Yes, by almost any measure. Marblehead earns an A+, ranked 40th of 282 in Massachusetts. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 98% of the country, the median household earns $182K, and crime is low: it reports less per resident than 75% of U.S. towns. The exception is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $1.0 million, 9 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 100% of U.S. towns, with 11 places on the National Register. 78% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Marblehead, above both Massachusetts’ towns (47%) and U.S. towns (29%). Only 4 of Massachusetts’ 325 towns score higher on hazard risk. Marblehead is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 97% of U.S. towns.

StrongestA⁺History A⁺Health A⁺Jobs & incomeWeakestDCost of living

What makes Marblehead stand out

Where Marblehead beats most towns.

Jeremiah Lee House

HistoryA⁺

Settled in 1629

A history going back 397 years.

WalkabilityA⁺

More walkable than 97% of U.S. towns

8.6% of workers walk, bike or ride transit

EPA National Walkability Index; Census ACS.

Jeremiah Lee House · National Register of Historic Places

Marblehead’s story

397 years in pictures

Jeremiah Lee House is one of 2 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier. Its founding year, 1629, comes before those of 94% of the Massachusetts towns we grade with a known year.

Census counts: 5,661 in 1790, 20,441 in 2020. The archive holds 24 old photos and papers going back to 1791 and 3 maps from 1948 on.

11 places on the National Register of Historic Places.

1629Marblehead is settled

Explore the history →

How Marblehead grades

Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Marblehead is from typical.

How grading works

Its grades run from A+ for health (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 13%), so the A+ overall blends very different results.

HealthNorth Shore Medical Center 2.9 miles awayA⁺Open →Jobs & incomeA⁺Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 12.8 of 20; 3.6% of households have no carA⁺Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 7% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listA⁺Open →Cost of livingDOpen →SafetyA⁻Open →SchoolsA⁻Open →

Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.

Outdoors9 miles of trails; 2% conserved landAOpen →History39 notable people born hereA⁺Open →Civic life6.9 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsA⁻Open →

Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.

Climate–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 49.1–Open →

How TownRatings grades towns →

Nearby attractions

Fenway Park and 156 more within 40 miles

Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Marblehead. Close and well known come first.

All 231 attractions →

Big draw16 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park

Big draw35 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium

Big draw16 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum

14 mi AttractionFreedom Trail

13 mi MuseumBunker Hill Monument

16 mi MuseumMuseum of Fine Arts Boston477K visitors a year

Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons

Photo credits

Fenway Park: Gatorfan252525, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Sean Dungan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bunker Hill Monument: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Museum of Fine Arts Boston: Martin~jawiki at Japanese Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0

Getting set up

Moving to Marblehead: who provides what

Who provides power, water and the rest in Marblehead, and how to reach them.

The full setup list →

PowerTown of MarbleheadEIAHIFLD · EIA

WaterMarblehead Water Dept. (Mwra)No health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA

Internet4 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC

Trash & dumpTown of Marblehead Transfer SationIn townOpenStreetMap

SchoolsMarblehead School DistrictWhich school depends on your addressNCES

Register to voteOnlineIn Massachusetts you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 10 days before).vote.gov

Who runs elections hereMarblehead Town ClerkThe town itself; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2026

ZIP code0194501945 100%Census 2020

EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.

The data

Ordered by what stands out in Marblehead.

Marblehead has less tooth loss than most of Massachusetts and is safe by national standards but not by Massachusetts’s; it also has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Massachusetts.

HealthA⁺

Compared with most of Massachusetts and the rest of the country, fewer of Marblehead’s adults feel lonely

Its widest gap with Massachusetts is tooth loss: 4.6% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 11.9% statewide. Against the 1,302 U.S. towns with household incomes like Marblehead’s, it is healthier than 82%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.

The share of adults in Marblehead who worry about having enough food: 5.4%. Only 9 of the 279 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of adults who report frequent mental distress than Marblehead. This Massachusetts town does better than the Massachusetts average on 19 of 32 CDC measures and worse on 1.

