Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Chatham grades B+ overall, 141st of 282 graded towns in Massachusetts. It has 27 miles of trail and 32% conserved land. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 88% of the country and crime is low: it reports less per resident than 77% of U.S. towns. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $1.3 million for a typical one and 14.1 times the Barnstable Town metro’s $95K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 94% of U.S. towns, with 14 places on the National Register. 46% of residents are 65 or older in Chatham, above both Massachusetts’ towns (19%) and U.S. towns (18%). The biggest park or preserve is Cape Cod National Seashore, at 4,146 acres. Chatham is more walkable than 84% of U.S. towns.
Where Chatham beats most towns.
Louis Brandeis House| Widest gap | Chatham | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 5.5% | 11.1% |
Louis Brandeis House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,140 in 1790, a low of 1,140 in 1790, 6,594 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1793 and 6 maps from 1888 on.
14 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Chatham takes its name from Chatham in Kent, England, 3,290 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionChatham, settled in 1665, takes its name from Chatham, a large town in Kent, England.
1 more U.S. town is named after Chatham:Chatham Township, OH2,276
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 Chatham is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Chatham. Close and well known come first.
2 mi Ancient siteSS Pendleton
in town National SeashoreCape Cod National Seashore3.7M visitors a year
33 mi LandmarkPilgrim Monument
15 mi MuseumElephant House
29 mi MuseumSandwich Historical Society and Glass Museum
18 mi MuseumOld JailSS Pendleton: United States Coast Guard, Richard C. Kelsey, Public domain · Cape Cod National Seashore: SeduisantRedux, CC BY 3.0 · Pilgrim Monument: Peter Whitlock (Transferred by adavyd/Originally uploaded by Willster3), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Elephant House: Nicole Leigh Martel, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sandwich Historical Society and Glass Museum: Andrewrabbott, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Old Jail: Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chatham, 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 Chatham.
Chatham has a longer frost-free season than almost anywhere else in Massachusetts, is a second-home town and is safe by national standards but not by Massachusetts’s.
At 14.1 years of the Barnstable Town metro’s $95K median household income, the typical home (about $1.34M) costs more against local pay than in 98% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living. Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Harwich Port is next at $1.09M.
Typical home values rose 8.7% in the year to September 2026. 85% of households own their home in Chatham.
| Chatham | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 85% | 79% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,485 a month | $1,683 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Monomoy Regional School District. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monomoy Regional Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–7 | Grades 5–7 | 395 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Within Massachusetts it is healthier than 55% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar.
12% of Chatham adults binge drink. No town among the 279 in Massachusetts we compare has a lower share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Chatham. 8.3% of Chatham adults smoke cigarettes.
| Chatham | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 17% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 33% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 32% | 35% |
| What stands out | Chatham | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 5.5% | 11.1% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.4% | 12.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 16.1% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its 6,730 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 83% of Massachusetts towns.
27 miles of trail in 76 parks and preserves. Chatham’s trail density is 0.8 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Town Forest | 2.7 mi | 138 |
| 2. Monomoy Wilderness | 2.2 mi | 1,646 |
| 3. Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge | 2 mi | 4,004 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 9.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 61% of Massachusetts’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
The violent crime rate in Chatham is 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Chatham | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.4 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.2 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Chatham weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 221 days, the highest of 539 Massachusetts places with climate records. July afternoons average 77.1°, cooler than in 97% of U.S. towns; January nights average 25.4°.
Only 2 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower July high than Chatham. Chatham has chilly winters and pleasant summers. Among 283 Massachusetts towns, just 1 have a higher January low than Chatham.
| Chatham | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 77°F | 83°F | 85°F |
| January low | 25°F | 18°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
132 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 10 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 67% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 132 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Chatham.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Jobs based here grew from 2,258 in 2013 to 3,003.
About one in 4 of Chatham’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Chatham has added 745 jobs, to 3,003 in 2023. The top destinations are Barnstable Town (7%), Boston (7%) and Harwich (7%).
| Chatham | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 26% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $85,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
None within 15 miles of Chatham; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Chatham residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
32% of the town is conserved land, across 76 parks and preserves.
14 places in Chatham on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Chatham.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Chatham () is a town on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Chatham is located at the southeastern tip of Cape Cod and has historically been a fishing community. First settled by the English in 1664, the township was originally called Monomoit based on the indigenous population's term for the region. Chatham was incorporated as a town on June 11, 1712, and has become a summer resort area. The population was 6,594 at the 2020 census and can swell to 25,000 during the summer months. There are four villages that comprise the town, those being Chatham (CDP), South Chatham, North Chatham, and West Chatham. Chatham is home to the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge and the decommissioned Monomoy Point Light,…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Chatham.
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chatham | #141 | B+ | D | A− | B | A |
| Harwich | #155 | B | D | A− | B | A |
| Harwich Port | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| East Harwich | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| West Chatham | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Orleans | #145 | B+ | D | B | B+ | A |
Harwich Port, East Harwich and West Chatham aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Chatham with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Chatham grades B+ overall, better than 66% of U.S. towns and #141 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades A for health, A− 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.
5 notable people were born here, including Todd Eldredge and George M. Harding.
