What stands out worked out from the figures below

Danvers has the shortest commute (28 min average).

Scituate has the most people working from home (28%).

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	Danvers	Scituate
People
Population	28,098Highest	19,365Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+6%Highest MA: +7.4%	+5.1%Lowest MA: +7.4%
Median age	45.3±3Lowest 13% above MA	47.1±3.1Highest 18% above MA
	Scituate and Danvers are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.2%±2Lowest MA: 19.4%	22.2%±2.3Highest MA: 19.4%
Age 65+	22.6%±2.2Highest MA: 17.9%	22.2%±2.5Lowest MA: 17.9%
	Danvers and Scituate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	48.4%Lowest MA: 47.3%	66.8%Highest MA: 47.3%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4%±1.3Lowest MA: 7.9%	4.1%±1.6Highest MA: 7.9%
	Scituate and Danvers are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$125,395±$10kLowest 21% above MA	$136,732±$16kHighest 32% above MA
	Scituate and Danvers are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$644,200±$23kLowest 15% above MA	$847,600±$25kHighest 51% above MA
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,076±$192Highest 18% above MA	$1,609±$311Lowest 9% below MA
	Danvers and Scituate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,654Lowest 11% above MA	$8,807Highest 47% above MA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	48.8%±8.6Lowest MA: 51.8%	52.7%±10.3Highest MA: 51.8%
	Scituate and Danvers are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.8%Highest MA: 10%	2.9%Lowest MA: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	69.2%Lowest MA: 62.5%	87.8%Highest MA: 62.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1963Highest 1 yr older than MA	1960Lowest 4 yrs older than MA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minLowest about the MA average	38 minHighest 31% above MA
Work from home	19.3%±3.6Lowest MA: 18.6%	28%±4Highest MA: 18.6%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#91 of 282 in MA	#43 of 282 in MA
School district	Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School District · Danvers	Scituate
High school in town	Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School	Scituate High School
Students per teacherat that high school	12.8Highest	11.3Lowest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

MA 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.