Barnstable Town, Massachusetts
Area Profile
49,568 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Barnstable Town, in Barnstable County.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 14 sourcesUnemployment is 3.9% and median household income $91,982, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured.
In the public schools here, 54% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 10.6 students for every teacher.
Residential permitting has slowed: 101 units authorized over the past twelve months, 63% below the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.
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
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 3.9%, lower than in 65% of the 4,226 measured US cities.
Employment fell 3.9% over the past year, to 29,191 employed residents.
42% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 83% of measured US cities.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsBarnstable County, MA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $147,692 | 99th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftBarnstable County, MA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $112,978 | 89th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$6,3602024 ACS 5-Year | $91,982 | Top 23%of 29,223 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$3,9502024 ACS 5-Year | $56,079 | Top 12%of 31,420 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 7.0% | Top 33%of 31,773 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±1.5 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 25.3 min | Top 42%of 31,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 42.1% | Top 17%of 31,919 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 74.3% | 40th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 29,191 | Bottom 35%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | −1.0% | Bottom 40%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | −3.9% | Bottom 3%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 30,365 | 34th percentileof 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 83.8% | Top 29%of 31,513 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Mean annual wageBarnstable Town, MA Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $69,930 | Top 45%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Median annual wageBarnstable Town, MA Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $56,360 | Top 29%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Public transit to work ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.4% | 87th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | +0.3% | Bottom 29%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 3.9% | Top 35%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 12.3% | 69th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
Median household income, successive ACS releases
Largest occupations — Barnstable Town, MA
| Occupation | People employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Retail Salespersons | 3,650 | $36,790 |
| General and Operations Managers | 3,210 | $100,590 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 2,970 | $38,380 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 2,950 | $36,100 |
| Cashiers | 2,650 | $36,640 |
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 2,300 | $42,520 |
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.
54% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 59% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 10.6 students for every full-time teacher across 10 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnstable High | Barnstable | 1,652 | 10.7 | 46% | 55% |
| Sturgis Charter Public School · charter | Sturgis Charter Public | 825 | 9.4 | 89% | 88% |
| Barnstable United Elementary School | Barnstable | 714 | 10.7 | 44% | 47% |
| Barnstable Intermediate School | Barnstable | 642 | 10.2 | 45% | 50% |
| West Villages Elementary School | Barnstable | 416 | 13.0 | 57% | 62% |
| Hyannis West Elementary | Barnstable | 309 | 8.8 | 37% | 42% |
| Barnstable Community Innovation School | Barnstable | 293 | 11.3 | — | — |
| Centerville Elementary | Barnstable | 267 | 11.1 | 62% | 67% |
| West Barnstable Elementary | Barnstable | 237 | 9.9 | 47% | 57% |
| Enoch Cobb Early Learning Center | Barnstable | 150 | 21.4 | — | — |
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.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →Prices for everything a household buys run about 6% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 106.5, 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 Barnstable Town, MA Metro Area is up 53% over five years, and up 4.3% 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 $3,975 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.66% 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 $1,917 a month.
A median home at $602,500 costs 5.4 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $112,093, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.
Prices here run about 6% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.
Published for the Barnstable Town, MA 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.
The figures above are measured against Barnstable Town’s median household income of $91,982, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of living indexthe Barnstable Town, MA Metro Area’s figure2023 | 106.5 | Bottom 31%of 3,700 | 2023 |
| Home price change (1 year)the Barnstable Town, MA Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +4.3% | 70th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the Barnstable Town, MA Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +53.2% | 86th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the Barnstable Town, MA Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +111.2% | 78th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year | 5.4 | Bottom 7%of 26,815 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 75.7% | 49th percentileof 31,717 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±5032024 ACS 5-Year | 27,656 | 98th percentileof 32,177 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median gross rent ±$1272024 ACS 5-Year | $1,917 | Bottom 9%of 23,120 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$14,2662024 ACS 5-Year | $602,500 | 92nd percentileof 29,111 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$1522024 ACS 5-Year | $3,975 | 83rd percentileof 26,440 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$8,3432024 ACS 5-Year | $112,093 | Top 19%of 27,548 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.03%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.66% | 25th percentileof 20,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 37.5% | Bottom 15%of 22,950 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±5832024 ACS 5-Year | 5,366 | 99th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 19.4% | 92nd percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 3.2% | 28th percentileof 31,769 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±5492024 ACS 5-Year | 6,243 | 99th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 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.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
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 49,831 in 2024.
66% of the 101 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses.
Federal tax returns show that people moving in from elsewhere in the US and people moving out roughly balanced across Barnstable County, which contains Barnstable Town, in the most recent year. Households that moved in reported an average income of $147,692, above the $112,978 of households that moved out.
At 2.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Middlesex County, MA 1,109 people · 11% of arrivals
- Norfolk County, MA 949 people · 9.8% of arrivals
- Plymouth County, MA 864 people · 9.0% of arrivals
- Suffolk County, MA 560 people · 5.8% of arrivals
- Worcester County, MA 501 people · 5.2% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Plymouth County, MA 1,264 people · 13% of departures
- Middlesex County, MA 576 people · 6.1% of departures
- Suffolk County, MA 523 people · 5.5% of departures
- Norfolk County, MA 512 people · 5.4% of departures
- Bristol County, MA 464 people · 4.9% 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 Barnstable County, MA. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 81°F and January a low of 24°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 44.7 inches.
Air quality measures a median index of 36, in the Good band, and one day a year passes 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| 90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year | 46 | 2024 calendar year |
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 44.7" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 24°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 81°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 5 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year | 1 | 2024 calendar year |
| Median air quality index2024 calendar year | 36 | 2024 calendar year |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 41°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Air quality
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
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and coastal flooding, with inland flooding alone responsible for 54% 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.
Low or minimal exposure: inland flooding, earthquake, hail, strong wind, wildfire, ice storm, tornado, heat wave, drought, cold wave, winter weather, volcanic activity, tsunami, 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.
These are deaths, not offenses — they say nothing about burglary, theft or assault.
Barnstable County has a modeled homicide rate of about 0.9 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, lower than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.
Firearm deaths of all intents run at 4.3 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.
Drug overdose deaths run at 12.9 per 100,000 residents in Barnstable County.
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.
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 Barnstable Town (Barnstable County) rather than Barnstable Town itself. They are shown and not scored. How to read 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.
- Reported crime
- Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. Either no municipal department reports for this place — many smaller communities are policed by the county — or its department did not report every month of the year. Either way there is no figure to show. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
- 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
2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Rhode Island TF Green Intl at 55 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 94.3% | Top 28%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 55 mi | Bottom 10%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 2 | Bottom 8%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 3.7% | Top 29%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island TF Green Intl | PVD | 55 mi | 8,700 ft |
| General Edward Lawrence Logan Intl | BOS | 59 mi | 10,083 ft |
| Manchester Boston Rgnl | MHT | 104 mi | 9,250 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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Other cities in Barnstable Town, MA
Same metropolitan area, measured the same way| City | County | Population | Area Score | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Yarmouth | Barnstable County | 11,552 | 50 | South Yarmouth vs Barnstable Town |
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.
Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyCompare
Put Barnstable Town side by side with a similar place.
Moving to Barnstable Town from somewhere else?
You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.
Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Housing | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics | 2025 OEWS |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Safety | U.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 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Climate | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System Daily Air Quality Index by county | 2024 calendar year |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA 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.
ZIP codes in Barnstable Town
8 ZIP areasEvery ZIP area in Barnstable Town with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Barnstable Town closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.