Amesbury, Massachusetts

Area Profile

17,403 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Amesbury, in Essex County.

62out of 100
Area Score
Top 39% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 15 sources
OpportunityTop 41% of 4,199 cities measured60
SchoolsTop 41% of 4,162 cities measured57
Growth2,489th of 4,224 cities measured46
Housing affordability3,356th of 4,218 cities measured50
Climate3,148th of 4,225 cities measured63
Physical resilienceTop 27% of 4,226 cities measured78
Access2,665th of 4,226 cities measured89
Economic stabilityTop 21% of 4,226 cities measured71
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.1% and median household income $103,554, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured.

In the public schools here, 50% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 12.0 students for every teacher. Math proficiency and 1 other measure here are published for Essex County, MA, which contains Amesbury, rather than for Amesbury alone.

16 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 13% of the prior year — steady rather than turning. The change in permitting is published for Essex County, MA, which contains Amesbury, rather than for Amesbury alone.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
17,403
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$103,554
Top 16% nationally
Density
1,416/sq mi
12.3 sq mi of land
Median age
43.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Massachusetts
Nearest major airport
MHT
25 mi · Manchester Boston Rgnl
Median home value
$519,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.1%, lower than in 58% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment fell 1.6% over the past year, to 9,616 employed residents.

45% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 85% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsEssex County, MA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$105,19386th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftEssex County, MA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$100,47085th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$11,6322024 ACS 5-Year$103,554Top 16%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$5,1222024 ACS 5-Year$58,352Top 11%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year7.2%Top 34%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.9 min2024 ACS 5-Year31.2 minBottom 29%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year44.8%Top 15%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year71.2%31st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 20269,616Bottom 2%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026−0.5%Bottom 46%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−1.6%Bottom 33%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202610,0312nd percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year85.7%Top 21%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageBoston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$89,620Top 10%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageBoston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$66,620Top 10%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.6%2024 ACS 5-Year0.9%84th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−0.2%Top 44%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20264.1%Top 42%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year17.4%81st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/075.12.5
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.1% in July 2026. It has been rising, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

Largest occupations — Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Home Health and Personal Care Aides72,420$40,910
General and Operations Managers70,950$133,800
Registered Nurses64,240$106,180
Retail Salespersons64,150$36,850
Fast Food and Counter Workers60,130$36,290
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners43,160$46,550

Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

50% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 52% in reading, across the schools here that reported results. Math proficiency and 1 other measure here are published for Essex County, MA, which contains Amesbury, rather than for Amesbury alone.

There are 12.0 students for every full-time teacher, fewer than in most measured places. The student-teacher ratio is published for Essex County, MA, which contains Amesbury, rather than for Amesbury alone.

Public schools
—
Students per teacher
12.0
Math proficiency
49.9%
Top 48% in Massachusetts
Reading proficiency
52.3%
Bottom 44% in Massachusetts

The proficiency and staffing figures above are for Essex County, MA: too few schools in Amesbury reported a usable figure on their own to weight one honestly.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Massachusetts’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 10% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 110.4, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Cambridge-Newton-Framingham, MA Metropolitan Division is up 40% over five years, and up 2.8% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $7,360 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.42% of the median home value.

The typical renter household here spends 38% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,683 a month.

A median home at $519,300 costs 3.8 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $137,852, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
110.4

Prices here run about 10% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.

Rent as a share of income
37.7%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.8×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Median gross rent
$1,683
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$519,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Amesbury’s median household income of $103,554, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Metro Area’s figure2023110.4Bottom 22%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Cambridge-Newton-Framingham, MA Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+2.8%45th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Cambridge-Newton-Framingham, MA Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+39.7%40th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Cambridge-Newton-Framingham, MA Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+88.3%42nd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.52024 ACS 5-Year3.8Bottom 20%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year68.6%35th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±3352024 ACS 5-Year7,92392nd percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$1152024 ACS 5-Year$1,683Bottom 15%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$32,2542024 ACS 5-Year$519,30089th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$2612024 ACS 5-Year$7,36097th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$17,0182024 ACS 5-Year$137,852Top 9%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.10%2024 ACS 5-Year1.42%74th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year37.7%Bottom 14%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±692024 ACS 5-Year6385th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.8%60th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year3.5%29th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1692024 ACS 5-Year33785th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.

Development Momentum

46/ 100
Ranks 2,489 of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was downward, in a series running from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 2% since 2020, reaching 17,617 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 16 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show Essex County, which contains Amesbury, lost about 0.4% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $105,193, close to the $100,470 of households that moved out.

At 0.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
16
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.9
Bottom 24% nationally
Year over year
+13%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202418k17k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been rising for the last 2 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
−0.4%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
43%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$105,193
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$100,470
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Middlesex County, MA 7,552 people · 30% of arrivals
  2. Suffolk County, MA 4,352 people · 18% of arrivals
  3. Rockingham County, NH 1,280 people · 5.2% of arrivals
  4. Norfolk County, MA 748 people · 3.0% of arrivals
  5. Hillsborough County, NH 627 people · 2.5% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Middlesex County, MA 6,252 people · 23% of departures
  2. Suffolk County, MA 2,736 people · 10.0% of departures
  3. Rockingham County, NH 2,649 people · 9.7% of departures
  4. Hillsborough County, NH 1,041 people · 3.8% of departures
  5. Worcester County, MA 986 people · 3.6% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Essex County, MA. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 83°F and January a low of 19°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 40.9 inches.

Air quality measures a median index of 37, in the Good band, and about 4 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station LAWRENCE MUNI AP, 12.6 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.1"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year582024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals40.9"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals19°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals83°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year42024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year372024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals46°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
37
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
58
90th percentile index
Days above 100
4
unhealthy for sensitive groups

A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

78 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, coastal flooding and hurricane, with inland flooding alone responsible for 63% of it. Inland flooding is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

Overall hazard risk is lower than 73% of measured US cities.

Coastal floodingHigh
Ice stormModerate
EarthquakeElevated
HurricaneElevated
Heat waveModerate
DroughtModerate

Low or minimal exposure: inland flooding, lightning, tornado, strong wind, cold wave, landslide, wildfire, winter weather, hail, tsunami, volcanic activity, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
91
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
545
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Amesbury's police department reported 91 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 545.

Essex County records 1.7 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, lower than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 3.2 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 19.9 per 100,000 residents in Essex County.

Homicide
1.7
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
3.2
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
19.9
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
7.2
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Amesbury’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Amesbury (Essex County) rather than Amesbury itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Manchester Boston Rgnl at 25 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year94.2%Top 29%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle25 miBottom 35%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle4Bottom 38%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year3.5%Top 28%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Manchester Boston RgnlMHT25 mi9,250 ft
General Edward Lawrence Logan IntlBOS34 mi10,083 ft
Rhode Island TF Green IntlPVD82 mi8,700 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
62
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—

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Other cities in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
BostonSuffolk County666,44262Boston vs Amesbury
CambridgeMiddlesex County118,79670Cambridge vs Amesbury
LowellMiddlesex County118,36860Lowell vs Amesbury
BrocktonPlymouth County105,38651
QuincyNorfolk County102,11469
LynnEssex County101,70954
NewtonMiddlesex County89,04472
LawrenceEssex County88,73648
SomervilleMiddlesex County81,03666
FraminghamMiddlesex County72,39963
HaverhillEssex County67,69856
MaldenMiddlesex County65,90663

Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.

Compare

Put Amesbury side by side with a similar place.

Amesbury vs MilfordAmesbury vs Saugus

Moving to Amesbury from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.