Best Places02184, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 02184, 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.
02184 ranks 3,088th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on high incomes by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 02184
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.
02184's strengths and weaknesses
Where 02184 ranks high
- Household income$134,577 median, better than 93% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 89% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 89% of zip codes
Where 02184 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,403 a month, better than only 1% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 62 pleasant days a year, better than only 11% of zip codes
- Short commute32.6 minutes each way, better than only 18% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 27% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 02184
A household needs to earn about $170,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 02184 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $134,577, 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 02184's effective rate of 0.79%, 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 02184
02184's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 02184.
Who works in 02184, and how
Work in 02184 centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 68%
- Work from home 18%
- Transit, walk, or bike 14%
Life in 02184
02184 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 69% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 93% of zip codes. The coast is about 17 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 02184 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 02184, month by month
02184 sees roughly 62 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 02184
General Edward Lawrence Logan International sits about 11 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 02184
Schools across 02184 average a B+, better than 76% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- LibertyA · 63% proficient
- HighlandsA− · 61% proficient
- Mary E Flaherty SchoolA− · 60% proficient
Top middle schools
- South Middle SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
- East Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- Randolph Community MiddleC · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Braintree HighA · 68% proficient
- Quincy HighB · 50% proficient
- Holbrook Middle High SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 02184 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
02184 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 02184 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 02184 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 83% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 18% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 02184
Is 02184 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 02184 ranks 3,088th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on high incomes, big-city access, and population health, 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 02184 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $650,171. The overall cost of living runs about 23% above the national average. Set against a $134,577 median income, cost of living beats 83% of zip codes.
Is 02184 safe?
Yes, 02184 is safer than 83% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $209 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 02184?
July highs average about 88 degrees, and January highs near 43 with lows near 22. That works out to about 62 pleasant days a year, more than 11% of zip codes.
Is 02184 good for families?
Schools beat 76% of zip codes, crime safety beats 83%, and childcare runs $2,403 a month.
Compare 02184 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 02184. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 02184 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.
02184 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 02184: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 02184: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 02184: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 02184: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
02184 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.