Best Places02542, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 02542, 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.
02542 ranks 21,957th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on heat safety by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 02542
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.
02542's strengths and weaknesses
Where 02542 ranks high
- Heat safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Short commute18.6 minutes each way, better than 90% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 83% of zip codes
Where 02542 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,514 a month, better than only 5% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
Who lives in 02542
02542 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 02542.
Who works in 02542, and how
Work in 02542 centers on professional & technical and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 02542
The coast is about 12 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 02542, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 02542, month by month
02542 sees roughly 99 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 80 degrees. January highs sit near 40, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40° | 32° | 25° |
| April | 55° | 47° | 39° |
| July | 80° | 73° | 66° |
| October | 63° | 56° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 02542
The nearest airport, Cape Cod Gateway, is about 15 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Edward Lawrence Logan International, about 53 miles away.
The best schools in and around 02542
Schools across 02542 average a B+, better than 75% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- North Falmouth ElementaryA · 70% proficient
Top middle schools
- Morse Pond SchoolA− · 55% proficient
- Bourne Middle SchoolC− · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Falmouth HighA · 68% proficient
- Sandwich Middle High SchoolA− · 65% proficient
- Mashpee Middle-high SchoolA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 02542 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
02542 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 02542 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 02542
Is 02542 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 02542 ranks 21,957th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on heat safety, population health, and short commutes, and lowest on an overheated housing market and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 02542 safe?
Yes, 02542 is safer than 56% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $275 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 02542?
July highs average about 80 degrees, and January highs near 40 with lows near 25. That works out to about 99 pleasant days a year, more than 62% of zip codes.
Compare 02542 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 02542. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 02542 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.
02542 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 02542: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 02542: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 02542: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 02542: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
02542 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.
- 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.