Ashburnham ranks #50 in Massachusetts for affordability
Ashburnham is ranked on 38 lists against the 284 Massachusetts towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 0 and the top quarter on 2.
More snow than 97% of Massachusetts
Not better or worse, just Ashburnham’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
The lists Ashburnham does best on
Each list ranks every MA town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Ashburnham marked.
Ashburnham lands in the top half on 8 of 25 lists
Each dot is Ashburnham’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in MA, the right end is last. Areas where Ashburnham does best come first.
Ashburnham out-ranks 3 of its 5 ranked neighbors
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Where Ashburnham lands in every MA ranking
41 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Edgartown · 62.9%
#23
Most new homes#1 Nantucket · 17.4 per 1,000
#84
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Orange · +69.9%
#114
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Malden · 83.1 per home
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 North Adams · 1.9 yrs
#50
Cheapest rent#1 Plympton · $555/mo
#168
D
Lowest property tax#1 Dennis · $2,877/yr
#135
Rent easiest to afford#1 Uxbridge · 25.6%
Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Provincetown · 27.5 per resident
#132
Most library borrowing#1 West Tisbury · 34.6 per resident
#87
Best libraries for kids#1 West Tisbury · 115.2 per child
#111 
Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Provincetown · 68.4%
#51
Most trails#1 Stoneham · 5.9 mi / sq mi
#235
Most walkable#1 Somerville · 306 / sq mi
#262 Health
D Healthiest#1 Dover · 100 / 100 #210
Lowest obesity#1 Amherst Town · 19%
#242
Fewest smokers#1 Lexington · 6%
#202
D
Most active#1 Dover · 12%
#181
Fewest uninsured#1 Manchester-by-the-Sea · 2%
#116
Lowest depression#1 Lexington · 20%
#230
Closest to a top hospital#1 Milford · 0.0 mi
#265 People
Most educated#1 Wellesley · 89%
#164
Youngest#1 Amherst Town · 21.4
#62
Oldest#1 Orleans · 64.7
#225
Most residents 65+#1 Orleans · 49.3%
#177
Most kids#1 Hopkinton · 29.5%
#58 
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Edgartown · 11.5 min
#182 
The number on the right is Ashburnham’s spot. All of Massachusetts’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every MA list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.