Community & Data
Demographics
A Portrait of Arlington
Arlington packs more than 46,000 people into about six square miles, which makes it one of the more densely settled towns in Massachusetts: a streetcar suburb of triple-deckers and single-family homes that fills the land between the Mystic Lakes and the Alewife corridor. It is well-off and well-educated, with a median household income above 140,000 dollars and a large share of residents born outside the United States. Figures below are from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Follow the source links for the latest.
Key Figures
Sources: US Census Bureau (data.census.gov).
Population & Households
- Under 18: 20.5%
- Population (2020 Census): 46,308
- Land area: about 5.5 sq mi
- Households: 19,853
- Persons per household: 2.3
- Foreign-born: 17.7% of residents
- Age 65 and over: 16.9%
Race & Ethnicity
- White: 76.5%
- Asian: 12.1%
- Two or more races: 7.1%
- Hispanic or Latino (any race): 5.0%
- Black or African American: 2.5%
- Speak a language other than English at home: 20.4%
Economy & Housing
- Median household income: $141,440
- Poverty rate: 5.4%
- Median home value: $885,000
- Median gross rent: $2,043
- Homeownership: 60.6% of units
- In the labor force: 73.9%
Registered Voters
Massachusetts publishes voter-registration counts by town through the Secretary of the Commonwealth. As in most of the state, Arlington’s largest bloc is voters who choose no party at all, though its Democratic share runs far above the statewide average.
- Total registered: 32,046
- Unenrolled (no party): 17,522 (54.7%)
- Democrats: 13,080 (40.8%)
- Republicans: 1,256 (3.9%)
Sources
See how Arlington fits into the broader Commonwealth.