New Bedford vs New Haven
The short version
- New Bedford is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 3% lower than in the New Haven area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $287,100 in New Haven and $357,300 in New Bedford.
- New Haven is growing faster: +3.6% since 2020 vs +0.8%.
- Commutes are shorter in New Haven (22 vs 25 minutes each way).
Side by side
| New Bedford, MA | New Haven, CT | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 101,834 | 138,774 |
| Growth since 2020 | +0.8% | +3.6% |
| People per square mile | 5,091 | 7,425 |
| Median age | 37.0 | 31.9 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 17% | 39% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $56,981 | $56,851 |
| Median home value | $357,300 | $287,100 |
| Home value to income | 6.3× | 5.1× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,137 | $1,488 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 101.8 | 104.6 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 103.9 | 124.3 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $76,300 | $78,400 |
| Homeowners | 40% | 28% |
| Top state income tax | 9% | 6.99% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 6.35% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 24.7 | 21.5 |
| Work from home | 5% | 14% |
| Take public transit | 3% | 7% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 8.3% | 8.4% |
| Poverty rate | 20.6% | 23.9% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 39° / 21° | 38° / 23° |
| July high / low | 83° / 62° | 82° / 66° |
| Precipitation per year | 46 in | 42 in |
| Snowfall per year | 33 in | 34 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 7 | 6 |
| Nights below freezing | 123 | 102 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 6 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively Moderate | n/a |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 89.9 | n/a |
| Good air days, 2025 | 70% | 67% |
| Home prices, past year | +4.7% | +6% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +51.9% | +54.9% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: New Bedford: May to September. New Haven: May to October.
Full monthly tables: New Bedford weather by month and New Haven weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $76,300 in New Bedford and $78,400 in New Haven. Moving from New Bedford to New Haven, you would need about $77,100 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between New Bedford and New Haven
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from New Bedford and New Haven.
Which would you pick?
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