Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Southbridge Town earns a D−, 276th of 282 graded towns in Massachusetts, mostly because of schools and health. Its public schools score at or near the bottom of Massachusetts. Residents are less healthy than 81% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. What it does well: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 90% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 98% of U.S. towns, with 84 places on the National Register. Only 11 of Massachusetts’ 325 towns score lower on hazard risk. Its National Register listings include American Optical Company Historic District and Southbridge Town Hall. Only 15 of Massachusetts’ 325 towns score lower on incomes.
Where Southbridge Town beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Southbridge Town Hall| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Eastford Road | PK–1 | 397 |
| West Street | 2–5 | 323 |
| Charlton Street | PK–5 | 288 |
Its 84 National Register listings are more than in 95% of Massachusetts towns with a listing.
Census counts: 2,824 in 1850, 17,740 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1796 and 8 maps from 1887 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Southbridge Town is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Southbridge Town. Close and well known come first.
Big draw10 mi LakeLake Chaubunagungamaug
Big draw40 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
28 mi National Historic SiteSpringfield Armory National Historic Site14K visitors a year
25 mi LakeQuabbin Reservoir
5 mi MuseumOld Sturbridge Village
30 mi Theme parkSix Flags New EnglandLake Chaubunagungamaug: Bree from Worcester, MA, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Gillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Springfield Armory National Historic Site: National Park Service, Public domain · Quabbin Reservoir: engineerchange, CC BY 2.0 · Old Sturbridge Village: Wgmleslie at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Six Flags New England: Canadaolympic989, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Southbridge Town, 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 Southbridge Town.
Southbridge Town costs less than Dudley or any other town next door and is safe by national standards but not by Massachusetts’s; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Massachusetts (mostly inland flooding).
Each of its 3 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its D−, Sturbridge highest at B.
Its public schools are run by the Southbridge school district. Two of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Southbridge High School, with 419 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastford RoadLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–1 | Grades PK–1 | 397 | – |
| Southbridge High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 419 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Its typical home is the least expensive on its borders; Dudley is next at $461K.
The typical Southbridge Town home is worth about $379,000, up 2.1% in a year, 42% below the Massachusetts typical home. 43% of households own their home in Southbridge Town, where Massachusetts’ towns sit at 79% and U.S. towns at 73%. Southbridge Town’s median rent is $1,256 a month.
| Southbridge Town | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 43% | 79% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,256 a month | $1,683 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
All 3 graded neighbors score healthier than its C−, from Dudley (B) to Sturbridge (A).
32% of adults get no exercise outside work in Southbridge Town, above both Massachusetts’ towns (19%) and U.S. towns (25%). 17% of adults smoke cigarettes in Southbridge Town. Southbridge Town beats the Massachusetts average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 23.
| Southbridge Town | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 19% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 12% | 14% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 9.1% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 15% | 19% |
| What stands out | Southbridge Town | MA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.6% | 8.5% |
| More uninsured adults | 10.8% | 5.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
4.8% of Southbridge Town workers work from home. About one in 5 of Southbridge Town’s working residents works in town. 15% of Southbridge Town residents live below the poverty line.
| Southbridge Town | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 4.8% | 18% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 15% | 6% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 20% | 9.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 97% of Massachusetts towns, with expected losses of about $363 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in Southbridge Town is 78 of 100. Since 2005, 18 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Southbridge Town.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
21 miles of trail in 11 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is McKinstry Brook Wildlife Management Area, 150 acres with 1.9 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. McKinstry Brook Wildlife Management Area | 1.9 mi | 150 |
| 2. Claire Birtz Wildlife Sanctuary | 1.4 mi | 114 |
| 3. Cole Forest | 1.2 mi | 59 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Southbridge Town has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 17° and about 52 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 24.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 86% of Massachusetts’s graded towns. Each of the 3 graded towns on its borders reports less crime per resident, from Sturbridge (B−) to Dudley (A−).
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
1 within 15 miles of the center of Southbridge Town
About 5 of every 100 Southbridge Town residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
84 places in Southbridge Town on the National Register of Historic Places.
14 notable people were born in Southbridge Town.
City in Massachusetts, United States
Southbridge is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,740 at the 2020 census. Although Southbridge has a city form of government, it is legally known as the Town of Southbridge.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Southbridge Town.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D−; Dudley (B) is closest.
| Town | MA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southbridge Town | #276 | D− | C | C+ | D− | C− |
| Sturbridge | #146 | B+ | C | B− | B | A |
| Charlton | #125 | B+ | C+ | A− | C+ | A− |
| Dudley | #175 | B | C | A− | C+ | B |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Southbridge Town grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns and #276 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades C− for health, C+ for safety and D− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D−.
Massachusetts has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Southbridge Town sits nearer the middle.
That is 4 years of the area's median household income ($95,939 across the Worcester, MA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
14 notable people were born here, including William L. Marcy and George Constantine.