98%healthier than U.S. townsA⁺Health Grade

	Marblehead	Massachusetts towns	U.S. towns
Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES)	12%	16%	17%
Feel lonely (CDC PLACES)	27%	33%	33%
Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES)	7.1%	11%	14%
Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES)	85%	82%	79%

32 measures vs. Massachusetts

19 better12 too close to call1 worse

What stands out	Marblehead	MA
Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth	4.6%	11.9%
Fewer uninsured adults	2.2%	5.2%
More adults who have had cancer	11.8%	8.5%

North Shore Medical Center

2.9 mi away · emergency room

None

primary care, dental or mental-health shortage

88th

percentile among MA towns

Full pageMarblehead’s health reportOpen the page

Everyday habitsFewer smokers Hospitals & doctors nearby2.9 miles to an ER · North Shore Medical Center How adults are doingFewer adults in fair or poor health Every CDC estimateBetter than MA on 19 of 32

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

SchoolsA⁻

Marblehead’s schools rank ahead of 75% of Massachusetts districts

Three of its 11 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. The public schools here belong to the Marblehead school district. The 2 public schools in Marblehead teach 763 students between them.

75%of MA districts it outscoresA⁻School Grade

School	Level	Students	Letter
Village SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 4–6	Grades 4–6	529	A⁻
Marblehead HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12	Grades 9–12	861	A⁺
Marblehead Veterans Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 7–8	Grades 7–8	411	A⁻

Full pageMarblehead’s schools pageOpen the page

The districtsMarblehead Vs. the neighborsAhead of all 2 graded neighbors Every school11 schools · Lucretia and Joseph Brown School Questions“Are Marblehead’s schools good?”

NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation

HousingCost of living grade D

For cost of living, Marblehead earns a D

At 9 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income, the typical home (about $1.04M) costs more against local pay than in 87% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to that grade.

Zillow values the typical Marblehead home at about $1,044,000, up 3.1% in a year, 59% above the Massachusetts typical home. For Marblehead, the going rate for rent is $1,764 a month. 85% of households live in a home they own locally.

$1.04MZillow home value

	Marblehead	Massachusetts towns	U.S. towns
Median rent	$1,764 a month	$1,682 a month	$1,185 a month
Households that own their home	85%	79%	73%

Typical home value

Marblehead$1.04M

Massachusetts$655K

+3.1%

value change, 1 year

homes sold in May

Full pageMarblehead’s housing & cost-of-living pageOpen the page

Prices over the yearsUp 3.1% in a year Years of income to buyA typical home costs 5.7 years of income Rents$1,764 a month · Median rent Vs. the neighborsAhead of all 2 graded neighbors

Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center

Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A⁺

Marblehead stands out in Massachusetts and nationally, with the FEMA risk score lower than most

179 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 20 properties have flooded more than once.

48% of Marblehead’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by coastal flooding at 16%. Since 1978, Marblehead has seen 179 flood insurance claims paid out. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Marblehead after 12 declared disasters, most recently in 2018.

7risk score of 100

FEMA risk score

Inland floodingCoastal floodingHurricanes

179

paid flood claims since 1978

federal disasters paid out here

Full pageMarblehead’s hazards pageOpen the page

What it facesVery low risk Flood claims179 paid flood claims · Since 1978 Past disasters12 federal disasters · Paid out in Marblehead Get ready2.7 events a year, on average · Ready for inland flooding

FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

SafetyA⁻

For safety, Marblehead earns an A−

At 9.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 57% of Massachusetts’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 150 to 101 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.

The property offense rate in Marblehead is 4.2 per 1,000 residents. The violent crime rate locally is 0.7 per 1,000 residents.

