Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Halifax grades A− overall, 93rd among Massachusetts's 282 graded towns. It has 34 miles of trail. The median household earns $119K and it is healthier than 84% of U.S. towns. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $565K, 4.9 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. 23% of the land in Halifax is conserved, where Massachusetts’ towns sit at 19% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Only 9 of Massachusetts’ 325 towns score lower on history. Burrage Pond Wildlife Management Area, at 879 acres with 10.5 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
Where Halifax beats most towns.
Census counts: 664 in 1790, a low of 522 in 1900, 7,749 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1860 and 7 maps from 1885 on.
Halifax takes its name from Halifax in West Yorkshire, England, 3,160 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionHalifax, settled in 1669, takes its name from Halifax, a large town in West Yorkshire, England.
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 Halifax is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Halifax. Close and well known come first.
Big draw21 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
Big draw27 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw26 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
26 mi MuseumUSS Massachusetts
37 mi Ancient siteHMS Endeavour
27 mi AttractionFreedom TrailGillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fenway Park: Gatorfan252525, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Sean Dungan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · USS Massachusetts: USN, Public domain · HMS Endeavour: Samuel Atkins (c.1760-1810), Public domain · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Halifax, 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 Halifax.
Halifax pairs an A− overall with homes cheaper than the Massachusetts norm, is safe by national standards but not by Massachusetts’s and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Massachusetts.
For Halifax, the density of trails is 2.0 miles per square mile. 11 parks and preserves cover 1,646 acres here.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Burrage Pond Wildlife Management Area | 10.5 mi | 879 |
| 2. Wildlands Trust - Striar Conservancy | 1.1 mi | 162 |
| 3. Stump Brook Wildlife Sanctuary | 0.6 mi | 228 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its one school is below. Public schools: the Halifax school district. 531 students attend the town’s public school.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halifax ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 531 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Within Massachusetts it is less healthy than 58% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar. Its widest gap with Massachusetts is tooth loss: 7.3% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 11.9% statewide.
The share of adults in Halifax who had a checkup this year is 82%, against 82% in Massachusetts’ towns and 79% across U.S. towns. In Halifax, 14% of adults say their health is fair or poor. CDC measures, 32 in all: Halifax beats Massachusetts on 8 and trails on 1.
| Halifax | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 28% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 19% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 3.5% | 3.7% | 8.1% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 35% |
| What stands out | Halifax | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.3% | 11.9% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3.5% | 5.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Halifax has 1,067 jobs for its 4,066 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Half of commuters travel less than 15 miles. In Halifax, the average commute is 35 minutes. The top destinations are Boston (12%), Plymouth (5%) and Brockton (4%). Among residents locally, 2.6% live below the poverty line.
| Halifax | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 35 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 2.6% | 6% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.2% | 9.9% | 8% |
| Median household income | $119,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 11.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 50% of Massachusetts’s graded towns. Reported crimes rose from 67 to 79 over the last three FBI years, a rise beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Halifax’s rate of thefts and burglaries comes in at 8.6 per 1,000 residents. The level of violent crime here is 1.5 per 1,000 residents.
| Halifax | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 8.6 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.5 per 1,000 residents | 1.4 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Of the losses FEMA expects in Halifax, 69% come from inland flooding and 12% from hurricanes. FEMA expects less storm and flood damage here than in 70% of U.S. communities. Federal aid has come to Halifax households in 8 declared disasters; the latest was in 2018.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
A winter brings about 34 inches of snow, with January nights at 20° and July afternoons at 83°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Halifax grades A− overall with a typical home of about $565K, below the Massachusetts typical value; only 21 of the 109 Massachusetts towns graded A− or better can say that.
Zillow values the typical Halifax home at about $565,000, up 4.5% in a year, 14% below the Massachusetts typical home. The town’s typical rent stands at $1,804 a month. Also worth knowing: homes sold in Halifax spent a median 48 days on the market.
| Halifax | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 96% | 79% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,804 a month | $1,682 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
3 within 15 miles of the center of Halifax
About 5 of every 100 Halifax residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
Where Halifax’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
4 notable people were born in Halifax.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Halifax is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 7,749 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Halifax.
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halifax | #93 | A− | C− | B+ | B+ | A− |
| Pembroke | #70 | A | D | A | B+ | A |
| Bridgewater Town | #101 | A− | D | A− | B− | A− |
| Plympton | #128 | B+ | B− | B+ | B | B+ |
| Hanson | #133 | B+ | C− | A− | C+ | A− |
| East Bridgewater | #122 | B+ | C− | A− | B− | A− |
| Middleborough | #218 | C+ | C− | C+ | C+ | B+ |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Halifax grades A− overall, better than 82% of U.S. towns and #93 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades A− for health, B+ for safety and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
4 notable people were born here, including Alexander Parris and Joshua Cushman.
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