Data / Rankings / Bachelor's degree or higher, population 25 and over / Cities in Massachusetts

Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024

Newton, MA had the highest share of adults with a bachelor's degree of 58 cities in 2024, at 81.1%. Fall River, MA had the lowest, at 16.5%. The median was 36.8% and the figure for Massachusetts was 47.3%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest81.1Newton, MA
Lowest16.5Fall River, MA
Median36.858 cities
Massachusetts47.3History

All cities, 2024

Newton, MA: 81.1 %Newton, MA81.1Cambridge, MA: 80.8 %Cambridge, MA80.8Amherst Town, MA: 75.6 %Amherst Town, MA75.6Somerville, MA: 69.4 %Somerville, MA69.4Newburyport, MA: 67 %Newburyport, MA67Watertown, MA: 66.5 %Watertown, MA66.5Northampton, MA: 62.7 %Northampton, MA62.7Melrose, MA: 62 %Melrose, MA62Medford, MA: 59.8 %Medford, MA59.8Franklin Town, MA: 58.1 %Franklin Town, MA58.1Waltham, MA: 57.3 %Waltham, MA57.3Boston, MA: 54.9 %Boston, MA54.9Beverly, MA: 53.4 %Beverly, MA53.4Quincy, MA: 50.3 %Quincy, MA50.3Framingham, MA: 48.7 %Framingham, MA48.7Salem, MA: 47.8 %Salem, MA47.8Braintree Town, MA: 47.5 %Braintree Town, MA47.5Woburn, MA: 46.5 %Woburn, MA46.5North Attleborough Town, MA: 46.4 %North Attleborough Town, MA46.4Winthrop Town, MA: 45.6 %Winthrop Town, MA45.6Malden, MA: 45.1 %Malden, MA45.1Amesbury, MA: 44.8 %Amesbury, MA44.8Weymouth Town, MA: 42.8 %Weymouth Town, MA42.8Barnstable Town, MA: 42.1 %Barnstable Town, MA42.1Marlborough, MA: 40.5 %Marlborough, MA40.5Gloucester, MA: 40.3 %Gloucester, MA40.3Bridgewater Town, MA: 39.6 %Bridgewater Town, MA39.6Greenfield, MA: 39.2 %Greenfield, MA39.2Easthampton, MA: 38 %Easthampton, MA38Randolph Town, MA: 35.5 %Randolph Town, MA35.5Worcester, MA: 35.2 %Worcester, MA35.2Peabody, MA: 35 %Peabody, MA35Pittsfield, MA: 34.2 %Pittsfield, MA34.2Attleboro, MA: 34 %Attleboro, MA34West Springfield Town, MA: 34 %West Springfield Town, MA34Agawam Town, MA: 34 %Agawam Town, MA34Leominster, MA: 33.5 %Leominster, MA33.5Westfield, MA: 33.2 %Westfield, MA33.2Haverhill, MA: 32.6 %Haverhill, MA32.6Methuen, MA: 31 %Methuen, MA31Lowell, MA: 30 %Lowell, MA30North Adams, MA: 28.4 %North Adams, MA28.4Holyoke, MA: 25.9 %Holyoke, MA25.9Fitchburg, MA: 25.1 %Fitchburg, MA25.1Everett, MA: 24.9 %Everett, MA24.9Revere, MA: 24.6 %Revere, MA24.6Lynn, MA: 24.1 %Lynn, MA24.1Taunton, MA: 24 %Taunton, MA24Gardner, MA: 23.8 %Gardner, MA23.8Palmer Town, MA: 23.5 %Palmer Town, MA23.5Chicopee, MA: 22.9 %Chicopee, MA22.9Brockton, MA: 22.3 %Brockton, MA22.3Chelsea, MA: 22.2 %Chelsea, MA22.2Springfield, MA: 20.5 %Springfield, MA20.5Southbridge Town, MA: 19.4 %Southbridge Town, MA19.4New Bedford, MA: 17 %New Bedford, MA17Lawrence, MA: 16.8 %Lawrence, MA16.8Fall River, MA: 16.5 %Fall River, MA16.5
%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2024 (%)Change on 2023
1Newton, MA81.1+0.5 pts
2Cambridge, MA80.8+0.6 pts
3Amherst Town, MA75.6+1.8 pts
4Somerville, MA69.4+1.4 pts
5Newburyport, MA67+1 pts
6Watertown, MA66.5n/a
7Northampton, MA62.7+1.4 pts
8Melrose, MA62-0 pts
9Medford, MA59.8+2.2 pts
10Franklin Town, MA58.1+1.7 pts
11Waltham, MA57.3+0.8 pts
12Boston, MA54.9+0.8 pts
13Beverly, MA53.4+1 pts
14Quincy, MA50.3+1.6 pts
15Framingham, MA48.7-0.7 pts
16Salem, MA47.8-1.8 pts
17Braintree Town, MA47.5+0.4 pts
18Woburn, MA46.5-0.9 pts
19North Attleborough Town, MA46.4-0.4 pts
20Winthrop Town, MA45.6+2.6 pts
21Malden, MA45.1+0.2 pts
22Amesbury, MA44.8n/a
23Weymouth Town, MA42.8-0.2 pts