75%of U.S. towns report more crimeA⁻Safety Grade

	Marblehead	Massachusetts towns	U.S. towns
Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025)	0.7 per 1,000 residents	1.5	1.6
Property crimes per 1,000 (2025)	4.2 per 1,000 residents	4.9	9.9

Violent crime per 1,000 residents

Marblehead0.7

Massachusetts3

U.S.3.3

Property crime per 1,000 residents

Marblehead4.2

Massachusetts10.4

U.S.15.5

75th

percentile among U.S. towns we grade

57th

percentile among MA towns

violent crimes reported in 2025

property crimes reported in 2025

Full pageMarblehead’s safety reportOpen the page

Violent crime by type0.7 violent crimes per 1,000 Crime over the yearsDown since 2023 Vs. the neighborsAhead of all 2 graded neighbors Questions“Is Marblehead, MA safe?”

FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police

Work & commuteJobs & income grade A⁺

Most of Marblehead’s workers commute out: the town has 0.5 jobs for each of them

34% of workers work from home, against 18.6% across Massachusetts.

Only 17% of working residents stay in Marblehead for work; the rest commute out. 4.4% of Marblehead residents live below the poverty line. Jobs based in Marblehead grew to 4,657 in 2023, 478 more than in 2013. Also worth knowing: its average commute is 33 minutes.

17%work in town

	Marblehead	Massachusetts towns	U.S. towns
Work from home	34%	18%	11%
Median household income	$182,000	$120,000	$80,000
Average trip to work	33 minutes	30 minutes	25 minutes
Working residents who work in town	17%	9.8%	8%

Where working residents work

In Marblehead17%

Boston23%

Salem7%

Lynn4%

Beverly4%

13 mi

median commute distance

4,657

jobs based in Marblehead

A commuter town

jobs vs. working residents

A+

Walkability grade: more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns

Full pageMarblehead’s work & commute pageOpen the page

The jobs here4,657 jobs based here · A commuter town Where people work17% work in Marblehead Commute times33 minutes · The average commute How far they goHalf commute less than 13 miles

Census LEHD 2023 · ACS

Climate

Marblehead: four seasons and pleasant summers

The peak summer temperature for Marblehead comes to 80°F.

39″snow a winter

Typical low → high °F

Winter23–39°

Spring38–56°

Summer61–78°

Fall45–62°

Oct 20

typical first frost

Apr 25

typical last frost

+1.8°

vs. the 20th-century average

Full pageMarblehead’s climate pageOpen the page

A year of weatherJuly highs 80°, January lows 20°Rain & snow39″ of snow a winter · 48 inches of rain and snow a year Heating & coolingMostly a heating bill Then and now+1.8° vs. the 20th century · Warmer than the 20th-century average

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

OutdoorsA

Marblehead has set aside 2.4% of its land for conservation

Steer Swamp Conservation Area, at 47 acres with 1.6 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Walkers can cover 8.5 miles of trail in 23 parks and preserves. Marblehead’s concentration of trails comes in at 0.4 miles per square mile. Only 2 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of conserved land than Marblehead.

#264for trails in MA

	Marblehead	Massachusetts towns	U.S. towns
Conserved land	2.4%	19%	4.3%
Miles of trail per square mile	0.4 miles per square mile	1.8	0.4

2.4%

conserved · 296 of 12,456 acres

8.5 mi

of trails · 0.4 per sq mi

Biggest places to walk	Trails	Acres
1. Steer Swamp Conservation Area	1.6 mi	47
2. Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary	0.8 mi	18
3. Forest River Conservation Area	0.7 mi	27

Full pageMarblehead’s outdoors pageOpen the page

Trail map8.5 miles of trail, mapped Pick a walk1.6 miles of trail · Steer Swamp Conservation Area Conserved land2.4% conserved · 296 acres protected Questions“Where can I hike in Marblehead?”

