Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Real strengths, and real weak spots. At B− overall, Cambridge is better than 53% of U.S. towns and ranks 190th of 282 in Massachusetts. Its standout strength is health: residents are healthier than 97% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Walkability is a strength too (A+). Where it falls short is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $1.0 million, 8.8 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. It also trails on safety — its crime rate is higher than 87% of U.S. towns, with 530 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. The city is home to Harvard University. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 99% of U.S. towns, with 209 places on the National Register.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FBI crime data, 2025.
Where Cambridge beats most towns.
Asa Gray House| College | Students |
|---|---|
| Harvard University | 22,636 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 11,855 |
| Lesley University | 2,519 |
Asa Gray House is one of 17 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier. Its 209 National Register listings are more than in 99% of Massachusetts towns with a listing.
Census counts: 2,115 in 1790, 118,403 in 2020. The archive holds 11 old photos and papers going back to 1681 and 2 maps from 1893 on.
Cambridge takes its name from Cambridge in Cambridgeshire, England, 3,270 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionCambridge, settled in 1630, takes its name from Cambridge, a city in Cambridgeshire, England.
2 more U.S. towns are named after Cambridge:Cambridge, NY1,815Cambridge City, IN1,730
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Cambridge is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 99% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 5%), so the B− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Cambridge. Close and well known come first.
Big draw2 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw3 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Big draw21 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
in town Stadium & arenaHarvard Stadium
3 mi AttractionFreedom Trail
3 mi MuseumMuseum of Fine Arts Boston477K visitors a yearFenway Park: Gatorfan252525, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Sean Dungan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Harvard Stadium: Nick Allen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Museum of Fine Arts Boston: Martin~jawiki at Japanese Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Cambridge, 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 Cambridge.
Cambridge is shaped by its college students and draws workers from Boston and beyond, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Massachusetts.
Its widest gap with Massachusetts is COPD: 3.1% of its 104,540 adults have COPD, against 5.9% statewide.
In Cambridge, 37% of adults feel lonely. Only 2 of the 279 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have high blood pressure than Cambridge. Of 32 CDC measures, Cambridge beats the Massachusetts average on 20 and trails it on 3.
| Cambridge | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 32% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 8% | 12% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 28% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 5.9% | 9.3% | 12% |
| What stands out | Cambridge | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with COPD | 3.1% | 5.9% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 3.2% | 5.8% |
| Fewer adults treating high blood pressure | 65.3% | 75.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Cambridge school district runs its public schools. Three of its 30 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. Public school enrollment here: 2,223 students across 6 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amigos SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 413 | B |
| Cambridge Rindge and LatinLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,072 | A− |
| John M TobinTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 291 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
148,918 jobs are based in Cambridge, 2.8 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 105,056 in 2013 to 148,918.
The top destinations are Boston (35%), Somerville (3%) and Waltham (3%). About one worker in three stays in Cambridge for work. Jobs based in Cambridge grew to 148,918 in 2023, 43,862 more than in 2013. In Cambridge, 31% of workers work from home, against 18% in Massachusetts’ towns and 11% across U.S. towns.
| Cambridge | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 31% | 18% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 32% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $131,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 8.8 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income, the typical home (about $1.02M) costs more against local pay than in 85% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. At about $1.02M, home values are up 7% in five years, against a rise of 26% across Massachusetts.
Cambridge: 34% of households live in a home they own. The typical Cambridge home is worth about $1,019,000, down 0.5% in a year, 56% above the Massachusetts typical home. A home in Cambridge typically sold within 21 days of listing.
| Cambridge | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 34% | 79% | 73% |
| Median rent | $2,787 a month | $1,682 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 45% | 53% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Property crime runs at 26 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Massachusetts rate, most of it theft.
For Cambridge, the property offense rate is 26 per 1,000 residents. The violent offense rate here is 4.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Cambridge | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 26 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.4 per 1,000 residents | 1.4 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Count the trails in 55 parks and preserves and they come to 11 miles. The biggest place to walk is Charles River Reservation, 140 acres with 1.1 miles of trail. Cambridge’s trail density is 1.6 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Charles River Reservation | 1.1 mi | 140 |
| 2. Danehy Park | 0.9 mi | 46 |
| 3. Kingsley Park | 0.9 mi | 28 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The risk rating from FEMA for Cambridge comes to 22 of 100. The national flood insurance program has paid 42 claims here since 1985. Expected losses in Cambridge break down as 63% from inland flooding and 13% from earthquakes. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Cambridge after 11 declared disasters, most recently in 2018.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
A winter brings about 49 inches of snow, with January nights at 20° and July afternoons at 82°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
52 within 15 miles of the center of Cambridge
College town 25 of every 100 Cambridge residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
5 colleges in town.
209 places in Cambridge on the National Register of Historic Places.
25 notable people were born in Cambridge.
City in the United States
Cambridge ( KAYM-brij) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located in the Greater Boston metropolitan area directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the most populous city in the county, the fourth-largest in Massachusetts behind Boston, Worcester, and Springfield, and ninth-most populous in New England. The city was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England, which was an important center of the Puritan theology that was embraced by the town's founders. Founded in December 1630 during the colonial era, Cambridge was one among the first cities established in t…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Cambridge.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Cambridge grades B− overall, better than 53% of U.S. towns and #190 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades A+ for health, D for safety and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D−.
25 notable people were born here, including Matt Damon and Percy Williams Bridgman.
