Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Harwich grades B overall, 155th among Massachusetts's 282 graded towns. It has 73 miles of trail. It is healthier than 89% of U.S. towns and crime is low: it reports less per resident than 77% of U.S. towns. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $755K for a typical one and 7.9 times the Barnstable Town metro’s $95K median household income. 36% of residents are 65 or older in Harwich, against 19% in Massachusetts’ towns and 18% across U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Harwich Historic District and South Harwich Methodist Church. Among 283 Massachusetts towns, just 3 have a higher January low than Harwich.
Where Harwich beats most towns.
Census counts: 2,392 in 1790, a low of 1,846 in 1920, 13,440 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1836 and 5 maps from 1887 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Harwich takes its name from Harwich in Essex, England, 3,310 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionHarwich, settled in 1670, takes its name from Harwich, a large town in Essex, 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 Harwich is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Harwich. Close and well known come first.
10 mi Ancient siteSS Pendleton
7 mi National SeashoreCape Cod National Seashore3.7M visitors a year
33 mi MuseumPlimoth Patuxet
36 mi LandmarkNational Monument to the Forefathers
25 mi LandmarkPilgrim Monument
9 mi MuseumElephant HouseSS Pendleton: United States Coast Guard, Richard C. Kelsey, Public domain · Cape Cod National Seashore: SeduisantRedux, CC BY 3.0 · Plimoth Patuxet: Tr!sie, CC BY-SA 3.0 · National Monument to the Forefathers: T.S. Custadio aka ToddC4176 at en.wikipedia, Public domain · 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
Who provides power, water and the rest in Harwich, 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 Harwich.
Harwich is a second-home town, has cooler summers than nearly all U.S. towns and is safe by national standards but not by Massachusetts’s.
For Harwich, the trail network density is 3.2 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Bell’s Neck Conservation Lands, 258 acres with 5.5 miles of trail. This Massachusetts town has 72 parks and preserves, 1,698 acres in all.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bell’s Neck Conservation Lands | 5.5 mi | 258 |
| 2. Hawksnest State Park | 3 mi | 229 |
| 3. Thompson's Field Conservation Area | 2.7 mi | 63 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Two of its 4 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed. Its public schools are run by the Monomoy Regional School District. The largest public high school is Monomoy Regional High School, with 738 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harwich Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 449 | B− |
| Monomoy Regional High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 8–12 | Grades 8–12 | 738 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Within Massachusetts it is healthier than 56% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar.
For adults in Harwich, the share who say their health is fair or poor is 15%. Only 10 of the 279 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of adults who binge drink than Harwich. Of 32 CDC measures, Harwich beats the Massachusetts average on 14 and trails it on 6.
| Harwich | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 86% | 82% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 33% | 36% |
| What stands out | Harwich | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.4% | 12.4% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 6.8% | 11.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 13.9% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
34.1% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, against 3.7% statewide, which helps explain the older median age.
Only 10 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of children under 18 than Harwich. 51% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more here.
| Harwich | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 58.6 years | 43.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 12% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 51% | 47% | 29% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.5 points. Across Massachusetts, 51.1% of residents are women.
| Harwich | MA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.6% | 10.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.2% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.1% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.9% | 14% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7.6% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.5% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 21.4% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 21.1% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 14.7% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 1.7% | 8.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 21.1% | 22.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 17.4% | 14.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.2% | 7.5% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 25.8% | 25.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 24.8% | 21.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
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: 11 reported in 2025, 0.8 per 1,000 residents.
The level of violent crime in Harwich is 0.8 per 1,000 residents. The property crime rate here is 5 per 1,000 residents.
| Harwich | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.8 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The top destinations are Barnstable Town (13%), Chatham (11%) and Dennis (6%). Jobs in Harwich grew by 369 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 3,704. The share of working residents in Harwich who work locally: 17%. For half of commuters, work is under 10 miles away.
| Harwich | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 17% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $97,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 4.9% | 6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
July afternoons average 77.7°, cooler than in 96% of U.S. towns; January nights average 25.3°.
About 25 inches of snow falls in a winter. Also worth knowing: the peak summer temperature for Harwich comes to 78°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 7.9 years of the Barnstable Town metro’s $95K median household income, the typical home (about $755K) costs more against local pay than in 79% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to that grade.
On the market in Harwich: a median 17 days to sell. Homes here are typically worth about $755,000, up 3.9% in a year, 15% above the Massachusetts typical home. For Harwich, the median rent is $2,017 a month.
| Harwich | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,017 a month | $1,682 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 85% | 79% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Nearly two thirds of Harwich’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by hurricanes at 22%. Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in just over half of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 40 flood insurance claims have been paid out locally.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Harwich
About 2 of every 100 Harwich residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
Where Harwich’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
5 places in Harwich on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Harwich.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Harwich ( HAR-witch) is a town on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. At the 2020 census it had a population of 13,440. Harwich experiences a seasonal increase to roughly 37,000. The town is a popular vacation spot, located near the Cape Cod National Seashore. Harwich's beaches are on the Nantucket Sound side of Cape Cod. Harwich has three active harbors. Saquatucket, Wychmere and Allen Harbors are all in Harwich Port. The town of Harwich includes the villages of Pleasant Lake, West Harwich, East Harwich, Harwich Port, Harwich Center, North Harwich, Northwest Harwich, and South Harwich. It is named after the English town of Harwich.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Harwich.
Dennis next door grades lower for schools (C to Harwich’s B) and higher for cost of living (C to D).
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harwich | #155 | B | D | A− | B | A |
| Chatham | #141 | B+ | D | A− | B | A |
| Harwich Port | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| East Harwich | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Brewster | #136 | B+ | D | A− | B | A |
| Northwest Harwich | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dennis | #219 | C+ | C | B− | C | A− |
| Dennis Port | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Harwich Port, East Harwich, Northwest Harwich and Dennis Port aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Harwich with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Harwich grades B overall, better than 64% of U.S. towns and #155 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, by national standards. Harwich reports less crime per resident than 77% of U.S. towns, an A− Safety Grade: 11 violent and 68 property crimes in 2025.
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.
4 notable people were born here, including Joshua Gage and Shirley Gomes.
