Counties in Massachusetts by households

Middlesex County had the highest households of 14 counties in 2021, at 624,335. Nantucket County had the lowest, at 4,031. The median was 189,808 and the figure for Massachusetts was 2.71 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest624,335Middlesex County

Lowest4,031Nantucket County

Median189,80814 counties

Massachusetts2,714,448History

Map of counties, 2021

Under 46K
46K to 120K
120K to 220K
220K to 310K
310K and over

count, 2021. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All counties, 2021

count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	Counties	2021 count
1	Middlesex County	624,335
2	Worcester County	326,571
3	Suffolk County	315,192
4	Essex County	307,959
5	Norfolk County	276,744
6	Bristol County	227,816
7	Plymouth County	196,307
8	Hampden County	183,309
9	Barnstable County	98,163
10	Hampshire County	60,903
11	Berkshire County	55,525
12	Franklin County	30,792
13	Dukes County	6,801
14	Nantucket County	4,031

Other periods

2024
2023
2022
2021

About this ranking

Number of households, which equals the number of occupied housing units. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

People living in group quarters, such as college dormitories, nursing homes and prisons, are not in households.

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 B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.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 B25003: occupied housing units (households) (Counties in Massachusetts by households, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat

MLA 9

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households), Counties in Massachusetts by households, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/massachusetts-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Counties in Massachusetts by households, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/massachusetts-counties?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households), Counties in Massachusetts by households, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/massachusetts-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{census_counties_in_massachusetts_by_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households): Counties in Massachusetts by households, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/massachusetts-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households): Counties in Massachusetts by households, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/01/29
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/massachusetts-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/massachusetts-counties?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Questions

Which county has the highest households?

Middlesex County, with 624,335 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest households?

Nantucket County, with 4,031 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 B25003: occupied housing units (households). Retrieved 2026-10-12.