Bay State Atlas
Massachusetts Living Index

Reading

Greater Boston · pop. 25,612

Strong schools, a walkable downtown, and a 30-minute train to North Station.

Family Suburb
Livability Index
64
/ 100
Ranks #80 of 194 MA towns

The numbers

Median home
$809k
4.9× household income
Household income
$164k
ACS median
Commute to Boston
24 min
peak driving
Population
25,612
5-yr trend 75/100

How Reading scores

Schools
85
Safety
80
Walkability
44
Transit
38
Biking
35
Dining
60
Nightlife
26
Arts & Culture
35
Green Space
76
Diversity
67
Climate
74

Who lives in Reading

U.S. Census ACS 2018–2022 estimates. Rounded.

Median age
44.2
Foreign-born
8.5%
Bachelor's or higher
64.6%
Population
25k
White86%
Hispanic / Latino4.4%
Asian6.4%
Black0.4%
Other / multi2.8%

Schools in Reading

Reading School District. Massachusetts DESE FY2024 (FY2025 graduation rates).

Overall vs MA
Top 25% in MA
81/100
ELA · 3-8
p86
61.5%
Math · 3-8
p84
63.6%
ELA · 10
p73
72.6%
Math · 10
p73
67.3%
Grad rate
98.5%
Top 25% in MA
Spend / pupil
$20.1k
Bottom 25%
Teachers / 100
7.8
Bottom 25%
Enrollment
3,850

Source: Massachusetts DESE Education-to-Career Research and Data Hub. Percentile ranks against 194 MA towns in our index.

The honest read

Best for
School-focused families who don't want to pay Lexington prices.
The tradeoff
Downtown is small and nightlife is essentially nonexistent.

You've now seen the honest read. Here's what most sites don't give you.

Want more context on Reading than a page can hold?

I can tell you which streets trade differently, what actually shows up under $0.8M, and whether the schools story matches what you'd want for your kid. I reply personally, within 1 business day, no auto-dialer.

Compare on your terms

These scores reflect a neutral weighting. Your priorities are not neutral. Open the full atlas to tune schools, walkability, affordability, commute, and seven more dimensions, and see where Reading lands for you.

Nearby towns

Bordering and adjacent Massachusetts towns near Reading.

Reading appears in

Rankings where Reading qualifies on the data. See where it lands vs the other 14 picks.

Popular comparisons

Common head‑to‑heads people search when looking at Reading.

Want my honest read on Reading?

I'm Gary Fikes, a licensed real estate agent at MP Signature Realty and the curator of this site. Tell me what you're looking for and I'll reply personally within 1 business day. No auto-dialer, no spam, no resale.