Medford is a larger medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 65,399 people and 14 associated neighborhoods, Medford is the 21st largest community in Massachusetts. Much of the housing stock in Medford was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country.

Medford home prices are not only among the most expensive in Massachusetts, but Medford real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Also of interest is that Medford has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 18.55% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

One thing that you will notice about Medford is that there is a good-sized population of people who are young, single, educated, and upwardly-mobile career starters. Many singles consider Medford a good place to live without being in a really big city, with opportunities for friendships and fun with others like themselves.

Medford is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities.

One downside of living in Medford is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Medford, the average commute to work is 32.37 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the city, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative. In addition, it is also a pedestrian-friendly city. Many of Medford’s neighborhoods are dense enough and have amenities close enough together that people find it feasible to get around on foot.

Like elsewhere in America, most people in Medford use a private automobile to get to work. But notably, a substantial number of Medford‘s citizens do make use of public transit in their daily commute, primarily riding the subway. This helps more people get to work with less air pollution, and require fewer highways to get them there.

If knowledge is power, Medford is a pretty powerful place. 55.96% of the adults in Medford have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns.

The per capita income in Medford in 2022 was $58,522, which is upper middle income relative to Massachusetts, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $234,088 for a family of four. However, Medford contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Medford is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Medford home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Medford residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Medford include Irish, Italian, English, German, and Haitian.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Medford's cultural character, accounting for 23.62% of the city’s population.

The most common language spoken in Medford is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and French.