710,195
Population
Sunny Days: 200
73100 Affordability
85100 Schools
66100 Diversity
77100 Safety
Boston is actually the capital of the world. You didn’t know that? We breed smart-ass, quippy, funny people.
-- John Krasinski
Boston, Massachusetts
Wicked Pissah
North End, Credit: Pascal Bernardon
Back Bay
Boston Public Garden , Credit: Josephine Baran
Fenway Park
The Best Thing About Boston?
Never boring
The wider Boston region, even if you define it conservatively, contains dozens and dozens of other towns and communities. Living “in town” (as it is called), is a patchwork of hundreds of neighborhoods all with mini-cultures and a host of shops and restaurants. They all have their tree-lined streets and parks and respites from the commotion. It doesn't take long to find your rhythm. If you can afford the rent or mortgage in Boston proper, it's got a lot of world-class stuff. You'll never tire of the scenery and there's a host of possibilities for something new every single day. Plus, the New England Autumn and some of the best healthcare hubs in the country.
You will never be bored. And neither will your kids.
Review from a local: I've lived outside the city in a suburb since forever. I spend a couple days a week in town. No place is quite like Boston. It's absolutely beautiful. There's always a new bar to try and new places to check out. If you like beer this a good place for you. If you like sports this is a fun place to be. Fall, Spring, and Summer and lovely.
To hear from more locals check out: The Reviews.
The Worst Thing About Boston?
It’s expensive.
The median U.S. home price of around $200,000 buys about 371 square feet of residential space in Boston. As for renting, the region is among the four or five priciest in the nation. Only if you’re coming from San Francisco, San Jose, and New York City (and maybe D.C and LA.) will Boston’s housing costs not shock you. And, it’s dense. It's full of narrow lanes and tight fits. You don’t need a car if you live in town and nor should you want one. It’s called “The Walking City” and there’s nowhere to park.
Here's a transplants pov on a couple of the cons of living in Boston: it's expensive. make sure to negotiate your salary as much as you can.
boston is pretty segregated. many communities of color live south of the city in roxbury, dorchester, jp, or north in malden. the general culture is pretty white and permeates into a lot of things like nightlife, restaurants, and activities strongly catering to white audiences. even though your friends don't have to reflect this, it can make it a little more difficult to feel like you 100% belong if you're a person of color.
To hear from more locals check out: The Reviews.
Lifestyle Of Boston
It is impossible to ignore the college scene’s influence on the lifestyle of the city, even if it is merely in observing that you are constantly walking by schools and seeing scores of youngsters walking about the streets. When you combine the college kids with the scores of graduates who work and play in the city there is no question it is a young place and that vibe is for the most part a really invigorating thing.
There is a patrician side to Boston that contrasts with the college scene, fancy events and Beacon Hill (THE fancy neighborhood) aristocracy. There is a theater and performing arts and museum culture in Boston but again, the vibe skews to younger, more playful daily and nightly activities. Taking the T to see the Red Sox. Hitting up the casual bars/restaurants in Back Bay after some shopping on Newbury Street. Picnicking and throwing the frisbee on Boston Common. It’s just a blast taking advantage of all Boston has to offer people of any age.
If you want to see what fun locals get up to in Boston check out the calendar of events.
Worklife Of Boston
Boston has a vast number of industries but two stand out: tech and health. Outside of San Francisco there isn’t another city with a denser concentration of tech opportunities than Boston. Health and healthcare are also massive industries here as the hospital systems, health/biotech research facilities are unparalleled.
Work in Boston is also convenient as the subway system, called the T, is very functional at moving you around the city and beyond. Living and working in the city is either a walk or a short train ride. It is a great city for job hunting in tech, biotech, health, finance and of course the biggest category of all: higher education. This city is highly trained, highly educated, and highly compensated. As was noted, the downside of all those smarts and compensation is commensurate pricing in housing. If you can afford it though it is an incredible place to work.
Why You Should Move Here Now?
It's a fun ride
It’s not for the faint of heart but the experience, if you can afford it, is a fun ride. A lifetime worth of culture, history, educated people, diversity, doctors and stuff for all ages to enjoy.
Living in Boston
Neighborhoods in Boston
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Neighborhoods
Some of the towns and cities—including Waltham, Sudbury, Winchester, and Stoneham—are downright pastoral, with widely spaced single-family homes amid lush yards and down long driveways. Some—including Boston proper Quincy, Medford, and Cambridge—are mostly densely urban and come with all the bustle you would expect to find in a big city.
Downtown Boston is expensive, but so are those farther-flung pastoral areas, where single-family houses with yards can quickly run into the seven figures each.
If you’re used to sizable yards and lots of elbow room, you should probably forget it. There will be crowds and unless you move to the region’s farther reaches, you will hear your neighbors from time to time.
Picking a neighborhood you like is supremely important. They are often distinct in terms of retail, parkland, and transit options and as such, the neighborhood you pick will become a neighborhood you spend a lot of time in—as opposed to many cities, where one amorphously bleeds into another.
Fenway/Kenmore
College Students
It is a bit ridiculous trying to narrow down Boston to a few neighborhoods for college kids. There are colleges everywhere so what’s the point to some degree. That said, there are a few that draw bigger volumes due to proximity to the biggest schools. Fenway/Kenmore has the greatest concentration due to Boston University, Emmanuel College, Simmons, Wentworth, Mass College of Art, and Harvard Medical School all in the area.
Allston/Brighton is another big option. It is home to Harvard Business School and part of Boston College is here. It’s also just a short train ride to Boston U. Both of these areas are filled with cheap (for Boston) apartments, plenty of bars and restaurants and some of the best public transportation in the country.
- Fenway/Kenmore
- Allston/Brighton
Back Bay
Young Professionals
The Fenway/Kenmore area remains popular with young professionals when they graduate due to tons of housing options, and the bounty of restaurants, cheap (and nice) bars and tons of shopping. Right next door and nicer and more expensive is Back Bay. Those making the big bucks can afford to live here and even those who save a few living farther up Comm Ave still come here to hobnob and socialize. In more recent years South Boston, or “Southie” as Mark Wahlberg likes to call it, has become hot due to continued gentrification of the surrounding communities.
- Fenway/Kenmore
- Back Bay
- Allston
- South Boston
Brookline
DINKs/SINKs
One of the common behaviors in Boston is to move between neighborhoods every year or two as your station and patience for city life waxes and wanes. Young professionals will shift from Allston/Brighton to Back Bay or South End or Brookline when they want to remain in the city but get a bit more refined lifestyle.
- Back Bay
- South End
- Brookline
Jamaica Plain
LGBTQ+
Jamaica Plain is a diverse neighborhood that attracts the LGBTQ+ community in general and queer/trans people of color in particular. Centre Street is the “center” of the commercial district for the community with plenty of queer-friendly restaurants and shops lining the streets.
- Jamaica Plain
- South End
- Dorchester
West Roxbury
Families
As with most cities a lot of families hit the ‘burbs when the kids come and they feel the need for room and great public schools. Boston has some strongholds though for families that want to hold onto city life and seek neighborhoods with some of the benefits of suburbs. West Roxbury and Roxbury are two of these neighborhoods with West Roxbury historically being the Irish and white side of the dividing line, and Roxbury the predominantly black family community. Gentrification and demographic shifts have changed things some but these remain heavily family neighborhoods. Beacon Hill is the fanciest of Boston neighborhoods and families who crave a blue blood lifestyle with a short walk downtown set up shop here.
- West Roxbury
- Roxbury
- Beacon Hill
- Charlestown
- East Boston