Boston, Massachusetts demographics

Boston, MA demographics: median age 33.3; 54.9% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree. Age, race, households, languages and education, ACS 2020–2024 with margins of error.

ACS 2020–2024 · Boston city, Massachusetts · Incorporated city · GEOID 2507000. The survey estimates a population of 666,442 for its five-year window. This is separate from the annual July 2025 population estimate on the city overview.

Median age in Boston is 33.3 years, with a 90% margin of error of 0.2 years. There are 283,374 households (±1,403). Age and household distributions show how these totals are composed; they do not establish which neighborhood suits a particular person.

Every count and share is an estimate. “±” is a 90% margin of error (MOE); pp means percentage points. Derived shares use the category count divided by the named universe. Aggregated category MOEs and percentage MOEs are approximate. A margin larger than half its estimate is flagged as low precision. Blank source uncertainty is shown as unavailable, never zero.

Age distribution and sex

City, state and U.S. estimates · ACS 2020–2024
Measure / survey universe	City estimate ± MOE	State estimate ± MOE	U.S. estimate ± MOE
Median age Total population · years	33.3 ±0.2	40.0 ±0.1	38.9 ±0.1

Age groups · B01001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 666,442
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Under 18	100,638 ±1,940	15.1% ±0.3 pp	19.4%	22.0%
18–34	253,484 ±2,323	38.0% ±0.3 pp	23.9%	22.8%
35–64	225,396 ±2,923	33.8% ±0.4 pp	38.9%	38.0%
65 and older	86,924 ±2,147	13.0% ±0.3 pp	17.9%	17.2%

Sex categories as published by ACS · B01001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 666,442
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Male	319,682 ±1,065	48.0% ±0.2 pp	48.9%	49.5%
Female	346,760 ±1,068	52.0% ±0.2 pp	51.1%	50.5%

The age groups are mutually exclusive and cover the entire population. The sex categories follow this ACS table’s published classification; they are not a survey of gender identity.

Race and Hispanic origin

Race · B02001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 666,442
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
White alone	308,273 ±2,601	46.3% ±0.4 pp	68.6%	61.0%
Black or African American alone	136,382 ±2,838	20.5% ±0.4 pp	6.8%	12.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native alone	1,991 ±455	0.3% ±0.1 pp	0.2%	0.9%
Asian alone	69,022 ±1,123	10.4% ±0.2 pp	7.3%	6.0%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone	455 ±205	0.1% ±0.0 pp	0.0%	0.2%
Some other race alone	48,523 ±3,093	7.3% ±0.5 pp	5.8%	7.1%
Two or more races	101,796 ±4,001	15.3% ±0.6 pp	11.1%	12.6%

Hispanic or Latino origin · B03003 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 666,442
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Not Hispanic or Latino	537,986 ±2,099	80.7% ±0.3 pp	86.7%	80.7%
Hispanic or Latino	128,456 ±2,102	19.3% ±0.3 pp	13.3%	19.3%

Hispanic origin and race are separate questions. People of Hispanic or Latino origin may be of any race and appear in both tables. Do not add the Hispanic share to race shares. Race alone and two-or-more-race groups are the mutually exclusive categories of the race table.

Household types, children and living alone

Household types · B11001 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 283,374
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Married-couple family	78,201 ±2,150	27.6% ±0.7 pp	45.9%	46.9%
Other family: male householder, no spouse present	11,137 ±903	3.9% ±0.3 pp	4.7%	5.1%
Other family: female householder, no spouse present	39,790 ±1,512	14.0% ±0.5 pp	11.9%	12.2%
Nonfamily: householder living alone	105,432 ±2,355	37.2% ±0.8 pp	28.8%	28.7%
Nonfamily: householder not living alone	48,814 ±1,438	17.2% ±0.5 pp	8.9%	7.0%

Households with children · B11005 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 283,374
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Households with people under 18	55,964 ±1,504	19.7% ±0.5 pp	27.9%	29.5%
Households without people under 18	227,410 ±1,936	80.3% ±0.6 pp	72.1%	70.5%

Household size · B11016 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 283,374
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
One-person nonfamily households	105,432 ±2,355	37.2% ±0.8 pp	28.8%	28.7%
Two-person households	93,985 ±2,459	33.2% ±0.9 pp	33.3%	33.8%
Three-person households	41,146 ±1,638	14.5% ±0.6 pp	16.5%	15.3%
Four-person households	25,393 ±1,318	9.0% ±0.5 pp	13.5%	12.6%
Five-person households	11,170 ±947	3.9% ±0.3 pp	5.2%	5.9%
Six-person households	3,769 ±615	1.3% ±0.2 pp	1.8%	2.2%
Seven or more people	2,479 ±385	0.9% ±0.1 pp	0.9%	1.4%

A family household contains related people under the Census definition. A nonfamily household can contain one person or unrelated people sharing a home. Households with children can also appear in the household-type and size tables, so those tables must not be added together. Household estimates exclude people living in group quarters from the household universe.

