Town comparison · Massachusetts

Lawrence vs Methuen

North Shore · North Shore

Lawrence leads 6–0 on headline livability metrics

Across the six headline livability metrics (schools, safety, walkability, biking, affordability, and commute), Lawrence edges Methuen 6 to 0. Median homes in Lawrence run roughly $209k cheaper than in Methuen, about 33% less. Methuen is about 7 minutes closer to Boston by car at peak.

The two towns at a glance

Lawrence

North Shore · pop. 89,143

Densest MA city outside Boston, immigrant-built, mill-canal core, and a commuter rail terminus pointed straight at North Station.

Default fit score

equal weights, 0–100

Full Lawrence profile →

Methuen

North Shore · pop. 53,800

Methuen is the Merrimack Valley's most pragmatic buy: one of the most diverse communities in this dataset, sub-$625K homes, and access to both I-93 and the NH border for tax-free shopping.

Default fit score

equal weights, 0–100

Full Methuen profile →

Head-to-head: every metric

	Lawrence	Methuen
Headline
Livability index	67 ✦	48
Economics
Median home	$415k	$624k ✦
Household income	$60k	$103k ✦
Price ÷ income	6.9× ✦	6×
Tax burden	55 ✦	46
Schools & Safety
Schools	70 ✦	65
Safety	70 ✦	64
Getting around
Commute to Boston	45 min ✦	38 min
Walkability	65 ✦	42
Transit	38 ✦	22
Biking	32 ✦	25
Lifestyle
Dining	83 ✦	48
Nightlife	83 ✦	28
Arts & culture	70 ✦	22
Green space	50 ✦	28
Community
Diversity	87 ✦	42
Climate	68	72 ✦
5-yr trend	70 ✦	58

Clay = wins this metric. Direction matters: lower median home and shorter commute are better; everything else, higher is better.

Compare on your terms

These winners are based on a neutral, equal weighting of every metric. Your priorities are not neutral. Open Lawrence vs Methuen in the interactive atlas to tune schools, walkability, affordability, commute, and seven more dimensions, and watch the verdict change.

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About this comparison

Bay State Atlas ranks 194 Massachusetts towns using public data (Census ACS, MA DESE schools, Walk Score, MA Department of Revenue tax data, and the FBI UCR safety index) normalized to 0–100. Every weight is editable. This page is a static, indexable snapshot. The live tool is faster and lets you customize what counts.