What stands out worked out from the figures below

Woburn has the shortest commute (25 min average).

Wakefield has the most people working from home (24.6%).

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	Woburn	Wakefield
People
Population	41,939Highest	27,793Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+7.2%Lowest MA: +7.4%	+8.7%Highest MA: +7.4%
Median age	39.3±1.6Lowest about the MA average	42.4±1.7Highest 6% above MA
	Wakefield and Woburn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.9%±1.7Lowest MA: 19.4%	20%±2.2Highest MA: 19.4%
	Wakefield and Woburn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	15.7%±1.5Lowest MA: 17.9%	19%±1.9Highest MA: 17.9%
	Wakefield and Woburn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	46.5%Lowest MA: 47.3%	59.7%Highest MA: 47.3%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.1%±1.1Highest MA: 7.9%	4.4%±0.9Lowest MA: 7.9%
	Woburn and Wakefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$111,185±$9kLowest 7% above MA	$134,306±$14kHighest 29% above MA
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$673,500±$17kLowest 20% above MA	$723,500±$24kHighest 29% above MA
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$2,221±$77Highest 26% above MA	$1,958±$102Lowest 11% above MA
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,354Lowest 11% below MA	$7,779Highest 30% above MA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	55.5%±7.5Highest MA: 51.8%	43.7%±7.9Lowest MA: 51.8%
	Woburn and Wakefield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	7.9%Highest MA: 10%	4.9%Lowest MA: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	55.7%Lowest MA: 62.5%	70.7%Highest MA: 62.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1968Highest 4 yrs newer than MA	1956Lowest 8 yrs older than MA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest 13% below MA	33 minHighest 14% above MA
Work from home	16%±2.6Lowest MA: 18.6%	24.6%±3.1Highest MA: 18.6%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#169 of 282 in MA	#179 of 282 in MA
School district	Woburn	Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational Technical · Wakefield
High school in town	Woburn High	Northeast Metro Regional Vocational
Students per teacherat that high school	11.2Highest	10.7Lowest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.