Ayer ranks #20 in Massachusetts for growth
Ayer is ranked on 39 lists against the 284 Massachusetts towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 0 and the top quarter on 1.
Fewer seniors than 93% of Massachusetts
Not better or worse, just Ayer’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Ayer out-ranks 1 of its 4 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.
Ayer lands in the top half on 11 of 25 lists
Each dot is Ayer’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in MA, the right end is last. Areas where Ayer does best come first.
The lists Ayer does best on
Each list ranks every MA town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Ayer marked.
Every MA list, and where Ayer lands
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%
#250
Most new homes#1 Nantucket · 17.4 per 1,000
#82
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Orange · +69.9%
#22
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Malden · 83.1 per home
#99 Cost of living
Most affordable#1 North Adams · 1.9 yrs
#92
Cheapest rent#1 Plympton · $555/mo
#92
D
Lowest property tax#1 Dennis · $2,877/yr
#84
Rent easiest to afford#1 Uxbridge · 25.6%
Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Provincetown · 27.5 per resident
#168
Most library borrowing#1 West Tisbury · 34.6 per resident
#88
Best libraries for kids#1 West Tisbury · 115.2 per child
#87 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Provincetown · 68.4%
#198
Most trails#1 Stoneham · 5.9 mi / sq mi
#147
Most walkable#1 Somerville · 306 / sq mi
#110 Health
D Healthiest#1 Dover · 100 / 100 #169
Lowest obesity#1 Amherst Town · 19%
#110
Fewest smokers#1 Lexington · 6%
#166
D
Most active#1 Dover · 12%
#181
Fewest uninsured#1 Manchester-by-the-Sea · 2%
#208
Lowest depression#1 Lexington · 20%
#196
Closest to a top hospital#1 Milford · 0.0 mi
#189 
People
Most educated#1 Wellesley · 89%
#176
Youngest#1 Amherst Town · 21.4
#40
Oldest#1 Orleans · 64.7
#247
Most residents 65+#1 Orleans · 49.3%
#265
Most kids#1 Hopkinton · 29.5%
#135 Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Edgartown · 11.5 min
#211 
The number on the right is Ayer’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.