Best PlacesEast Boston, Boston, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around East Boston, Boston, 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.
East Boston, Boston ranks 2,773rd of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in East Boston, 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.
East Boston, Boston's strengths and weaknesses
Where East Boston, Boston ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 86% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than 86% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than 79% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than 78% of neighborhoods
Where East Boston, Boston ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,304 a month, better than only 2% of neighborhoods
- Short commute32.1 minutes each way, better than only 12% of neighborhoods
- School gradeD, better than only 14% of neighborhoods
- QuietBetter than only 16% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 16% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in East Boston, Boston
A household needs to earn about $177,000 a year to comfortably buy the median East Boston, Boston home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $100,687, 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 East Boston, Boston's effective rate of 0.66%, 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 East Boston, Boston
East Boston, Boston runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for East Boston, Boston.
Who works in East Boston, Boston, and how
Work in East Boston, Boston centers on hospitality & food and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 37%
- Work from home 20%
- Transit, walk, or bike 43%
Life in East Boston, Boston
East Boston, Boston has more restaurants and bars per resident than 72% of neighborhoods and more parkland per resident than 70% of neighborhoods. The coast is about 4 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of East Boston, Boston and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in East Boston, Boston, month by month
East Boston, 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 East Boston, Boston
General Edward Lawrence Logan International sits about 2 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 East Boston, Boston
Schools across East Boston, Boston average a D, better than 14% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Eliot K-8 Innovation SchoolA · 63% proficient
- Alighieri Dante Montessori SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Bradley Elementary SchoolB− · 43% proficient
Top middle schools
- Winthrop Middle SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Garfield Middle SchoolD+ · 24% proficient
- Susan B. Anthony Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Winthrop High SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- East Boston High SchoolD · 20% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every East Boston, Boston school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
East Boston, 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 East Boston, Boston against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who East Boston, Boston suits
Families
Schools land around the 14th percentile and crime safety beats 78%.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in East Boston, Boston
Is East Boston, Boston a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, East Boston, Boston ranks 2,773rd of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on clean air, walkability, and heat safety, 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 East Boston, Boston expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $688,361. The overall cost of living runs about 45% above the national average. Set against a $100,687 median income, cost of living beats 36% of neighborhoods.
Is East Boston, Boston safe?
Yes, East Boston, Boston is safer than 78% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $300 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in East Boston, 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 25% of neighborhoods.
Is East Boston, Boston good for families?
Schools beat 14% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 78%, and childcare runs $2,304 a month.
Compare East Boston, Boston with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to East Boston, Boston. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in East Boston, 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.
East Boston, Boston detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for East Boston, Boston: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in East Boston, Boston: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of East Boston, Boston: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in East Boston, Boston: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
East Boston, 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.