City comparison
Boston, MA is about 40 miles (70 km) from Worcester, MA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 50 miles, or about 51 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Boston, MA to Worcester, MA takes about 5 min, covering roughly 40 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Boston has a population of 665,945, vs 204,191 in Worcester — about 3.3× larger by population. By land area, Boston covers about 48 sq mi vs 37 sq mi for Worcester.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Boston | Worcester | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,981/mo | $1,312/mo | 51.0% higher in Boston |
| Median home value | $684,900 | $305,600 | 124.1% higher in Boston |
| Median household income | $89,212 | $63,011 | 41.6% higher in Boston |
| Groceries index | 100.1 | 97.4 | 2.8% higher in Boston |
| Utilities index | 147.4 | 150.2 | 1.9% higher in Worcester |
| Transportation index | 102.2 | 100.7 | 1.5% higher in Boston |
| Healthcare index | 106.4 | 101.5 | 4.8% higher in Boston |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Boston, you'd need $86,782 in Worcester to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Worcester, MA is about 13.2% cheaper overall than Boston, MA, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 33% higher in Boston than in Worcester. If you earn $80,000 in Boston, you'd need about $69,425 in Worcester to keep the same standard of living.