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Data on this report is based on areas within the legal city boundary, outlined in black on the map. Any additional neighborhoods shown on the map are associated with the city by name and are included for reference only.

Arlington, MA
Real Estate & Demographic Data






Arlington profile


Living in Arlington



Arlington is a medium-sized town located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 45,522 people and nine associated neighborhoods, Arlington is the 30th largest community in Massachusetts. Much of the housing stock in Arlington was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic towns in the country.

Arlington home prices are not only among the most expensive in Massachusetts, but Arlington real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Also of interest is that Arlington has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

And if you like science, one thing you'll find is that Arlington has lots of scientists living in town - whether they be life scientists, physical scientists (like astronomers), or social scientists (like geographers!). So, if you're scientific-minded, you might like it here too.

Of important note, Arlington is also a town of artists. Arlington has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Arlington’s character.

Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 26.29% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

In addition, Arlington is home to many people who could be described as "urban sophisticates". Urban sophisticates are people who are both educated and wealthy, and thus tend to be older, richer, and more established than young professionals. "Urban sophisticates" is not just about being educated and well-off financially: it is a point of view and state of mind, one that you might call 'urbaneness'. But such people can and do regularly live in small towns, suburbs and rural areas, as well as in big cities. They read, support the arts and high-end shops, and love travel.

One downside of living in Arlington is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Arlington, the average commute to work is 33.17 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the town, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative. In addition, it is also a pedestrian-friendly town. Many of Arlington’s neighborhoods are dense enough and have amenities close enough together that people find it feasible to get around on foot.

For the size of the town, public transportation in Arlington is quite heavily used. Mostly, people who use it for their daily commute are taking the subway. For Arlington, the benefits are reduced air pollution and congestion on the highways.

Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to Arlington, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. Arlington is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 74.37% of its adults having a college degree or even advanced degree, compared to a national average across all communities of 21.84%.

The per capita income in Arlington in 2022 was $77,043, which is wealthy relative to Massachusetts and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $308,172 for a family of four.

Arlington is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Arlington home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Arlington residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Arlington include Irish, Italian, English, German, and Polish.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Arlington's cultural character, accounting for 18.48% of the town’s population.

The most common language spoken in Arlington is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese and Spanish.