Whitman ranks #54 in Massachusetts for walkable streets
Whitman 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.
Wetter than 94% of Massachusetts
Not better or worse, just Whitman’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Whitman 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.
Whitman lands in the top half on 5 of 25 lists
Each dot is Whitman’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in MA, the right end is last. Areas where Whitman does best come first.
The lists Whitman does best on
Each list ranks every MA town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Whitman marked.
Where Whitman 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
#101
Cheapest rent#1 Plympton · $555/mo
#156
D
Lowest property tax#1 Dennis · $2,877/yr
#125
Rent easiest to afford#1 Uxbridge · 25.6%
Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Edgartown · 62.9%
#235
Most new homes#1 Nantucket · 17.4 per 1,000
#115
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Orange · +69.9%
#161
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Malden · 83.1 per home
#140 Health
D Healthiest#1 Dover · 100 / 100 #208
Lowest obesity#1 Amherst Town · 19%
#190
Fewest smokers#1 Lexington · 6%
#202
D
Most active#1 Dover · 12%
#153
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
#212 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Provincetown · 68.4%
#245
Most trails#1 Stoneham · 5.9 mi / sq mi
#273
Most walkable#1 Somerville · 306 / sq mi
#54 Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Provincetown · 27.5 per resident
#145
Most library borrowing#1 West Tisbury · 34.6 per resident
#173
Best libraries for kids#1 West Tisbury · 115.2 per child
#159 
People
Most educated#1 Wellesley · 89%
#241
Youngest#1 Amherst Town · 21.4
#58
Oldest#1 Orleans · 64.7
#227
Most residents 65+#1 Orleans · 49.3%
#242
Most kids#1 Hopkinton · 29.5%
#109 Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Edgartown · 11.5 min
#261 
The number on the right is Whitman’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.