Data / Rankings / Unemployed people / Cities in Massachusetts

Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people

Boston, MA had the highest unemployed people of 58 cities in 2016, at 13,558. Newburyport, MA had the lowest, at 324. The median was 1,012. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest13,558Boston, MA
Lowest324Newburyport, MA
Median1,01258 cities

All cities, 2016

Boston, MA: 13,558 personsBoston, MA13,558Springfield, MA: 4,532 personsSpringfield, MA4,532Worcester, MA: 4,334 personsWorcester, MA4,334New Bedford, MA: 3,295 personsNew Bedford, MA3,295Fall River, MA: 2,783 personsFall River, MA2,783Lowell, MA: 2,674 personsLowell, MA2,674Brockton, MA: 2,598 personsBrockton, MA2,598Lawrence, MA: 2,595 personsLawrence, MA2,595Lynn, MA: 2,108 personsLynn, MA2,108Quincy, MA: 2,021 personsQuincy, MA2,021Cambridge, MA: 1,703 personsCambridge, MA1,703Haverhill, MA: 1,485 personsHaverhill, MA1,485Chicopee, MA: 1,472 personsChicopee, MA1,472Newton, MA: 1,464 personsNewton, MA1,464Taunton, MA: 1,463 personsTaunton, MA1,463Somerville, MA: 1,358 personsSomerville, MA1,358Malden, MA: 1,260 personsMalden, MA1,260Weymouth Town, MA: 1,260 personsWeymouth Town, MA1,260Framingham, MA: 1,211 personsFramingham, MA1,211Methuen, MA: 1,206 personsMethuen, MA1,206Revere, MA: 1,197 personsRevere, MA1,197Waltham, MA: 1,194 personsWaltham, MA1,194Barnstable Town, MA: 1,163 personsBarnstable Town, MA1,163Peabody, MA: 1,120 personsPeabody, MA1,120Medford, MA: 1,115 personsMedford, MA1,115Pittsfield, MA: 1,063 personsPittsfield, MA1,063Attleboro, MA: 1,037 personsAttleboro, MA1,037Fitchburg, MA: 1,021 personsFitchburg, MA1,021Leominster, MA: 1,014 personsLeominster, MA1,014Westfield, MA: 1,010 personsWestfield, MA1,010Holyoke, MA: 1,001 personsHolyoke, MA1,001Salem, MA: 990 personsSalem, MA990Everett, MA: 944 personsEverett, MA944Marlborough, MA: 829 personsMarlborough, MA829Beverly, MA: 814 personsBeverly, MA814Woburn, MA: 792 personsWoburn, MA792Randolph Town, MA: 776 personsRandolph Town, MA776Gloucester, MA: 771 personsGloucester, MA771Braintree Town, MA: 767 personsBraintree Town, MA767Chelsea, MA: 758 personsChelsea, MA758Amherst Town, MA: 717 personsAmherst Town, MA717Agawam Town, MA: 698 personsAgawam Town, MA698West Springfield Town, MA: 683 personsWest Springfield Town, MA683North Attleborough Town, MA: 617 personsNorth Attleborough Town, MA617Franklin Town, MA: 612 personsFranklin Town, MA612Bridgewater Town, MA: 595 personsBridgewater Town, MA595Watertown, MA: 582 personsWatertown, MA582Gardner, MA: 517 personsGardner, MA517Northampton, MA: 516 personsNorthampton, MA516Melrose, MA: 493 personsMelrose, MA493Southbridge Town, MA: 473 personsSouthbridge Town, MA473Winthrop Town, MA: 394 personsWinthrop Town, MA394North Adams, MA: 375 personsNorth Adams, MA375Easthampton, MA: 345 personsEasthampton, MA345Greenfield, MA: 342 personsGreenfield, MA342Amesbury, MA: 341 personsAmesbury, MA341Palmer Town, MA: 331 personsPalmer Town, MA331Newburyport, MA: 324 personsNewburyport, MA324Boston, MA: 13,558 personsBoston, MA13,558Springfield, MA: 4,532 personsSpringfield, MA4,532Worcester, MA: 4,334 personsWorcester, MA4,334New Bedford, MA: 3,295 personsNew Bedford, MA3,295Fall River, MA: 2,783 personsFall River, MA2,783Lowell, MA: 2,674 personsLowell, MA2,674Brockton, MA: 2,598 personsBrockton, MA2,598Lawrence, MA: 2,595 personsLawrence, MA2,595Lynn, MA: 2,108 personsLynn, MA2,108Quincy, MA: 2,021 personsQuincy, MA2,021Cambridge, MA: 1,703 personsCambridge, MA1,703Haverhill, MA: 1,485 personsHaverhill, MA1,485Chicopee, MA: 1,472 personsChicopee, MA1,472Newton, MA: 1,464 personsNewton, MA1,464Taunton, MA: 1,463 personsTaunton, MA1,463Somerville, MA: 1,358 personsSomerville, MA1,358Malden, MA: 1,260 personsMalden, MA1,260Weymouth Town, MA: 1,260 personsWeymouth Town, MA1,260Framingham, MA: 1,211 personsFramingham, MA1,211Methuen, MA: 1,206 personsMethuen, MA1,206Revere, MA: 1,197 personsRevere, MA1,197Waltham, MA: 1,194 personsWaltham, MA1,194Barnstable Town, MA: 1,163 personsBarnstable Town, MA1,163Peabody, MA: 1,120 personsPeabody, MA1,120Medford, MA: 1,115 personsMedford, MA1,115Pittsfield, MA: 1,063 personsPittsfield, MA1,063Attleboro, MA: 1,037 personsAttleboro, MA1,037Fitchburg, MA: 1,021 personsFitchburg, MA1,021Leominster, MA: 1,014 personsLeominster, MA1,014Westfield, MA: 1,010 personsWestfield, MA1,010Holyoke, MA: 1,001 