Best PlacesDorchester Heights, Boston, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Dorchester Heights, Boston, 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.
Dorchester Heights, Boston ranks 397th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods 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 Dorchester Heights, Boston
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.
Dorchester Heights, Boston's strengths and weaknesses
Where Dorchester Heights, Boston ranks high
- Household income$191,358 median, better than 98% of neighborhoods
- Health outlookBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than 93% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
Where Dorchester Heights, Boston ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,304 a month, better than only 2% of neighborhoods
- School gradeD−, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 16% of neighborhoods
- Short commute30.5 minutes each way, better than only 17% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 26% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Dorchester Heights, Boston
A household needs to earn about $220,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Dorchester Heights, Boston home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $191,358, 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 Dorchester Heights, Boston's effective rate of 0.70%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Dorchester Heights, Boston
Dorchester Heights, Boston 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 Dorchester Heights, Boston.
Who works in Dorchester Heights, Boston, and how
Work in Dorchester Heights, Boston centers on professional & technical and finance & insurance. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 35%
- Work from home 32%
- Transit, walk, or bike 33%
Life in Dorchester Heights, Boston
The coast is about 8 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Dorchester Heights, Boston, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Dorchester Heights, Boston, month by month
Dorchester Heights, Boston 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 Dorchester Heights, Boston
General Edward Lawrence Logan International sits about 3 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 Dorchester Heights, Boston
Schools across Dorchester Heights, Boston average a D−, better than 5% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Arthur T. Cummings Elementary SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
- Perry Elementary SchoolD · 18% proficient
- Perkins Elementary SchoolD · 17% proficient
Top high schools
- Winthrop High SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Excel High SchoolF · 5% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Dorchester Heights, Boston school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Dorchester Heights, Boston 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 Dorchester Heights, Boston against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who Dorchester Heights, Boston suits
Families
Schools land around the 5th percentile and crime safety beats 74%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 88% of neighborhoods and 32% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Dorchester Heights, Boston
Is Dorchester Heights, Boston a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Dorchester Heights, Boston ranks 397th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on high incomes, population health, and walkability, and lowest on childcare costs and the schools. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Dorchester Heights, Boston expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $853,232. The overall cost of living runs about 63% above the national average. Set against a $191,358 median income, cost of living beats 88% of neighborhoods.
Is Dorchester Heights, Boston safe?
Yes, Dorchester Heights, Boston is safer than 74% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $322 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Dorchester Heights, Boston?
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 26% of neighborhoods.
Is Dorchester Heights, Boston good for families?
Schools beat 5% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 74%, and childcare runs $2,304 a month.
Compare Dorchester Heights, Boston with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Dorchester Heights, Boston. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Dorchester Heights, Boston 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.
Dorchester Heights, Boston detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Dorchester Heights, Boston: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Dorchester Heights, Boston: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Dorchester Heights, Boston: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Dorchester Heights, Boston: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Dorchester Heights, Boston 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.