Data / Rankings / Unemployed people / Cities in Massachusetts

Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people

Boston, MA had the highest unemployed people of 58 cities in 2021, at 20,859. Newburyport, MA had the lowest, at 394. The median was 1,372. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest20,859Boston, MA
Lowest394Newburyport, MA
Median1,37258 cities

All cities, 2021

Boston, MA: 20,859 personsBoston, MA20,859Worcester, MA: 6,254 personsWorcester, MA6,254Springfield, MA: 6,182 personsSpringfield, MA6,182Lawrence, MA: 4,436 personsLawrence, MA4,436Brockton, MA: 4,053 personsBrockton, MA4,053Lowell, MA: 4,012 personsLowell, MA4,012New Bedford, MA: 3,956 personsNew Bedford, MA3,956Fall River, MA: 3,497 personsFall River, MA3,497Lynn, MA: 3,410 personsLynn, MA3,410Quincy, MA: 3,109 personsQuincy, MA3,109Haverhill, MA: 2,316 personsHaverhill, MA2,316Cambridge, MA: 2,260 personsCambridge, MA2,260Revere, MA: 1,989 personsRevere, MA1,989Malden, MA: 1,954 personsMalden, MA1,954Somerville, MA: 1,923 personsSomerville, MA1,923Taunton, MA: 1,908 personsTaunton, MA1,908Methuen, MA: 1,900 personsMethuen, MA1,900Chicopee, MA: 1,883 personsChicopee, MA1,883Weymouth Town, MA: 1,780 personsWeymouth Town, MA1,780Newton, MA: 1,695 personsNewton, MA1,695Framingham, MA: 1,680 personsFramingham, MA1,680Waltham, MA: 1,655 personsWaltham, MA1,655Peabody, MA: 1,528 personsPeabody, MA1,528Fitchburg, MA: 1,519 personsFitchburg, MA1,519Medford, MA: 1,498 personsMedford, MA1,498Barnstable Town, MA: 1,482 personsBarnstable Town, MA1,482Pittsfield, MA: 1,445 personsPittsfield, MA1,445Everett, MA: 1,436 personsEverett, MA1,436Salem, MA: 1,391 personsSalem, MA1,391Holyoke, MA: 1,352 personsHolyoke, MA1,352Leominster, MA: 1,332 personsLeominster, MA1,332Chelsea, MA: 1,329 personsChelsea, MA1,329Attleboro, MA: 1,296 personsAttleboro, MA1,296Randolph Town, MA: 1,249 personsRandolph Town, MA1,249Westfield, MA: 1,156 personsWestfield, MA1,156Marlborough, MA: 1,137 personsMarlborough, MA1,137Woburn, MA: 1,067 personsWoburn, MA1,067Braintree Town, MA: 1,044 personsBraintree Town, MA1,044Beverly, MA: 1,016 personsBeverly, MA1,016Gloucester, MA: 995 personsGloucester, MA995West Springfield Town, MA: 869 personsWest Springfield Town, MA869Watertown, MA: 831 personsWatertown, MA831Franklin Town, MA: 829 personsFranklin Town, MA829Agawam Town, MA: 822 personsAgawam Town, MA822North Attleborough Town, MA: 782 personsNorth Attleborough Town, MA782Amherst Town, MA: 773 personsAmherst Town, MA773Bridgewater Town, MA: 707 personsBridgewater Town, MA707Southbridge Town, MA: 687 personsSouthbridge Town, MA687Northampton, MA: 674 personsNorthampton, MA674Gardner, MA: 660 personsGardner, MA660Melrose, MA: 643 personsMelrose, MA643Winthrop Town, MA: 553 personsWinthrop Town, MA553Amesbury, MA: 471 personsAmesbury, MA471North Adams, MA: 463 personsNorth Adams, MA463Greenfield, MA: 461 personsGreenfield, MA461Palmer Town, MA: 449 personsPalmer Town, MA449Easthampton, MA: 435 personsEasthampton, MA435Newburyport, MA: 394 personsNewburyport, MA394Boston, MA: 20,859 personsBoston, MA20,859Worcester, MA: 6,254 personsWorcester, MA6,254Springfield, MA: 6,182 personsSpringfield, MA6,182Lawrence, MA: 4,436 personsLawrence, MA4,436Brockton, MA: 4,053 personsBrockton, MA4,053Lowell, MA: 4,012 personsLowell, MA4,012New Bedford, MA: 3,956 personsNew Bedford, MA3,956Fall River, MA: 3,497 personsFall River, MA3,497Lynn, MA: 3,410 personsLynn, MA3,410Quincy, MA: 3,109 personsQuincy, MA3,109Haverhill, MA: 2,316 personsHaverhill, MA2,316Cambridge, MA: 2,260 personsCambridge, MA2,260Revere, MA: 1,989 personsRevere, MA1,989Malden, MA: 1,954 personsMalden, MA1,954Somerville, MA: 1,923 personsSomerville, MA1,923Taunton, MA: 1,908 personsTaunton, MA1,908Methuen, MA: 1,900 personsMethuen, MA1,900Chicopee, MA: 1,883 personsChicopee, MA1,883Weymouth Town, MA: 1,780 personsWeymouth Town, MA1,780Newton, MA: 1,695 personsNewton, MA1,695Framingham, MA: 1,680 personsFramingham, MA1,680Waltham, MA: 1,655 personsWaltham, MA1,655Peabody, MA: 1,528 personsPeabody, MA1,528Fitchburg, MA: 1,519 personsFitchburg, MA1,519Medford, MA: 1,498 personsMedford, MA1,498Barnstable Town, MA: 1,482 personsBarnstable Town, MA1,482Pittsfield, MA: 1,445 