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Marblehead

20pages on Marblehead

The big questions

SchoolsA⁻Beat 75% of MA districts · 11 schools SafetyA⁻0.7 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (2025)HealthA⁺Better than MA on 19 of 32 CDC measures Cost of livingD$1.04M typical home · up 3.1% in a year Work & commuteA⁺$182K median household income · 4,657 jobs here Natural hazardsA⁺FEMA risk higher than 7% of U.S. communities · inland flooding

Out and about

OutdoorsA9 mi of trails · 2% conserved land PlacesAttractions231 nearby · Abbot Hall under 1 mi LibraryA⁻Abbot Public Library CollegesSalem State University is 1.8 mi away

The story

HistoryA⁺Settled 1629 · 11 on the National Register Famous people39 born in Marblehead Town Hall & politicsOne full-time town employee per 33 residents Climate80° summer highs · 39″ of snow

Day to day

News2 recent stories about Marblehead WeatherHandbookZIP code 01945 Town SquareNeighbors

After high school

Colleges nearby

20 within 15 miles of the center of Marblehead

Salem State UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Salem1.8 mi$12,338 in-state tuition Montserrat College of ArtUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Beverly4.3 mi$40,690 tuition North Shore Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Danvers8.9 mi$5,352 in-state tuition

About 4 of every 100 Marblehead residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.

Prices by family income, graduation and earnings →

By the sea

Marblehead lives by the ocean

Coastal flooding makes up 16% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.

16%of expected storm damage is coastal flooding

97thpercentile for coastal flood risk nationally

179paid flood-insurance claims since 1978

9storm & flood disasters paid out here

On the water

Crowninshield Island
Gerry Island

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap

Landmarks

11 places in Marblehead on the National Register of Historic Places.

All landmarks →

Jeremiah Lee HouseNational Historic Landmark

Gen. John Glover HouseNational Historic Landmark

St. Michael's Church

Abbot HallBuilt 1876

Famous people from Marblehead

39 notable people were born in Marblehead.

See all 39 →

Elbridge GerryVice president of the United States from 1813 to 1814 · 1744–1814

Tyler HamiltonAmerican cyclist · born 1971

Joseph StoryAmerican jurist (1779–1845); US Supreme Court justice from 1812 to 1845 · 1779–1845

David SilvermanAmerican Atheist activist · born 1966

Keith AblowAmerican psychiatrist, author, and television personality · born 1961

Jessica PresslerAmerican journalist

About Marblehead

Town in Massachusetts, United States

Official town website ↗

Marblehead is a coastal New England town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, along the North Shore. Its population was 20,441 at the 2020 census. The town lies on a small peninsula that extends into the northern part of Massachusetts Bay. Attached to the town is a near island, known as Marblehead Neck, connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus. Marblehead Harbor, protected by shallow shoals and rocks from the open sea, lies between the mainland and the Neck. Beside the Marblehead town center, two other villages lie within the town: the Old Town, which was the original town center, and Clifton, which lies along the border with the neighboring town of Swampscott. A town with...

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Established: 1629
Area: 20 sq mi
Elevation: 66 ft
ZIP code: 01945

Marblehead’s neighbors

2 towns share a border with Marblehead.

Explore the map →

SalemSwampscottMarblehead

Salem

W · 7% of Marblehead workers commute here

Visit

Swampscott

SW · 1% of Marblehead workers commute here

Visit

How the neighbors grade

Town	MA rank	Overall	Cost	Safety	Schools	Health
Marblehead	#40	A⁺	D	A⁻	A⁻	A⁺
Salem	#234	C	D	B⁻	D	A⁻
Swampscott	#110	A⁻	D⁻	B⁺	B	A

Compare Marblehead with a neighbor →

Questions about Marblehead

Short answers, built from the data on this page.

Is Marblehead, MA a good place to live?

Yes, by almost any measure. Marblehead grades A+ overall, better than 96% of U.S. towns and #40 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.

Is Marblehead, MA safe?

Yes, by national standards. Marblehead reports less crime per resident than 75% of U.S. towns, an A− Safety Grade: 15 violent and 86 property crimes in 2025.

Is Marblehead, MA expensive?

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.

What is Marblehead, MA known for?

39 notable people were born here, including Elbridge Gerry and Tyler Hamilton.

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