Worcester County, Massachusetts

Worcester County has a population of 867,788 and has grown 3.1% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $423,700, about 4.4 times the county's median household income of $95,939.

Home price
$423,700
Income
$95,939
Population
867,788
Unemployment
5.3%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$423,700county
Median gross rent$1,426county
Median year homes here were built1967county
Share of homes built before 198063.7%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile0.8%county
Share of homes that are vacant5.5%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented34.2%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use0.9%county
Typical monthly rent$2,185county
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$2,056county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$1,599county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$2,548county
Home insurance / yr$1,483(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living141.2(statewide)
Median household income$95,939county
Family health premium / yr$28,151(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$26,709(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$4.046(statewide)
Poverty rate10.3%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home15.6%county
Unemployment rate5.3%county
Share of adults in the labor force66.5%county
Share of workers who are self-employed5.0%county
Share of workers employed by government13.9%county
Share of workers in the largest industry27.9%county
Economic output per resident$70,233county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate1.28%county
Top state income tax9.00%(statewide)
Capital gains tax9.00%(statewide)
Combined sales tax6.25%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time29.2 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service4.5 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport112872county
Miles to nearest general aviation field8.3 micounty
Airports with airline service located here1county
General aviation airfields located here6county
Passenger train stations and the railway network1county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station2.9 micounty
Households without a vehicle8.3%county
Traffic deaths10.7county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,0000.4(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher39.7%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher91.2%county
Public schools in the county249county
Public school enrollment121458county
Students per full-time teacher12.9county
Elementary schools131county
Middle schools46county
High schools56county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above9county
Share of local colleges that are public72.7%county
Two-year institutions2county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution1.0 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians93county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county12county
Hospitals here with an emergency department7county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here3county
Fine particulate matter8.1 µgcounty
Without health insurance2.5%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year13.1%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year15.0%county
Frequent mental distress16.9%county
No leisure-time physical activity23.4%county
Diagnosed diabetes10.7%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population867,788county
Land area in square miles1,511county
People per square mile of land574.0county
Supermarkets and grocery stores131county
Convenience stores168county
Share living far from a food store23.3%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract6.2%county
Population change since 2020+3.1%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents2county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents5county
Median age40.2 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1820.6%county
Share of residents 65 and over17.0%county
Share of households that are one person26.7%county
Share of residents born outside the United States14.5%county
Second languages22.3%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls44.8%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents70county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents-1county
Households that moved in15,745county
Households that moved away17,212county
Average income of arriving households$77,737county
Average income of departing households$83,976county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes5county
Housing units authorised in the latest year1,690county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings54.1%county
Violent crime rate315(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature48.6°Fcounty
Annual precipitation43.9 incounty
Annual snowfall40.9 incounty
Average daily solar energy3.83 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F13 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing143 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 6acounty
Frost-free days166 dayscounty
Average last spring frostMay 2county
Average first fall frostOct 15county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$165county
Electric utilities serving this county3county
Electricity price per kWh33.6¢county
Household electricity use504 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$24.71(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity19.6%county
Homes heated by utility gas32.4%county
Homes heated by propane5.6%county
Homes heated by fuel oil37.9%county
Homes heated by wood2.3%county
Households with broadband92.9%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk95.3county
Coastal flood risk0.0county
Drought risk72.6county
Landslide risk93.4county
Hail risk78.3county
Earthquake risk89.3county
Tornado risk82.2county
Tropical cyclone risk96.6county
Extreme heat risk89.9county
Winter weather risk64.4county
Strong wind risk96.8county
Wildfire risk62.6county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams1county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams1county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here1county

Figures marked county are measured for Worcester County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the Massachusetts figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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