Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Chelsea grades D− overall, 277th of 282 graded towns in Massachusetts, mostly because of schools and safety. Its public schools trail 97% of Massachusetts towns on state tests and graduation. Its police reported 317 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 91% of U.S. towns. What it does well: it is among the most walkable places in the country. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 99% of U.S. towns, with 9 places on the National Register. Chelsea’s violent crime rate is 7.9 per 1,000 residents, where Massachusetts’ towns sit at 1.4 and U.S. towns at 1.6. Only 13 of Massachusetts’ 321 towns score lower on health. Chelsea's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 98% of U.S. towns.
Where Chelsea beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
LUNA (tugboat)| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Shurtleff Early Childhood | PK–1 | 779 |
| George F. Kelly Elementary | 1–5 | 527 |
| Frank M Sokolowski Elementary | 1–4 | 472 |
LUNA (tugboat) is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier. Its founding year, 1624, comes before those of 98% of the Massachusetts towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 472 in 1790, 40,787 in 2020. The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 1724 and 6 maps from 1893 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Chelsea is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 99% of comparable towns) to D− for schools (better than 3%), so the D− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Chelsea. Close and well known come first.
Big draw5 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw5 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Big draw24 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
3 mi AttractionFreedom Trail
2 mi MuseumBunker Hill Monument
3 mi GardenBoston CommonFenway 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 · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bunker Hill Monument: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Boston Common: Phillip Capper from Wellington, New Zealand, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chelsea, 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 Chelsea.
Chelsea trades workers with Boston and other neighbors, but it reports violent crime at about twice the Massachusetts rate and has poverty well above the Massachusetts rate.
Each of its 3 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its D−, Revere highest at C−.
Its public schools are run by the Chelsea school district. Two of its 13 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shurtleff Early ChildhoodLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–1 | Grades PK–1 | 779 | – |
| Chelsea HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,649 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Violent crime runs at 7.9 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Massachusetts rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D. Each of the 3 graded towns on its borders reports less crime per resident, from Boston (D) to Everett (C).
Chelsea’s property crime rate is 14.1 per 1,000 residents. Chelsea reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 91% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
3.7 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. The trail density in Chelsea is 1.5 miles per square mile. Among 283 Massachusetts towns, just 5 have a lower share of conserved land than Chelsea.
| Chelsea | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 3.8% | 19% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.5 miles per square mile | 1.8 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mary O'Malley State Park | 0.8 mi | 20 |
| 2. Mystic River Overlook Park | 0.3 mi | 2 |
| 3. Chelsea Greenway | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
35% of adults get no exercise outside work in Chelsea. Chelsea beats the Massachusetts average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 19. 15% of adults smoke cigarettes in Chelsea.
| Chelsea | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 19% | 25% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 33% | 33% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 9.1% | 14% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 3.7% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Chelsea | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.9% | 8.5% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 19.2% | 25.4% |
| More uninsured adults | 17% | 5.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Chelsea has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 21° and about 49 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Its typical home is the least expensive on its borders; Revere is next at $609K.
26% of Chelsea households own their home. The typical Chelsea home is worth about $519,000, up 1.1% in a year, 21% below the Massachusetts typical home. 59% of Chelsea renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent.
| Chelsea | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 26% | 79% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,956 a month | $1,682 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 59% | 52% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 67% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 26 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Chelsea.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Chelsea has about as many jobs (14,335) as working residents, but only 1,718 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Chelsea for work: only 11% work in town. Only 4 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a higher share of residents below the poverty line than Chelsea. The top destinations are Boston (37%), Cambridge (6%) and Everett (3%).
| Chelsea | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 21% | 6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 10% | 18% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
53 within 15 miles of the center of Chelsea
About 5 of every 100 Chelsea residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
Coastal flooding makes up 10% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
9 places in Chelsea on the National Register of Historic Places.
55 notable people were born in Chelsea.
City in Massachusetts, United States
Chelsea is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located along the Mystic River and connected to Boston by the Tobin Bridge. As of 2026, Chelsea has a population of 40,245 and a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.7 km2). It is the smallest city in Massachusetts by land area, and the third-most-densely populated.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Chelsea.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D−; Everett (D) is closest.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Chelsea grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns and #277 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades C for health, D for safety and D− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D−.
55 notable people were born here, including Chick Corea and Horatio Alger.
