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

Counties in Massachusetts by share of adults with a bachelor's degree

Middlesex County had the highest share of adults with a bachelor's degree of 14 counties in 2021, at 57.8%. Hampden County had the lowest, at 28.2%. The median was 43% and the figure for Massachusetts was 45.2%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest57.8Middlesex County
Lowest28.2Hampden County
Median4314 counties
Massachusetts45.2History

All counties, 2021

CSVChart (SVG)

Middlesex CountyMiddlesex County: 57.8 %57.8Norfolk CountyNorfolk County: 55.5 %55.5Nantucket CountyNantucket County: 50.7 %50.7Hampshire CountyHampshire County: 50.2 %50.2Suffolk CountySuffolk County: 48.1 %48.1Dukes CountyDukes County: 46.1 %46.1Barnstable CountyBarnstable County: 44.9 %44.9Essex CountyEssex County: 41.2 %41.2Plymouth CountyPlymouth County: 39.3 %39.3Franklin CountyFranklin County: 38.9 %38.9Worcester CountyWorcester County: 38.1 %38.1Berkshire CountyBerkshire County: 36.1 %36.1Bristol CountyBristol County: 29.3 %29.3Hampden CountyHampden County: 28.2 %28.2
%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

RankCounties2021 (%)
1Middlesex County57.8
2Norfolk County55.5
3Nantucket County50.7
4Hampshire County50.2
5Suffolk County48.1
6Dukes County46.1
7Barnstable County44.9
8Essex County41.2
9Plymouth County39.3
10Franklin County38.9
11Worcester County38.1
12Berkshire County36.1
13Bristol County29.3
14Hampden County28.2

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. Calculated from counts in ACS table B15003, which are stored as inputs.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties 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. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b15003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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Questions

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

Middlesex County, with 57.8% in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

Hampden County, with 28.2% in 2021.

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. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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

Counties in Massachusetts: more rankings