How serious are America’s mayors? · Incorporated city
Worcester, MA
211,286 people, 2024 · Census GEOID 2582000 · Census profile · mayors: being verified
Overall in 2023, Worcester ranked #232 of 340 cities and 5th of 14 in its peer group, on 8 of 9 measures. Weigh the measures yourself · how ranks are made
Its peer group is Worcester and the 13 cities most like it in 2005 (size, income, poverty, industry, growth, density, place), fixed since: Grand Rapids MI, Richmond VA, Akron OH, Bridgeport CT, Allentown PA, St. Paul MN, Norfolk VA, New Bedford MA, Lowell MA, Kansas City KS, Waterbury CT, Winston-Salem NC, Hampton VA · on the map, and why
| Topline | 2005–2024 | Latest rank | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rankamong all cities with a score that year | #232 of 340 cities · 5th of 14 in its peer group · 2023 | #262 | #244 | #254 | #282 | #237 | #273 | #260 | #273 | #269 | #259 | #308 | #288 | #243 | #243 | #258 | #172 | #226 | #237 | #232 | #234 | |
| people · size, not ranked | 178,242 | 178,990 | 179,409 | 179,696 | 180,539 | 181,759 | 182,387 | 182,575 | 183,327 | 184,559 | 184,627 | 184,859 | 185,325 | 185,555 | 185,428 | 202,475 | 205,656 | 206,602 | 209,211 | 211,286 | ||
| net movers per 100 residents · estimate · higher is better | #159 of 340 cities · 9th of 14 in its peer group | -0.2 | -0.2 | -0.4 | -0.4 | -0.1 | — | -0.2 | -0.4 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.3 | -0.4 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -0.2 | -0.4 | +0.2 | -0.4 | -0.1 | -0.2 | |
| new homes per 1,000 residents · higher is better | #102 of 271 cities with data · 3rd of 13 in its peer group with data | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.4 | — | 0.9 | 3.9 | 1.3 | 4.5 | |
| rent as % of income · lower is better | #271 of 340 cities · 10th of 14 in its peer group | 24.8% | 21.6% | 22.1% | 22.5% | 21.1% | 24.6% | 24.1% | 24.8% | 24.3% | 25.1% | 27.9% | 27.8% | 29.4% | 28.4% | 23.8% | — | 23.8% | 26.6% | 27.8% | 27.3% | |
| per 100,000 residents · lower is better | #181 of 304 cities with data · 6th of 14 in its peer group | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 6.6 | 4.4 | 4.9 | 3.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 7.0 | 4.9 | 2.9 | 5.3 | 3.8 | 7.1 | |
| per 100,000 residents · lower is better | #9 of 295 cities with data · 1st of 13 in its peer group with data | 42.6 | 44.1 | 42.9 | 46.2 | 53.7 | 66.0 | 60.9 | 65.7 | 58.4 | 81.8 | 61.7 | 70.3 | 62.6 | 62.0 | 59.9 | 69.1 | 58.8 | 72.6 | — | 6.6 | |
| jobs · size, not ranked | — | — | — | — | — | — | 88,308 | 97,749 | 99,730 | 106,574 | 104,768 | 107,529 | 108,348 | 109,534 | 109,319 | 104,213 | 102,715 | 107,895 | 109,712 | — | ||
| points ahead of the metro · higher is better | #114 of 329 cities with data · 6th of 13 in its peer group with data · 2023 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | +8.5 | -0.3 | +3.4 | -3.1 | -0.3 | +0.3 | -0.1 | -0.7 | +2.2 | -3.5 | +0.3 | +0.7 | — | |
| people · size, not ranked | — | — | — | — | — | — | 83,766 | 78,585 | 86,431 | 82,063 | 85,645 | 90,682 | 82,306 | 89,021 | 95,696 | — | 99,642 | 106,178 | 105,474 | 108,553 | ||
| % of workforce · lower is better | #258 of 340 cities · 9th of 14 in its peer group | — | — | — | — | — | — | 10.2% | 11.7% | 8.6% | 9.3% | 8.7% | 5.5% | 4.5% | 4.5% | 3.8% | — | 10.3% | 6.8% | 5.4% | 6.1% | |
| % of promises funded · not ranked: 38 cities report | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| surplus as % of revenue · higher is better | #288 of 314 cities with data · 12th of 14 in its peer group | -3% | 4% | -7% | 2% | 5% | 9% | 11% | 5% | 6% | 5% | 4% | 7% | 10% | 11% | 16% | 16% | 23% | 21% | 15% | -8% | |
| dollars per resident · lower is better | #250 of 314 cities with data · 9th of 14 in its peer group | $5,144 | $5,214 | $5,140 | $4,919 | $4,890 | $4,708 | $4,533 | $4,381 | $4,467 | $4,483 | $4,461 | $4,381 | $4,274 | $4,127 | $4,569 | $4,301 | $4,451 | $4,796 | $4,617 | $4,825 |
Click a row for its source and its rank in every year. 1st is best whichever way the measure points. A rank is out of all 340 cities, or out of its peer group of 14; where some had no value that year it says “with data” and counts only those. An em dash is a year the source does not hold for Worcester. A greyed homicide figure is a year the FBI holds as a transition year for this department. What each row is, and is not, is on the main page, with a link to every source in Sources.