Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Lancaster grades A− overall, 86th among Massachusetts's 282 graded towns. Residents are healthier than 91% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and its schools rank ahead of 82% of Massachusetts towns. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $580K for a typical one and 6 times the Worcester metro’s $96K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 18 places on the National Register. Lancaster’s median rent is $2,338 a month, where Massachusetts’ towns sit at $1,682 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month. Its National Register listings include Lancaster Industrial School for Girls and Ponakin Bridge. Among 283 Massachusetts towns, just 2 have a lower share of residents below the poverty line than Lancaster.
Where Lancaster beats most towns.
First Church of Christ, Lancaster is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,460 in 1790, 8,441 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1674 and 8 maps from 1887 on.
18 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Lancaster is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lancaster. Close and well known come first.
Big draw31 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw34 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
Big draw32 mi LakeLake Chaubunagungamaug
17 mi LakeWalden Pond
Big draw31 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
33 mi AttractionFreedom TrailFenway Park: Gatorfan252525, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lake Chaubunagungamaug: Bree from Worcester, MA, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Walden Pond: Victorgrigas, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Sean Dungan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Lancaster, 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 Lancaster.
Lancaster 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.
Within Massachusetts it is healthier than 63% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar. Against the 4,055 U.S. towns with household incomes like Lancaster’s, it is healthier than 71%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
20% of adults binge drink in Lancaster. Lancaster beats the Massachusetts average on 11 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 8.6% of adults have diabetes in Lancaster.
| Lancaster | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 16% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 9.3% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 12% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 11% | 14% |
| What stands out | Lancaster | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.2% | 12.4% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 9% | 11.9% |
| More binge drinkers | 20.2% | 17% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its A− for schools comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $580K.
Its public schools are run by the Nashoba school district. Two of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mary Rowlandson ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 473 | B |
| South Lancaster Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 292 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
At 9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 63% of Massachusetts’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 8 reported in 2025, 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
The property crime rate in Lancaster is 2.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Lancaster | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.7 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 79% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 31 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Lancaster.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
33.6% of workers work from home, against 18.6% across Massachusetts.
Most working residents leave Lancaster for work: only 5% work in town. Lancaster’s median household income is $135,000. Since 2013, Lancaster has added 236 jobs, to 2,091 in 2023.
| Lancaster | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $135,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 32 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 5% | 9.9% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Lancaster has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 16° and about 60 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
26 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. Bolton Flats Wildlife Management Area, at 557 acres with 1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lancaster Town Forest | 3.2 mi | 325 |
| 2. Chapman-Goodale Conservation Land | 2.5 mi | 268 |
| 3. Cook Conservation Area | 1.9 mi | 102 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Adults 18 to 34 are 19% of residents (24% statewide). 50% of Lancaster adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. Lancaster has grown 8.3% since 2020, to 9,161 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Lancaster | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 50% | 47% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 19% | 20% | 22% |
| Median age | 43.1 years | 43.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 19% | 18% |
45% women, 55% men
About 121 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3.3 points). Across Massachusetts, 51.1% of residents are women. Among residents 45 to 54, 63% are men (MA 49%).
| Lancaster | MA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.2% | 10.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.9% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.6% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.2% | 14% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.9% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.9% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.3% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.7% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.2% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.6% | 8.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24.2% | 22.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 14.6% | 14.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 5.3% | 7.5% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 31.6% | 25.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18.7% | 21.8% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Lancaster grades A− overall with a typical home of about $580K, below the Massachusetts typical value; only 21 of the 109 Massachusetts towns graded A− or better can say that.
The typical Lancaster home is worth about $580,000, up 1.8% in a year, 11% below the Massachusetts typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
3 within 15 miles of the center of Lancaster
About 3 of every 100 Lancaster residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
Where Lancaster’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
18 places in Lancaster on the National Register of Historic Places.
16 notable people were born in Lancaster.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Lancaster is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Incorporated in 1653, Lancaster is the oldest town in Worcester County. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 8,441. It contains the village of South Lancaster.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Lancaster.
Clinton next door grades lower for schools (C to Lancaster’s A−) and higher for cost of living (C− to D−).
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster | #86 | A− | D− | A− | A− | A |
| Harvard | #11 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ | A |
| Devens | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Leominster | #246 | C− | C− | C | C | B |
| Bolton | #53 | A | C | A− | A− | A+ |
| Clinton | #164 | B | C− | A+ | C | B |
| Sterling | #75 | A | D | A | B+ | A |
Devens isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Lancaster with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Lancaster grades A− overall, better than 84% of U.S. towns and #86 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades A for health, A− for safety and A− 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−.
16 notable people were born here, including Henrietta Swan Leavitt and Luther Burbank.
