What stands out worked out from the figures below

Boston has the most expensive homes ($732k median).

East Hampton has the most homeowners (85.5%).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	Boston	East Hampton
People
Population	666,442Highest	12,925Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+9.4% U.S.: +7.4%	—
Median age	33.3±0.2Lowest 14% below U.S.	43.6±3.7Highest 12% above U.S.
Kids under 18	15.1%±0.3Lowest U.S.: 22%	21.4%±3Highest U.S.: 22%
Age 65+	13%±0.3Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	20.8%±2.8Highest U.S.: 17.2%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	54.9%Highest U.S.: 35.7%	39%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	15%±0.3Highest U.S.: 6.4%	5.2%±1.8Lowest U.S.: 6.4%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$97,344±$2kLowest 21% above U.S.	$124,577±$11kHighest 54% above U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$731,700±$10kHighest 120% above U.S.	$349,000±$14kLowest 5% above U.S.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,147±$25Highest 52% above U.S.	$1,393±$150Lowest about the U.S. average
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,456Lowest 43% above U.S.	$6,681Highest 114% above U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	51.2%±1.2Highest U.S.: 51.1%	48.7%±16.4Lowest U.S.: 51.1%
	Boston and East Hampton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	16.6%Highest U.S.: 12.5%	4%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	35.7%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%	85.5%Highest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1947Lowest 33 yrs older than U.S.	1977Highest 3 yrs older than U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	30 minHighest 15% above U.S.	30 minLowest 12% above U.S.
Work from home	21.3%±0.5Highest U.S.: 15.1%	12.7%±2.4Lowest U.S.: 15.1%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#258 of 282 in MA	#75 of 149 in CT
School district	Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers: A Horace Mann · Boston	East Hampton School District
High school in town	Boston Latin School	East Hampton High School
Students per teacherat that high school	18.7Highest	11.3Lowest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

U.S. average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.