Boston a lot leave their cars at home (if they even choose to own one), and hop a ride on the subway.

Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to Boston, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. Boston is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 52.14% of its adults having a college degree or even advanced degree, compared to a national average across all communities of 21.84%.

The per capita income in Boston in 2018 was $50,344, which is middle income relative to Massachusetts, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $201,376 for a family of four. However, Boston contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Boston is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Boston home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Boston residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Boston also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 19.82% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Boston include Irish, Italian, English, German, and Haitian.

Boston also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 28.11%.

The most common language spoken in Boston is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and French.