24Barnstable Town, MA42.1-0.3 pts
25Marlborough, MA40.5-0.1 pts
26Gloucester, MA40.3+1.5 pts
27Bridgewater Town, MA39.6-0.1 pts
28Greenfield, MA39.2+1.3 pts
29Easthampton, MA38n/a
30Randolph Town, MA35.5+0.8 pts
31Worcester, MA35.2+1.1 pts
32Peabody, MA35+1.2 pts
33Pittsfield, MA34.20 pts
34Attleboro, MA34+0.3 pts
35West Springfield Town, MA34-0.9 pts
36Agawam Town, MA34-0.9 pts
37Leominster, MA33.5+1.2 pts
38Westfield, MA33.2+0.6 pts
39Haverhill, MA32.6+1 pts
40Methuen, MA31n/a
41Lowell, MA30+0.1 pts
42North Adams, MA28.4+1.3 pts
43Holyoke, MA25.9+1.6 pts
44Fitchburg, MA25.1+0.5 pts
45Everett, MA24.9+1.4 pts
46Revere, MA24.6-0.1 pts
47Lynn, MA24.1+0.7 pts
48Taunton, MA24-0.4 pts
49Gardner, MA23.8+1 pts
50Palmer Town, MA23.5-0.5 pts
51Chicopee, MA22.9-0.4 pts
52Brockton, MA22.3+1.1 pts
53Chelsea, MA22.2+0.2 pts
54Springfield, MA20.5+0.8 pts
55Southbridge Town, MA19.4+1.7 pts
56New Bedford, MA17+0.2 pts
57Lawrence, MA16.8+0.4 pts
58Fall River, MA16.5-0.4 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

People aged 25 and over whose highest degree is a bachelor's, master's, professional school or doctorate degree, as a percentage of all people aged 25 and over. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

Excludes associate degrees and college without a degree. Not comparable with EU tertiary attainment, which includes short-cycle tertiary education and usually covers ages 25 to 64.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2026). American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more) (Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat

MLA 9

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more), Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/bachelors-degree-or-higher/massachusetts-cities. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/bachelors-degree-or-higher/massachusetts-cities.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more), Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/bachelors-degree-or-higher/massachusetts-cities (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_massachusetts_by_2024,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more): Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/bachelors-degree-or-higher/massachusetts-cities. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more): Cities in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree, 2024
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/01/29
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/bachelors-degree-or-higher/massachusetts-cities
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/bachelors-degree-or-higher/massachusetts-cities.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2024-b15003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which city has the highest share of adults with a bachelor's degree?

Newton, MA, with 81.1% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which city has the lowest share of adults with a bachelor's degree?

Fall River, MA, with 16.5% in 2024.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B15003: population 25 years and over with a bachelor's degree or higher as a percentage of the population 25 years and over, calculated with stored inputs, US cities (incorporated places of 10,000 or more). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Bachelor's degree or higher, population 25 and over: other rankings

Cities in Massachusetts: more rankings