New Bedford, MA: Local News, Events & Neighbors

New Bedford is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast region, abutting Buzzards Bay. At the 2020 census, New Bedford had a population of 101,079, making it the state's ninth-largest city and the largest of the South Coast region. It is the second-largest city in the Providence metropolitan area and included in the greater Boston combined statistical area. Up through the 17th century, the area was the territory of the Wampanoag Indians. English colonists bought the land on which New Bedford would later be built from the Wampanoag in 1652, and the original colonial settlement that would later become the c…

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How New Bedford ranks

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#32Most affordable in MA #33Cheapest rent in MA #36Lowest property tax in MA All MA rankings →

Town numbers

ZIP code02740, 02741, 02742

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Living in New Bedford

Housing in New Bedford

$443K▲ 3.6% in a year Typical home value · Zillow

The typical New Bedford home is worth about $443,000, up 3.6% in a year, 33% below the Massachusetts typical home.

A seller's market

Buyer’sBalancedSeller’s

Days on market26

Sale-to-list101.2%

Sold in May44

Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data CenterHousing market →

Safety in New Bedford

C

Safety Grade C

New Bedford reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 73% report less. Compared with places its own size, it does better than 64%.

Violent crime per 1,000

New Bedford 3.4

Massachusetts 3

U.S. 3.3

Property crime per 1,000

New Bedford 15.5

Massachusetts 10.4

U.S. 15.5

FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to policeCrime & safety →

Schools in New Bedford

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D

School Grade D

The public schools New Bedford’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, trail 86% of Massachusetts’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the bottom.

See how New Bedford’s schools compare in MA →

DistrictNew BedfordSchools32

Alma del Mar Charter School CElementary · Grades K–8 · 1,042 students Hayden/McFadden DElementary · Grades PK–5 · 748 students Abraham Lincoln C+Elementary · Grades K–5 · 687 students Alfred J Gomes DElementary · Grades PK–5 · 623 students Sgt Wm H Carney Academy C-Elementary · Grades PK–5 · 618 students Casimir Pulaski C+Elementary · Grades PK–5 · 551 students

School data from the U.S. Department of Education (NCES, EDFacts). The School Grade is our own summary of state test results and graduation rates, graded within MA. Ratings are from neighbors.

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