Best Places01003, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 01003, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
01003 ranks 6,008th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on population health by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 01003
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
01003's strengths and weaknesses
Where 01003 ranks high
- Health outlookBetter than 99% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 99% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Short commute12.2 minutes each way, better than 99% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
Where 01003 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,385 a month, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 12% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 01003
A household needs to earn about $157,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 01003 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $86,642, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 01003's effective rate of 1.36%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 01003
01003 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 01003.
Who works in 01003, and how
Work in 01003 centers on education and hospitality & food. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 19%
- Work from home 20%
- Transit, walk, or bike 61%
Life in 01003
01003 has more parkland per resident than 89% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 01003 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 01003, month by month
01003 sees roughly 65 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 39, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 39° | 28° | 18° |
| April | 62° | 48° | 35° |
| July | 88° | 74° | 61° |
| October | 68° | 53° | 41° |
Flying in and out of 01003
Bradley International sits about 32 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 3.3 million passengers in 2025, with 92 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 01003
Schools across 01003 average an A−, better than 87% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Hadley ElementaryA− · 60% proficient
- Wildwood ElementaryB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Amherst Regional Middle SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top high schools
- Amherst Regional HighA+ · 80% proficient
- Hopkins AcademyB− · 45% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 01003 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
01003 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 01003 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 01003
Is 01003 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 01003 ranks 6,008th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on population health, transit, and biking, and lowest on a weak job market and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 01003 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $559,402. The overall cost of living runs about 13% above the national average. Set against a $86,642 median income, cost of living beats 18% of zip codes.
Is 01003 safe?
Yes, 01003 is safer than 64% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $265 per resident a year.
Compare 01003 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 01003. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 01003 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
01003 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 01003: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 01003: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 01003: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 01003: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
01003 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.