Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Bolton is one of the best-graded places in America: an A, 53rd among Massachusetts's 282 graded towns. On CDC health estimates it is near the top nationally, the median household earns $205K, and crime is low: it reports less per resident than 82% of U.S. towns. Its lowest mark, a C, is in cost of living. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 91% of U.S. towns, with 5 places on the National Register. 82% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Bolton, above both Massachusetts’ towns (47%) and U.S. towns (29%). Its National Register listings include Bolton Center Historic District and Whitcomb Inn and Farm. Only 7 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of working residents who work in town than Bolton.
Where Bolton beats most towns.
Bolton Center Historic District| Widest gap | Bolton | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 2% | 5.2% |
Census counts: 861 in 1790, a low of 708 in 1920, 5,665 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1830 and 8 maps from 1887 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Bolton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bolton. Close and well known come first.
Big draw27 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw30 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
Big draw30 mi LakeLake Chaubunagungamaug
13 mi LakeWalden Pond
Big draw27 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
28 mi AttractionFreedom TrailFenway Park: Gatorfan252525, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lake Chaubunagungamaug: Bree from Worcester, MA, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Walden Pond: Victorgrigas, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Sean Dungan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bolton, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Bolton.
Bolton has less no health insurance than most of Massachusetts, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Massachusetts and has commutes longer than most of Massachusetts.
64 miles of trail in 38 parks and preserves. Bolton’s trail density is 3.2 miles per square mile. Bolton Flats Wildlife Management Area, at 530 acres with 1.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Philip Phillips Gift | 3.4 mi | 83 |
| 2. Bolton Conservation Land | 2.7 mi | 140 |
| 3. Vaughn Hills Conservation Area | 2.6 mi | 115 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Nashoba school district. Its two schools are below. The largest public high school is Nashoba Regional, with 806 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florence Sawyer SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 734 | A− |
| Nashoba RegionalLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 806 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Massachusetts is no health insurance: 2% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 5.2% statewide. Against the 957 U.S. towns with household incomes like Bolton’s, it is healthier than 76%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
10% of Bolton adults say their health is fair or poor. Bolton beats the Massachusetts average on 21 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 9.7% of Bolton adults report frequent physical distress.
| Bolton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 6.8% | 11% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 9.7% | 12% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 15% | 19% |
| What stands out | Bolton | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 2% | 5.2% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 4.9% | 12.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.7% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Violent crime is rare: 5 reported in 2025, 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
The property crime rate in Bolton is 4.3 per 1,000 residents.
| Bolton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.3 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 79% of U.S. communities. Since 1984, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bolton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 2,492 working residents takes 36.8 minutes, against 29.1 across Massachusetts. 40.5% of workers work from home, against 18.6% across Massachusetts.
Most working residents leave Bolton for work: only 4% work in town. 2.9% of residents live below the poverty line in Bolton. The top destinations are Boston (8%), Marlborough (7%) and Worcester (5%).
| Bolton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $205,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 37 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 2.9% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 9 years of the Worcester metro’s $96K median household income, the typical home (about $868K) costs more against local pay than in 87% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to its C for cost of living.
The typical Bolton home is worth about $868,000, up 1.4% in a year, 32% above the Massachusetts typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Bolton has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 16° and about 59 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
4 within 15 miles of the center of Bolton
About 4 of every 100 Bolton residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
4,897 counted in 2010 and 5,665 in 2020; an estimated 6,477 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 14.5% since 2020, after 15.7% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
5 places in Bolton on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Bolton.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Bolton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Bolton is in central Massachusetts, located 25 miles west-northwest of downtown Boston along Interstate 495. It is within Greater Boston and MetroWest regions. The population was 5,665 at the 2020 census. Settled in the 1600s and incorporated in 1738, the town is still home to many farms and apple orchards, along with the well-known Nashoba Valley Winery and The International Golf Club, which has hosted several major tournaments. The Bolton Flats Wildlife Management Area is largely located in the town near the Nashua River and Still River as well as many other parks and conservation areas.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Bolton.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Bolton grades A overall, better than 94% of U.S. towns and #53 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades A+ for health, A− for safety and A− for schools.
That is 9 years of the area's median household income ($95,939 across the Worcester, MA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
9 notable people were born here, including Wilbert Robinson and Frederick A. Sawyer.
