Best Places02138, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 02138, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
02138 ranks 1,195th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on biking by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 02138
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.
02138's strengths and weaknesses
Where 02138 ranks high
- BikingBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 99% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 99% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 99% of zip codes
Where 02138 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,897 a month, better than only 2% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 25% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 27% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 02138
A household needs to earn about $339,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 02138 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $129,876, 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 02138's effective rate of 0.56%, 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 02138
02138 runs younger than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 02138.
Who works in 02138, and how
Work in 02138 centers on education and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 25%
- Work from home 32%
- Transit, walk, or bike 42%
Life in 02138
02138 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 83% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 77% of zip codes. The coast is about 12 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 02138 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 02138, month by month
02138 sees roughly 70 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 42, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42° | 32° | 25° |
| April | 60° | 49° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 75° | 67° |
| October | 67° | 57° | 49° |
Flying in and out of 02138
General Edward Lawrence Logan International sits about 6 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 02138
Schools across 02138 average a B+, better than 73% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mary Lee BurbankA+ · 78% proficient
- Maria L. BaldwinA · 63% proficient
- John F KennedyA− · 57% proficient
Top middle schools
- Winthrop L Chenery MiddleA+ · 71% proficient
- Putnam Avenue Upper SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
Top high schools
- Belmont HighA+ · 89% proficient
- Cambridge Rindge And LatinA− · 65% proficient
- Somerville HighB+ · 51% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 02138 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
02138 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 02138 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 02138 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 32% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 02138
Is 02138 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 02138 ranks 1,195th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on biking, an educated workforce, and walkability, and lowest on childcare costs and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 02138 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,341,132. The overall cost of living runs about 70% above the national average. Set against a $129,876 median income, cost of living beats 42% of zip codes.
Is 02138 safe?
02138 is safer than 33% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $386 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 02138?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 42 with lows near 25. That works out to about 70 pleasant days a year, more than 25% of zip codes.
Is 02138 good for families?
Schools beat 73% of zip codes, crime safety beats 33%, and childcare runs $1,897 a month.
Compare 02138 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 02138. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 02138 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.
02138 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 02138: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 02138: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 02138: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 02138: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
02138 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.