personsHolyoke, MA1,001Salem, MA: 990 personsSalem, MA990Everett, MA: 944 personsEverett, MA944Marlborough, MA: 829 personsMarlborough, MA829Beverly, MA: 814 personsBeverly, MA814Woburn, MA: 792 personsWoburn, MA792Randolph Town, MA: 776 personsRandolph Town, MA776Gloucester, MA: 771 personsGloucester, MA771Braintree Town, MA: 767 personsBraintree Town, MA767Chelsea, MA: 758 personsChelsea, MA758Amherst Town, MA: 717 personsAmherst Town, MA717Agawam Town, MA: 698 personsAgawam Town, MA698West Springfield Town, MA: 683 personsWest Springfield Town, MA683North Attleborough Town, MA: 617 personsNorth Attleborough Town, MA617Franklin Town, MA: 612 personsFranklin Town, MA612Bridgewater Town, MA: 595 personsBridgewater Town, MA595Watertown, MA: 582 personsWatertown, MA582Gardner, MA: 517 personsGardner, MA517Northampton, MA: 516 personsNorthampton, MA516Melrose, MA: 493 personsMelrose, MA493Southbridge Town, MA: 473 personsSouthbridge Town, MA473Winthrop Town, MA: 394 personsWinthrop Town, MA394North Adams, MA: 375 personsNorth Adams, MA375Easthampton, MA: 345 personsEasthampton, MA345Greenfield, MA: 342 personsGreenfield, MA342Amesbury, MA: 341 personsAmesbury, MA341Palmer Town, MA: 331 personsPalmer Town, MA331Newburyport, MA: 324 personsNewburyport, MA324
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2016
persons		Change on 2015
1Boston, MA13,558-15.1%
2Springfield, MA4,532-16.5%
3Worcester, MA4,334-15.6%
4New Bedford, MA3,295-17%
5Fall River, MA2,783-15.6%
6Lowell, MA2,674-17.4%
7Brockton, MA2,598-15.3%
8Lawrence, MA2,595-21.8%
9Lynn, MA2,108-14.8%
10Quincy, MA2,021-16.3%
11Cambridge, MA1,703-14.2%
12Haverhill, MA1,485-15.8%
13Chicopee, MA1,472-15%
14Newton, MA1,464-14.7%
15Taunton, MA1,463-13.4%
16Somerville, MA1,358-18.4%
17Malden, MA1,260-12.9%
17Weymouth Town, MA1,260-15.4%
19Framingham, MA1,211-16.1%
20Methuen, MA1,206-19.8%
21Revere, MA1,197-10.4%
22Waltham, MA1,194-18.1%
23Barnstable Town, MA1,163-14.2%
24Peabody, MA1,120-12.7%
25Medford, MA1,115-14.5%
26Pittsfield, MA1,063-13.4%
27Attleboro, MA1,037-12.8%
28Fitchburg, MA1,021-18.8%
29Leominster, MA1,014-19.4%
30Westfield, MA1,010-15.7%
31Holyoke, MA1,001-18.2%
32Salem, MA990-14.9%
33Everett, MA944-15%
34Marlborough, MA829-11.9%
35Beverly, MA814-17.1%
36Woburn, MA792-15.6%
37Randolph Town, MA776-21.1%
38Gloucester, MA771-18.2%
39Braintree Town, MA767-13.1%
40Chelsea, MA758-20%
41Amherst Town, MA717-16.4%
42Agawam Town, MA698-13.2%
43West Springfield Town, MA683-13%
44North Attleborough Town, MA617-21.5%
45Franklin Town, MA612-12.7%
46Bridgewater Town, MA595-9.6%
47Watertown, MA582-17.7%
48Gardner, MA517-17%
49Northampton, MA516-15.3%
50Melrose, MA493-16%
51Southbridge Town, MA473-18.3%
52Winthrop Town, MA394-14%
53North Adams, MA375-18.3%
54Easthampton, MA345-23.2%
55Greenfield, MA342-17%
56Amesbury, MA341-21.6%
57Palmer Town, MA331-16.6%
58Newburyport, MA324-17.6%

Other periods

About this ranking

Residents with no job who were available for work and had looked for work in the previous four weeks, or were waiting to be recalled from a layoff, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. The survey definition, not a count of benefit claimants. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

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. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19. 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. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average (Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2016. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2016.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_cities_in_massachusetts_by_2016,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average: Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2016}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2016. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average: Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2016
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2016.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU15-19. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which city has the highest unemployed people?

Boston, MA, with 13,558 in 2016, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest unemployed people?

Newburyport, MA, with 324 in 2016.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Unemployed people: other rankings

Cities in Massachusetts: more rankings