Should I Move To
Somerville, Massachusetts comes in at about 80,464 residents. Cost of living comes out expensive — 27% above the national average. Rent typically lands near $2,357/mo, and the median household income is about $120,778. Overall, 72/100 on our composite score, which works out to a B, putting it at #4 nationally.
UrbRank Score · General
Each dimension scored 0-100 against every other US city.
Based on overall cost of living vs. other US cities.
Inverse of violent + property crime rate per 100,000 residents.
Temperate summers & winters, moderate precipitation.
Walk Score — how feasible daily errands are on foot.
Unemployment rate plus household income vs. national median.
Air quality index (EPA AQS data).
Share of residents 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher.
Cost-of-living index of 127 (with 100 as the US baseline) — that's expensive territory. With median rent at $2,357/mo and median household income at $120,778, housing takes about 23% of gross income — right inside the standard 30%-of-income guideline. Homes typically value around $860,500.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →Expect four-season weather — summers near 80°F, winters around 26°F. Rain (and snow, in some seasons) totals about 44 inches annually. A walker's paradise by US standards. Many people here genuinely skip car ownership. On the safer side of the national distribution, though not by a huge margin. AQI runs about 34 — a "good" reading.
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
On the families profile, Somerville sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 65/100 — a B-. Its standout dimension is job market (99/100); the soft spot is affordability (13/100).
On the retirees profile, Somerville sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 61/100 — a C+. Its standout dimension is job market (99/100); the soft spot is affordability (13/100).
On the remote workers profile, Somerville sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 56/100 — a C. Its standout dimension is job market (99/100); the soft spot is affordability (13/100).
On the young professionals profile, Somerville sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 72/100 — a B. Its standout dimension is job market (99/100); the soft spot is affordability (13/100).
Our overall score for Somerville is 72/100 — a B, sitting at #4 in the national ranking. It's a weighted average across the seven UrbRank dimensions.
By the composite index, Somerville sits at 127 — expensive, 27% above the national average. Median renter pays around $2,357 a month.
Somerville runs four-season on the weather. Summer's near 80°F, winter's near 26°F; 44 inches of precipitation annually.
Walk Score: 93/100. A walker's paradise by US standards. Many people here genuinely skip car ownership.
Roughly 80,464 people live here, with 67% college-educated (bachelor's or higher) among adults 25+ with a median age of 32.
Drop Somerville into the comparison tool with any other US city and you'll get housing costs, salaries, demographics, and quality-of-life data lined up side by side. Profile-specific leaderboards (families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals) are linked from the navigation.
Every US city is scored 0-100 on seven dimensions using public data from the US Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, FBI Crime Data Explorer, EPA Air Quality System, NOAA NCEI, and Walk Score. Each dimension is a percentile rank against every other city — so a score of 80 means the city is in the top 20% nationally on that dimension.
The overall score is a weighted average. Five lifestyle profiles — general, families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals — weight the dimensions differently to reflect what each cares about. Families get more weight on safety and schools; young professionals get more weight on jobs and walkability; retirees get more weight on climate.
Compare Somerville with other Massachusetts cities scored on UrbRank.
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