personsPittsfield, MA1,445Everett, MA: 1,436 personsEverett, MA1,436Salem, MA: 1,391 personsSalem, MA1,391Holyoke, MA: 1,352 personsHolyoke, MA1,352Leominster, MA: 1,332 personsLeominster, MA1,332Chelsea, MA: 1,329 personsChelsea, MA1,329Attleboro, MA: 1,296 personsAttleboro, MA1,296Randolph Town, MA: 1,249 personsRandolph Town, MA1,249Westfield, MA: 1,156 personsWestfield, MA1,156Marlborough, MA: 1,137 personsMarlborough, MA1,137Woburn, MA: 1,067 personsWoburn, MA1,067Braintree Town, MA: 1,044 personsBraintree Town, MA1,044Beverly, MA: 1,016 personsBeverly, MA1,016Gloucester, MA: 995 personsGloucester, MA995West Springfield Town, MA: 869 personsWest Springfield Town, MA869Watertown, MA: 831 personsWatertown, MA831Franklin Town, MA: 829 personsFranklin Town, MA829Agawam Town, MA: 822 personsAgawam Town, MA822North Attleborough Town, MA: 782 personsNorth Attleborough Town, MA782Amherst Town, MA: 773 personsAmherst Town, MA773Bridgewater Town, MA: 707 personsBridgewater Town, MA707Southbridge Town, MA: 687 personsSouthbridge Town, MA687Northampton, MA: 674 personsNorthampton, MA674Gardner, MA: 660 personsGardner, MA660Melrose, MA: 643 personsMelrose, MA643Winthrop Town, MA: 553 personsWinthrop Town, MA553Amesbury, MA: 471 personsAmesbury, MA471North Adams, MA: 463 personsNorth Adams, MA463Greenfield, MA: 461 personsGreenfield, MA461Palmer Town, MA: 449 personsPalmer Town, MA449Easthampton, MA: 435 personsEasthampton, MA435Newburyport, MA: 394 personsNewburyport, MA394
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2021
persons		Change on 2020
1Boston, MA20,859-45.1%
2Worcester, MA6,254-39.3%
3Springfield, MA6,182-34.6%
4Lawrence, MA4,436-36.3%
5Brockton, MA4,053-41.4%
6Lowell, MA4,012-34.8%
7New Bedford, MA3,956-39.9%
8Fall River, MA3,497-37.2%
9Lynn, MA3,410-47.2%
10Quincy, MA3,109-52.8%
11Haverhill, MA2,316-39.4%
12Cambridge, MA2,260-37.8%
13Revere, MA1,989-55%
14Malden, MA1,954-53%
15Somerville, MA1,923-45.6%
16Taunton, MA1,908-48%
17Methuen, MA1,900-36.7%
18Chicopee, MA1,883-38.3%
19Weymouth Town, MA1,780-45.1%
20Newton, MA1,695-40.8%
21Framingham, MA1,680-47.2%
22Waltham, MA1,655-40%
23Peabody, MA1,528-48.6%
24Fitchburg, MA1,519-39.9%
25Medford, MA1,498-46.6%
26Barnstable Town, MA1,482-42.4%
27Pittsfield, MA1,445-38.6%
28Everett, MA1,436-53.5%
29Salem, MA1,391-46.3%
30Holyoke, MA1,352-37.8%
31Leominster, MA1,332-44%
32Chelsea, MA1,329-50.2%
33Attleboro, MA1,296-48.9%
34Randolph Town, MA1,249-47.9%
35Westfield, MA1,156-36.2%
36Marlborough, MA1,137-42.9%
37Woburn, MA1,067-48.9%
38Braintree Town, MA1,044-49.1%
39Beverly, MA1,016-46.8%
40Gloucester, MA995-38.7%
41West Springfield Town, MA869-42.9%
42Watertown, MA831-48.5%
43Franklin Town, MA829-43.3%
44Agawam Town, MA822-41.4%
45North Attleborough Town, MA782-49.7%
46Amherst Town, MA773-14.6%
47Bridgewater Town, MA707-46.9%
48Southbridge Town, MA687-34.9%
49Northampton, MA674-43.1%
50Gardner, MA660-39.4%
51Melrose, MA643-47.6%
52Winthrop Town, MA553-52.4%
53Amesbury, MA471-44.6%
54North Adams, MA463-29.7%
55Greenfield, MA461-44.3%
56Palmer Town, MA449-31.8%
57Easthampton, MA435-45.9%
58Newburyport, MA394-43.5%

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.CurrentU20-24. 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, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2021. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2021. 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, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2021.

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, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_cities_in_massachusetts_by_2021,
  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, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2021. 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.CurrentU20-24. 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, 2021
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.CurrentU20-24
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2021.
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.CurrentU20-24. 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 20,859 in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest unemployed people?

Newburyport, MA, with 394 in 2021.

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