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Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

Updated April 2026 · 7 cities · 6 data sources

Massachusetts Data Profile 2026: Crime, Schools, Water, Air, Hospitals & City Spending

Cities Tracked
7
Avg Safety Score
60.3/100
Avg Water Safety
74/100

Crime & Safety

Massachusetts has an average safety score of 60.3/100 across 3 cities, below the national average of 61.5/100.

Safest Cities

CitySafety ScoreGradeViolent Crime Rate
Worcester72B242.6
Boston61C309.6
Springfield48D670.5

Most Dangerous Cities

CitySafety ScoreGradeViolent Crime Rate
Springfield48D670.5
Boston61C309.6
Worcester72B242.6

Water Safety

Massachusetts cities average a water safety score of 74/100 across 5 cities.

Cleanest Water

CitySafety ScoreGradeViolations
Worcester97A0
Cambridge91A0
Boston87A1
Lowell55C6
Springfield40C27

Most Water Violations

CitySafety ScoreGradeViolations
Springfield40C27
Lowell55C6
Boston87A1
Worcester97A0
Cambridge91A0

Air Quality

Massachusetts cities average a median AQI of 39 across 1 cities.

Best Air Quality

CityMedian AQIGradeUnhealthy Days
Worcester39C7

Worst Air Quality

CityMedian AQIGradeUnhealthy Days
Worcester39C7

Hospital Quality

Massachusetts cities have an average hospital quality rating of 2.4/5 across 7 cities with a total of 26 hospitals tracked.

Top-Rated Hospital Cities

CityAvg QualityHospital Count
Boston4.2/512
Cambridge4/52
Worcester2.5/55
Brockton2.5/52
Lowell2/51

City Spending

Massachusetts cities average $67,941.6 in per-capita spending with an average fiscal health score of 50.9/100.

Most Fiscally Efficient

CityFiscal ScorePer Capita
Worcester58/100$42,049
Boston56/100$72,299
Cambridge56/100$130,737
Lowell50/100$48,457
Brockton49/100$58,373

Biggest Spenders (Per Capita)

CityPer CapitaFiscal Score
Cambridge$130,73756/100
Boston$72,29956/100
Springfield$65,62644/100
Brockton$58,37349/100
Brookline$58,05043/100

According to data compiled by CitySpend.org from 6 federal sources, Massachusetts has 7 tracked cities with an average safety score of 60.3, school score of 0, and water safety score of 74.

Frequently Asked Questions

Based on FBI crime data, Worcester is the safest city in Massachusetts with a safety score of 72/100 (Grade B).

Worcester has the highest water safety score in Massachusetts at 97/100 with 0 violations.

Worcester has the highest fiscal health score in Massachusetts at 58/100 with per-capita spending of $42,049.

Worcester has the best air quality in Massachusetts with a median AQI of 39 (Grade C).

Cross-site data compiled from CrimeContext, WaterSafe, AirHistory, SchoolGrades, HospitalCosts, and CitySpend databases. Scores reflect the most recent federal data available for each dimension.

this entity is one of the data points covered by this site’s U.S. municipal and county government finances dataset. The detail above comes directly from the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances; the context that follows situates the headline numbers against the broader distribution across U.S. cities, counties, and states.

The methodology behind every numeric value on this page is publicly documented on the the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances portal and described in detail on this site’s methodology page. Refresh cadence varies by underlying series; the page surfaces the as-of date for each number so readers can trace any figure back to the source release.

For readers using this page as a decision input, the related-entity pages elsewhere on the site provide the comparison set. The most useful comparison for this entity is typically a peer within U.S. cities, counties, and states with similar size, similar exposure, or similar geography — not the national-level summary alone.

Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.