Hudson ranks #10 in Massachusetts for affordable rent
Hudson is ranked on 40 lists against the 284 Massachusetts towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 1 and the top quarter on 1.
Shorter growing season than 91% of Massachusetts
Not better or worse, just Hudson’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Hudson out-ranks 1 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.
Hudson lands in the top half on 13 of 26 lists
Each dot is Hudson’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in MA, the right end is last. Areas where Hudson does best come first.
The lists Hudson does best on
Each list ranks every MA town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Hudson marked.
Where Hudson 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.
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 North Adams · 1.9 yrs
#116
Cheapest rent#1 Plympton · $555/mo
#89
D
Lowest property tax#1 Dennis · $2,877/yr
#191
Rent easiest to afford#1 Uxbridge · 25.6%
#10 Health
D Healthiest#1 Dover · 100 / 100 #122
Lowest obesity#1 Amherst Town · 19%
#84
Fewest smokers#1 Lexington · 6%
#129
D
Most active#1 Dover · 12%
#108
Fewest uninsured#1 Manchester-by-the-Sea · 2%
#116
Lowest depression#1 Lexington · 20%
#196
Closest to a top hospital#1 Milford · 0.0 mi
#146 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Provincetown · 68.4%
#209
Most trails#1 Stoneham · 5.9 mi / sq mi
#139
Most walkable#1 Somerville · 306 / sq mi
#73 Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Provincetown · 27.5 per resident
#144
Most library borrowing#1 West Tisbury · 34.6 per resident
#102
Best libraries for kids#1 West Tisbury · 115.2 per child
#95 
People
Most educated#1 Wellesley · 89%
#146
Youngest#1 Amherst Town · 21.4
#126
Oldest#1 Orleans · 64.7
#160
Most residents 65+#1 Orleans · 49.3%
#127
Most kids#1 Hopkinton · 29.5%
#163 
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Edgartown · 11.5 min
#157 
The number on the right is Hudson’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.