Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Stoughton's standout: it has 15 miles of trail. Overall it grades B−, 206th of 282 graded towns in Massachusetts. The median household earns $105K and natural-hazard risk is low. Its weakest subject is cost of living: homes are expensive, about $604K for a typical one and 5.2 times the Boston metro’s $116K median household income. Stoughton is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 92% of U.S. towns. Stoughton’s trail density is 0.9 miles per square mile, where Massachusetts’ towns sit at 1.8 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Stoughton has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Stoughton Railroad Station and Cobb's Tavern.
Where Stoughton beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,994 in 1790, 29,281 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1794 and 3 maps from 1886 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Massachusetts), ordered by how far Stoughton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Stoughton. Close and well known come first.
Big draw9 mi Stadium & arenaGillette Stadium
Big draw16 mi Stadium & arenaFenway Park
Big draw15 mi MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Big draw38 mi LakeLake Chaubunagungamaug
17 mi AttractionFreedom Trail
29 mi MuseumUSS MassachusettsGillette Stadium: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fenway Park: Gatorfan252525, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Sean Dungan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lake Chaubunagungamaug: Bree from Worcester, MA, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Freedom Trail: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0 · USS Massachusetts: USN, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Stoughton, 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 Stoughton.
Stoughton trades workers with Boston and other neighbors, is safe by national standards but not by Massachusetts’s and is healthy by national standards but behind most towns in Massachusetts.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 92% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 25 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Stoughton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Stoughton school district. Three of its 9 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| O'Donnell Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 801 | C |
| Stoughton HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,118 | B+ |
| South ElementaryTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 305 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MA on state tests and graduation
Within Massachusetts it is less healthy than 76% of the 279 graded towns: Massachusetts sets a high bar. Against the 7,870 U.S. towns with household incomes like Stoughton’s, it is healthier than 57%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
Stoughton beats the Massachusetts average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 28% of Stoughton adults have obesity, close to Massachusetts’ towns (28%) and below U.S. towns (35%). 34% of Stoughton adults feel lonely.
| Stoughton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 28% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 33% | 33% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 82% | 82% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 17% | 16% |
| What stands out | Stoughton | MA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 8.3% | 7% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 3.5% | 3% |
| More adults with COPD | 6.8% | 5.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Bird Street Conservation Land, at 674 acres with 9.2 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bird Street Conservation Land | 9.2 mi | 674 |
| 2. Ward Well Conservation Area | 1.2 mi | 75 |
| 3. Glen Echo Park | 0.8 mi | 97 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Stoughton has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 19° and about 56 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Stoughton has about as many jobs (15,679) as working residents, but only 1,432 people both live and work here. Jobs based here grew from 11,994 in 2013 to 15,679.
Most working residents leave Stoughton for work: only 10% work in town. Stoughton’s average trip to work is 33 minutes. Jobs based in Stoughton grew to 15,679 in 2023, 3,685 more than in 2013.
| Stoughton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $105,000 | $120,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 15% | 18% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 8.4% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Adults 18 to 34 are 18% of residents (24% statewide). The median age in Stoughton is 45.7 years. 42% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 47% across Massachusetts.
| Stoughton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 45.7 years | 43.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 19% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 42% | 47% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 19% | 18% |
54% women, 46% men
About 86 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1.4 points). Across Massachusetts, 51.1% of residents are women. Median age: women 47.4, men 42.6.
| Stoughton | MA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.9% | 10.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.6% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.4% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.7% | 14% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.6% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.8% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.3% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.8% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.1% | 8.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25% | 22.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.4% | 14.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.7% | 7.5% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.6% | 25.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18.2% | 21.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
At 21.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 80% of Massachusetts’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
68.4% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 51.8% across Massachusetts.
The typical Stoughton home is worth about $604,000, up 1.9% in a year, 8% below the Massachusetts typical home.
| Stoughton | Massachusetts towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,050 a month | $1,682 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 74% | 79% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
15 within 15 miles of the center of Stoughton
About 6 of every 100 Stoughton residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across Massachusetts.
3 places in Stoughton on the National Register of Historic Places.
25 notable people were born in Stoughton.
Town in Massachusetts, United States
Stoughton (official name: Town of Stoughton) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 29,281 at the 2020 census. The town is located approximately 17 miles (27 km) from Boston, 31 miles (50 km) from Providence, Rhode Island, and 35 miles (56 km) from Cape Cod.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Stoughton.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its B−; Avon (B−) is closest.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Stoughton grades B− overall, better than 47% of U.S. towns and #206 of 282 in Massachusetts. It grades B+ for health, C+ for safety and C+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Massachusetts has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Stoughton sits nearer the middle.
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.
25 notable people were born here, including Lori McKenna and Forrest Bird.
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