Best Places02056, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 02056, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
02056 ranks 457th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 02056
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.
02056's strengths and weaknesses
Where 02056 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$200,770 median, better than 99% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 94% of zip codes
Where 02056 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,403 a month, better than only 1% of zip codes
- Short commute36.2 minutes each way, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 61 pleasant days a year, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 27% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 02056
A household needs to earn about $203,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 02056 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $200,770; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 02056's effective rate of 1.35%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 02056
02056 runs older than the country, though fewer residents are over 65 than the national share, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 02056.
Who works in 02056, and how
Work in 02056 centers on professional & technical and education. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 63%
- Work from home 32%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 02056
The coast is about 40 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 02056, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 02056, month by month
02056 sees roughly 61 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 32° | 22° |
| April | 63° | 50° | 38° |
| July | 88° | 75° | 62° |
| October | 69° | 56° | 42° |
Flying in and out of 02056
General Edward Lawrence Logan International sits about 24 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 21.1 million passengers in 2025, with 199 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 02056
Schools across 02056 average an A−, better than 87% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Freeman-kennedy SchoolA− · 57% proficient
- Helen Keller ElementaryA− · 57% proficient
- DelaneyB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Eleanor N Johnson MiddleA− · 54% proficient
- Annie Sullivan Middle SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Medway MiddleB+ · 52% proficient
Top high schools
- Millis High SchoolA+ · 85% proficient
- Medfield Senior HighA+ · 83% proficient
- King Philip Regional HighA · 77% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 02056 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
02056 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 02056 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 02056
Is 02056 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 02056 ranks 457th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, high incomes, and what local pay buys, and lowest on childcare costs and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 02056 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $721,098. The overall cost of living runs about 25% above the national average. Set against a $200,770 median income, cost of living beats 98% of zip codes.
Is 02056 safe?
Yes, 02056 is safer than 100% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $99 per resident a year.
Compare 02056 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 02056. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 02056 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.
02056 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 02056: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 02056: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 02056: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 02056: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
02056 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.