Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Nahant grades A overall, 81st of 282 graded towns in Massachusetts. 1% of its land is conserved. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 91% of the country and it reports less crime per resident than 80% of U.S. towns. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $962K, 8.3 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 5 places on the National Register. 11% of residents are under 18 in Nahant, below both Massachusetts’ towns (20%) and U.S. towns (22%). Nahant is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 97% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Henry Cabot Lodge House and Nahant Life-Saving Station.
Where Nahant beats most towns.
Henry Cabot Lodge House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 380 in 1860, 3,334 in 2020. The archive holds 24 old photos and papers going back to 1887 and 7 maps from 1892 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Nahant is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 97% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 8%), so the A overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Nahant. Close and well known come first.
Big draw11 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
Big draw11 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
9 mi AttractionFreedom Trail
8 mi MuseumBunker Hill Monument
9 mi GardenBoston CommonFenway 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 · Boston Common: Phillip Capper from Wellington, New Zealand, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Nahant, 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 Nahant.
Nahant reports less crime than Winthrop Town or any other graded neighbor and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Massachusetts; it also has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Massachusetts.
Within Massachusetts it is healthier than 64% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar.
28% of adults feel lonely in Nahant. Nahant beats the Massachusetts average on 14 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 13% of adults report frequent mental distress in Nahant.
| Nahant | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 33% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 85% | 82% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 16% |
| What stands out | Nahant | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 2.7% | 5.2% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 6.2% | 11.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.6% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its B+ is the best School Grade on its borders; Winthrop Town (C+) is next.
Its public schools are run by the Nahant school district. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| JohnsonLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 163 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests
At 8.3 years of the Boston metro’s $116K median household income, the typical home (about $962K) costs more against local pay than in 84% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living. Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Boston is next at $761K.
The median rent in Nahant is $1,777 a month. The typical Nahant home is worth about $962,000, up 2.8% in a year, 47% above the Massachusetts typical home.
| Nahant | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,777 a month | $1,682 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 79% | 79% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A− tops all 4 graded towns on its borders; Winthrop Town (B+) comes closest. At 8.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 67% of Massachusetts’s graded towns.
Nahant’s property crime rate is 3 per 1,000 residents.
| Nahant | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3 per 1,000 residents | 4.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
341 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 47 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 80% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 341 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Nahant.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Nahant has 370 jobs for its 1,623 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Nahant for work: only 7% work in town. Jobs based in Nahant grew to 370 in 2023, 24 more than in 2013. 19% of Nahant workers work from home.
| Nahant | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 32 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 19% | 18% | 11% |
| Median household income | $113,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 8.9% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Nahant has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 81°, January nights drop to 20° and about 39 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Only 5 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower trail density than Nahant. 3.0 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Nahant Beach/Lynn Shore Reservations, at 81 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Nahant Beach/Lynn Shore Reservations | 0.6 mi | 81 |
| 2. East Point/Henry Cabot Lodge,Jr., Memorial Park | 0.5 mi | 7 |
| 3. Baileys Hill | 0.3 mi | 15 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
43 within 15 miles of the center of Nahant
About 4 of every 100 Nahant residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
Coastal flooding makes up 30% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
5 places in Nahant on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Nahant.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Nahant (, nə-HAANT) is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,334 at the 2020 census, which makes it the smallest municipality by population in Essex County. With just 1.0 square mile (2.7 km2) of land area, it is also the smallest municipality by area in the state and is primarily a residential community. The town is situated on a peninsula consisting of two near-islands (known as "Little Nahant" and "Big Nahant" respectively) connected to the mainland by a narrow sandy isthmus traversed by a single causeway known as "Nahant Road". Numerous tourist beaches line the shores, with the most popular being the so-called "Long Beach" and "Short Beach" along the…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Nahant.
It grades higher overall than all 4 graded towns on its borders; Winthrop Town (B+) comes closest.
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nahant | #81 | A | D | A− | B+ | A |
| Lynn | #266 | D | C− | C− | D | C+ |
| Revere | #255 | C− | D | C | C− | B |
| Winthrop Town | #135 | B+ | D | B+ | C+ | A |
| Boston | #252 | C− | D | D | C− | A− |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Nahant grades A overall, better than 85% of U.S. towns and #81 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. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
5 notable people were born here, including Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. and Cleveland Amory.
