Best PlacesHanscom Afb, MA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Hanscom Afb, 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.
Hanscom Afb ranks 2,513th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on biking by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Hanscom Afb
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.
Hanscom Afb's strengths and weaknesses
Where Hanscom Afb ranks high
- BikingBetter than 99% of towns
- Healthcare accessBetter than 99% of towns
- Local economyBetter than 99% of towns
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of towns
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of towns
Where Hanscom Afb ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,897 a month, better than only 1% of towns
- QuietBetter than only 11% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 65 pleasant days a year, better than only 15% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 21% of towns
- Low property taxBetter than only 22% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in Hanscom Afb
A household needs to earn about $327,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Hanscom Afb home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $117,105, 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 Hanscom Afb's effective rate of 1.14%, 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 Hanscom Afb
Hanscom Afb runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Hanscom Afb.
Who works in Hanscom Afb, and how
Work in Hanscom Afb centers on retail trade and public administration. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 71%
- Work from home 26%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Hanscom Afb
The coast is about 24 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Hanscom Afb, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Hanscom Afb, month by month
Hanscom Afb sees roughly 65 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 41, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 41° | 30° | 20° |
| April | 62° | 48° | 36° |
| July | 87° | 74° | 62° |
| October | 67° | 54° | 42° |
Flying in and out of Hanscom Afb
General Edward Lawrence Logan International sits about 15 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 Hanscom Afb
Schools across Hanscom Afb average a B−, better than 63% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Maria HastingsA+ · 72% proficient
- Lt Job Lane SchoolA · 68% proficient
- Hanscom PrimaryC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Wm Diamond MiddleA+ · 78% proficient
- John Glenn MiddleA · 65% proficient
- Hanscom MiddleC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- Lexington HighA+ · 92% proficient
- Bedford HighA+ · 83% proficient
- Middletown High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Hanscom Afb school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Hanscom Afb 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 Hanscom Afb against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Hanscom Afb
Is Hanscom Afb a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Hanscom Afb ranks 2,513th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on biking, health care access, and a strong job market, 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 Hanscom Afb expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,193,300. The overall cost of living runs about 35% above the national average. Set against a $117,105 median income, cost of living beats 53% of towns.
Is Hanscom Afb safe?
Yes, Hanscom Afb is safer than 77% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $216 per resident a year.
Compare Hanscom Afb with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Hanscom Afb. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Hanscom Afb 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.
Hanscom Afb detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Hanscom Afb: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Hanscom Afb: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Hanscom Afb: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Hanscom Afb: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Hanscom Afb 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.