Nativity and languages spoken at home

Nativity · B05002 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 666,442
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Native	480,944 ±3,958	72.2% ±0.6 pp	82.0%	85.9%
Foreign born	185,498 ±3,955	27.8% ±0.6 pp	18.0%	14.1%

Language spoken at home · C16001 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 5 and older: 635,495
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
English only	409,030 ±3,967	64.4% ±0.6 pp	74.9%	77.7%
Spanish	98,171 ±2,450	15.4% ±0.4 pp	9.7%	13.6%
French, Haitian, or Cajun	26,864 ±2,344	4.2% ±0.4 pp	1.9%	0.7%
German or other West Germanic	3,138 ±573	0.5% ±0.1 pp	0.3%	0.5%
Russian, Polish, or other Slavic	5,709 ±656	0.9% ±0.1 pp	1.0%	0.7%
Other Indo-European	30,030 ±2,095	4.7% ±0.3 pp	6.1%	2.0%
Korean	3,242 ±552	0.5% ±0.1 pp	0.3%	0.3%
Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese	26,145 ±1,415	4.1% ±0.2 pp	2.2%	1.1%
Vietnamese	10,346 ±1,243	1.6% ±0.2 pp	0.7%	0.5%
Tagalog, including Filipino	973 ±335	0.2% ±0.1 pp	0.1%	0.6%
Other Asian and Pacific Island	6,155 ±781	1.0% ±0.1 pp	1.3%	1.1%
Arabic	4,335 ±898	0.7% ±0.1 pp	0.6%	0.5%
Other and unspecified	11,357 ±1,336	1.8% ±0.2 pp	1.0%	0.8%

Foreign born means not a U.S. citizen at birth; it includes naturalized citizens. Language categories describe speech at home among people age five and older. A language other than English at home does not establish that someone cannot speak English. This city page uses the published C16001 summary categories because the more detailed B16001 table does not provide these city records in this release.

Educational attainment

Highest completed education · B15003 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 25 and older: 466,805
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Less than high school graduate	51,888 ±2,339	11.1% ±0.5 pp	8.6%	10.4%
High school graduate or equivalency	84,132 ±2,368	18.0% ±0.5 pp	22.6%	26.0%
Some college, no degree	51,946 ±2,162	11.1% ±0.5 pp	14.1%	19.1%
Associate’s degree	22,666 ±1,364	4.9% ±0.3 pp	7.5%	8.8%
Bachelor’s degree	134,107 ±3,146	28.7% ±0.7 pp	25.5%	21.6%
Graduate or professional degree	122,066 ±2,990	26.1% ±0.6 pp	21.8%	14.1%

The denominator excludes residents under 25. Each person is counted in the highest attainment category they completed. This table does not measure the quality of local schools or the education level of every current student.

Residence one year earlier

Geographic mobility · B07003 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 1 and older: 659,639
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Same house	529,454 ±3,649	80.3% ±0.5 pp	88.3%	87.7%
Moved within same county	57,621 ±2,872	8.7% ±0.4 pp	5.6%	6.3%
Moved from a different county in the same state	27,768 ±1,598	4.2% ±0.2 pp	3.0%	3.1%
Moved from a different state	32,983 ±1,636	5.0% ±0.2 pp	2.2%	2.3%
Moved from abroad	11,813 ±1,217	1.8% ±0.2 pp	0.9%	0.6%

These are respondents’ residence patterns one year before their survey response, pooled across the five-year window. They are not a net migration count for 2025. A person can move to a different house within the same city or county; moves within the same county should not automatically be interpreted as new arrivals to the city.

Health insurance, internet access and veterans

2.9% of Boston residents (±0.2 percentage points) had no health insurance coverage when surveyed, compared with 2.6% in Massachusetts and 8.4% nationally. 92.0% of households subscribe to broadband of any type, including cellular data plans. A subscription is not the same as available service: the FCC National Broadband Map shows providers at a specific address.

City, state and U.S. shares · ACS 2020–2024
Measure	Boston	Massachusetts	U.S.	Compared with Massachusetts
People without health insurance Civilian noninstitutionalized population	2.9% ±0.2 pp	2.6%	8.4%	Higher
Households with a broadband subscription Households	92.0% ±0.5 pp	92.8%	91.0%	Lower
Veterans Civilian population age 18 and older	2.1% ±0.1 pp	4.3%	6.2%	Lower

Reading and reusing the estimates

The Census table links above lead to the original detailed tables. Counts, source universes and uncertainty are retained in the source observation download for Boston . Compare these figures with the same survey window; do not compare one city’s five-year estimate with another city’s annual estimate as though they measured the same period. For methods, see uncertainty and denominator calculations.

Read Boston housing and cost context or return to the city profile.