Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Medford has higher household incomes than 91% of U.S. towns
Medford grades A for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. Poverty touches 7.6% of residents, against 10.0% across Massachusetts. 27% of workers have no commute at all, against 19% across Massachusetts.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Medford: the figures worth knowing
Most Medford residents work close to home
79% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. Only 3% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
Medford and Boston trade workers both ways
Boston is the top workplace for Medford residents (32%) and also where the most people who work in Medford come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
A lot of Medford works from home
27% of Medford workers work from home, against 19% across Massachusetts. Time on the road ↓
Three in four Medford workers earn over $40,000 a year
77% of Medford’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, the top earnings band in the Census data. The jobs ↓
Medford draws workers from far and wide
The 21,473 jobs in Medford are filled from a wide area. Medford’s own residents hold 11% and the ten next-biggest home towns 31%; the other 58% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
The four measures behind Medford’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Medford is better than 86% of U.S. towns, #109 of 283 in Massachusetts. Job access by car holds Medford’s grade up (ahead of 98% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.3%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Medford could be anywhere from A− to A.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Medford
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
32% of working residents work in Boston
Where Medford clocks in
32% of workers
12% of workers
4% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
About 30 minutes each way, about the MA average
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Medford workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 25,742 commuters (the 27% who work from home are left out). Across Massachusetts: 75% drive alone, 8% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
67% of the jobs in Medford pay over $3,333 a month
21,473 jobs are based in Medford.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Medford, 2013 → 2023: 18,193 → 21,473. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Medford’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How a workday changes Medford
On a workday 27,449 residents head out to work, 2,314 work right here, and 19,159 people come in from elsewhere.
About 52,000 people are in Medford on a workday afternoon, 14% fewer than live here.
0.72 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Medford is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Medford is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #9 of 283 in Massachusetts. Both inputs place Medford near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 35,172 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 99% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 75% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 16.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 97% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 11.6% of Medford households have no vehicle (Massachusetts 11.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 16% of Medford’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Medford is 158th among 737 U.S. towns of 42,000 to 81,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Arlington MA | 46,563 | $151K | 5.4% | 2.9% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 66 | Billerica MA | 42,632 | $148K | 5.4% | 3.8% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 122 | Brookline MA | 63,414 | $142K | 8.7% | 3.6% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 156 | Washington Township OH | 63,075 | $99K | 6.2% | 2.9% | 16% | A |
| 157 | Wallingford CT | 44,406 | $105K | 5.4% | 3.9% | 21% | A |
| 158 | Medford MA | 59,834 | $130K | 7.6% | 4.3% | 8% | A |
| 159 | Cedar Park TX | 79,032 | $130K | 5.9% | 4.5% | 7% | A |
| 160 | Herriman UT | 63,282 | $123K | 4.9% | 4.0% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 737 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Medford, the top three, the last and three more from Massachusetts.
How Medford compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Somerville (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Medford workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medford | – | A | A+ | 30 min | $129,540 |
| Somerville | 4% | A | A+ | 31 min | $132,572 |
| Malden | under 2% | B+ | A+ | 34 min | $100,606 |
| Arlington | 1% | A+ | A+ | 32 min | $150,701 |
| Everett | under 2% | B | A+ | 35 min | $85,218 |
| Winchester | under 2% | A+ | A+ | 31 min | $230,198 |
| Stoneham | under 2% | A+ | A | 28 min | $113,964 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Medford’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Medford: questions
What is the median household income in Medford?
$129,540 (±$7,926) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Medford?
7.6%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Medford?
30 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 27% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Medford work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Boston (32%, 8 mi), Cambridge (12%, 3 mi), Somerville (4%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Medford walkable?
Medford is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 15.0 out of 20, and 24% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Medford without a car?
16% of commuters take transit and 12% of households have no car. 75% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Medford, from the people who make the trip.
More of Medford
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.