These Are The 10 Most Successful Cities In Massachusetts

What is success? Is it the amount of money you have in your bank account, at any given point? Is it that feeling you get after delivering a killer presentation, or even a pretty decent bar joke?

Or is it something biggerâsomething wholly unnamable, undefinable, immeasurable, and totally subjective?

Probably so.

But here at Zippia, we like things that we can neatly measure and then expound upon. So yes, with the Power of Math, we have determined the unarguable, totally objective 10 most successful cities in Massachusetts. And here they are:

If you are trying to argue already with our unarguable list, keep reading. Thereâs a method to this madness.

For more MA reading, check out:

How We Determined The Most Successful Cities In Massachusetts

The first thing that comes to most capitalist minds in terms of success is money. After all, rich people must be successful, right?

Meh. Maybe. But we think there’s a bit more that goes into it than that. So we looked at this set of criteria from the 2010-2014 American Community Survey:

1. Melrose

Population: 27,509
Median Income: $86,409
Poverty Level: 2.7%
Unemployment Rate: 4.8%

2. Newton

Population: 86,945
Median Income: $118,639
Poverty Level: 5.0%
Unemployment Rate: 5.7%

3. Franklin Town

Population: 32,393
Median Income: $101,980
Poverty Level: 3.6%
Unemployment Rate: 6.9%

4. Amesbury Town

Population: 16,554
Median Income: $76,463
Poverty Level: 4.6%
Unemployment Rate: 6.9%

5. Braintree Town

Population: 36,543
Median Income: $87,500
Poverty Level: 4.1%
Unemployment Rate: 8.3%

6. Woburn

Population: 38,826
Median Income: $77,883
Poverty Level: 5.1%
Unemployment Rate: 7.0%

7. Watertown Town

Population: 32,880
Median Income: $86,461
Poverty Level: 6.7%
Unemployment Rate: 7.7%

8. Peabody

Population: 51,868
Median Income: $62,234
Poverty Level: 6.8%
Unemployment Rate: 6.1%

9. Marlborough

Population: 39,141
Median Income: $71,424
Poverty Level: 7.2%
Unemployment Rate: 6.9%

10. Medford

Population: 56,981
Median Income: $77,868
Poverty Level: 10.2%
Unemployment Rate: 6.7%

Measuring Success

If youâre still looking at this post thinking, âSurely, such superficial methods canât possibly measure a city, or rather, the individuals that make up that cityâs success!â well, youâre probably right.

But we like to measure things, and when it comes to success, we feel pretty successful in our approach. Congrats to Melrose and our winners. And for those who didnât make the cut, well, better luck next year.

Detailed List Of The Most Successful Cities In Massachusetts

Rank	City	Median Income	Poverty Rate	Unemployment Rate
1	Melrose	$86,409	2.7%	4.8%
2	Newton	$118,639	5.0%	5.7%
3	Franklin Town	$101,980	3.6%	6.9%
4	Amesbury Town	$76,463	4.6%	6.9%
5	Braintree Town	$87,500	4.1%	8.3%
6	Woburn	$77,883	5.1%	7.0%
7	Watertown Town	$86,461	6.7%	7.7%
8	Peabody	$62,234	6.8%	6.1%
9	Marlborough	$71,424	7.2%	6.9%
10	Medford	$77,868	10.2%	6.7%
11	Newburyport	$83,149	7.3%	8.7%
12	Beverly	$73,980	8.4%	7.0%
13	Waltham	$73,162	10.7%	6.3%
14	Cambridge	$75,909	15.1%	5.8%
15	Easthampton Town	$56,927	8.0%	6.1%
16	Methuen Town	$68,587	7.5%	8.0%
17	Agawam Town	$63,561	8.6%	7.0%
18	Weymouth Town	$69,099	6.3%	9.4%
19	Somerville	$66,866	14.6%	6.5%
20	Attleboro	$65,141	8.3%	8.8%
21	Winthrop Town	$64,169	8.4%	8.9%
22	Quincy	$62,710	8.9%	9.4%
23	Barnstable Town	$58,933	12.8%	7.7%
24	Gloucester	$60,229	9.1%	10.0%
25	Westfield	$60,845	9.5%	9.5%
26	Haverhill	$61,208	10.7%	9.1%
27	Northampton	$58,179	15.4%	7.8%
28	Greenfield Town	$48,493	14.0%	7.4%
29	Leominster	$59,263	11.5%	10.1%
30	Salem	$59,044	13.0%	9.5%
31	West Springfield Town	$52,806	10.4%	10.5%
32	Taunton	$52,225	11.8%	10.4%
33	Everett	$51,056	12.9%	10.1%
34	Palmer Town	$51,846	11.2%	10.6%
35	Chicopee	$47,276	12.1%	10.1%
36	Revere	$50,900	14.0%	10.4%
37	Boston	$54,485	20.3%	10.0%
38	Malden	$55,523	15.4%	11.0%
39	Pittsfield	$43,489	15.4%	10.8%
40	Gardner	$46,589	15.3%	11.3%
41	Lynn	$47,195	16.8%	10.9%
42	Southbridge Town	$42,376	16.5%	10.4%
43	Lowell	$49,164	17.3%	11.5%
44	Chelsea	$48,725	18.1%	11.2%
45	Worcester	$46,105	20.2%	10.5%
46	Brockton	$48,569	15.5%	13.6%
47	Fitchburg	$46,628	18.1%	12.5%
48	North Adams	$37,654	17.7%	11.7%
49	New Bedford	$36,813	21.3%	12.2%
50	Lawrence	$34,496	23.9%	13.5%
51	Holyoke	$35,550	26.2%	14.4%
52	Fall River	$33,763	21.3%	15.0%
53	Springfield	$34,731	26.5%	15.4%

Never miss an opportunity that’s right for you.

Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

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