Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Oak Bluffs's standout: it has 22 miles of trail. Overall it grades B, 172nd of 282 graded towns in Massachusetts. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 78% of the country and it is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 99% of U.S. towns, with 7 places on the National Register. Oak Bluffs’ typical home value is $1,261,000, above both the Massachusetts town median ($633,000) and the median of U.S. towns ($332,000). Only 27 of Massachusetts’ 324 towns score higher on cost of living. Oak Bluffs's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 100% of U.S. towns.
Where Oak Bluffs beats most towns.
Flying Horses
Flying Horses is one of 2 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 672 in 1880, 5,341 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1860 and 2 maps from 1889 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Oak Bluffs is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Oak Bluffs, 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 Oak Bluffs.
Oak Bluffs has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns 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.
At 10 years of the Vineyard Haven area’s $126K median household income, the typical home (about $1.26M) costs more against local pay than in 92% of Massachusetts towns; that ratio is one input to its C+ for cost of living.
Typical home values rose 4.9% in the year to September 2026. The typical Oak Bluffs home is worth about $1,261,000, up 4.9% in a year, 92% above the Massachusetts typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Martha's Vineyard school district. Its two schools are below. The largest public high school is Martha's Vineyard Regional High, with 744 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oak Bluffs ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 402 | B− |
| Martha's Vineyard Regional HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 744 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Within Massachusetts it is less healthy than 71% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar. Against the 3,114 U.S. towns with household incomes like Oak Bluffs’s, it is less healthy than 73%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
26% of Oak Bluffs adults have obesity. Oak Bluffs beats the Massachusetts average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 83% of Oak Bluffs adults had a checkup this year.
| Oak Bluffs | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 28% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 82% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 17% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 32% | 35% |
| What stands out | Oak Bluffs | MA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 78.9% | 75.4% |
| More adults getting cholesterol checked | 91.4% | 89.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Adults 18 to 34 are 14% of residents (24% statewide); children under 18 are 25% of residents (19% statewide). 48% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Oak Bluffs.
| Oak Bluffs | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 48% | 47% | 29% |
| Median age | 43.6 years | 43.4 years | 40.5 years |
54% women, 46% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.4 points. Across Massachusetts, 51.1% of residents are women.
| Oak Bluffs | MA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.7% | 10.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 16.8% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.3% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.8% | 14% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.1% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.9% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.2% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.2% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2.1% | 8.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 18.7% | 22.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.9% | 14.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.4% | 7.5% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 24.9% | 25.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 22.9% | 21.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 69% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 57 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Oak Bluffs.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Edgartown weather station, 5 miles away, records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 95% of U.S. towns.
Oak Bluffs has chilly winters and pleasant summers. Oak Bluffs’ July high is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 1,612 working residents takes 13.4 minutes, against 29.1 across Massachusetts.
The average trip to work in Oak Bluffs is 13 minutes. Jobs based in Oak Bluffs grew to 2,024 in 2023, 293 more than in 2013. The median household income in Oak Bluffs is $145,000.
| Oak Bluffs | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 13 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 29% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $145,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 2.2% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Only 10 of the 283 Massachusetts towns we compare have a lower share of conserved land than Oak Bluffs. The biggest place to walk is Southern Woodlands Reservation, 238 acres with 3.7 miles of trail.
| Oak Bluffs | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 1.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 5.3% | 19% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Southern Woodlands Reservation | 3.7 mi | 238 |
| 2. Trade Winds Field Preserve | 1.3 mi | 72 |
| 3. Wapatequa Wood | 0.6 mi | 26 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 23.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 84% of Massachusetts’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Oak Bluffs. Close and well known come first.
Big draw39 mi MuseumThe Breakers
36 mi MuseumUSS Massachusetts
39 mi MuseumMarble House
39 mi MuseumThe Elms
32 mi Ancient siteSS Pendleton
34 mi MuseumPlimoth PatuxetThe Breakers: UpstateNYer, CC BY-SA 3.0 · USS Massachusetts: USN, Public domain · Marble House: [email protected], Public domain · The Elms: The original uploader was Daderot at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · SS Pendleton: United States Coast Guard, Richard C. Kelsey, Public domain · Plimoth Patuxet: Tr!sie, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Oak Bluffs; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Oak Bluffs residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
4,527 counted in 2010 and 5,341 in 2020; an estimated 5,428 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
7 places in Oak Bluffs on the National Register of Historic Places.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Oak Bluffs is a town on Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts. The population was 5,341 at the 2020 United States census. The town contains the census-designated place of the same name. It is one of the island's principal points of arrival for summer tourists, and is noted for its "gingerbread cottages" and other well-preserved mid- to late-nineteenth-century buildings. The town has been a historically important center of African American culture since the 18th century.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Oak Bluffs.
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oak Bluffs | #172 | B | C+ | C+ | B | A− |
| Edgartown | #209 | B− | D | B− | C+ | A− |
| Tisbury | #197 | B− | C− | C− | B+ | A− |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Oak Bluffs grades B overall, better than 59% of U.S. towns and #172 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades A− for health, C+ for safety and B for schools.
Massachusetts has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Oak Bluffs sits nearer the middle.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
_underway_c1944.jpg){kind=link}
